Chance of Hit Theory

Prof James K Varkey

06 Jan 2015
Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle

1. Evolution of Convectional Configuration

2. Rear Versus Front Engine Installation
3. Oscillating or Trunnion Mounted Turrets
4. Low Frontal Area Turrets
5. Tanks with Driver in the Turret
6. Turretless Tanks
7. Externally Mounted Guns
8. Crew Pod Concept
9. Crew Arrangements
10. Cleft Turret
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Oscillating or Trunnion Mounted Turrets
 The basic feature of this type of turret is that instead of being in one piece it
consists of two parts - one above the other.
 The upper part is mounted on trunnions in the lower part and has the gun
fixed in it, so that they move together in elevation, while the lower part
rotates in azimuth on a turret bearing in the usual way.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Oscillating or Trunnion Mounted Turrets

French
•AMX-13 – Widely used light tank
•AMX-50 – Heavy tank, prototypes only
•Panhard EBR – Armoured car
Austrian
•SK-105 Kürassier – Used the 105 mm FL-12 turret of the AMX-13
United States
•T69
•T54E1 Tank, Heavy, 105mm Gun – Two prototype vehicles with 105mm guns
and autoloaders were constructed on the M48 tank chassis. They were
constructed around 1952 by United Shoe Manufacturing. One T54 had a
conventional turret, the other T54E1 an oscillating turret.
•T57 Tank, Heavy, 120mm Gun – A single prototype was constructed in the
1950s on a M103 heavy tank chassis, with a 120mm gun in an oscillating turret.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Oscillating or Trunnion Mounted Turrets
Advantage:-
 A simple and virtually foolproof system of sights for the gunner and the commander, which
were fixed in its upper part.
 Possible to mount the gun much closer to the turret roof than in any conventional turret,
because no space had to be provided under the roof for the upward movement of the
breech end of the gun. This minimised the height of the turret which had to be exposed to
fire from behind cover and, therefore, reduced the chances of it being hit in defensive
positions.
Disadvantages:-
1. The stowage of the ammunition in the turret bustle increased the risk of it being hit by
enemy fire and the two ammunition drums in the bustle could only be reloaded from
outside, through hatches in the turret roof.
2. The overhanging bustle also restricted the elevation that the oscillating turret could provide
to the gun mounted in it to 12.5".
3. The joint between the two parts of the oscillating turret was difficult to seal against
radioactive dust and airborne chemical agents, or against the entry of water if the tank was
used for the deep fording of rivers.
4. The relative movement between the two parts of the oscillating turret required their armour
to overlap to a significant extent and this made it heavier than a corresponding
conventional turret.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Turretless Tanks
 Generally gun is mounted on top of tank hulls in different types of
turrets. It is also possible that guns can be mounted directly on the
hulls.
 When the gun is mounted directly on the hull resulting vehicles are
known as turretless tanks. In some cases guns have been mounted
in hull superstructures which were in effect, fixed turrets.
 The turretless tanks have had one major feature in common,
namely very limited or even no traverse of their guns. Typically, the
traverse has been limited to 10° or, at most, 15° to either side.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Turretless Tanks
 The only operational difference between turretless tanks and the
others has been that they can not engage targets on the move
unless these happen to be within a narrow frontal arc.
 Apart from restricting the arc over which turretless tanks can engage
targets on the move, the mounting of their guns also increases the
internal volume. They need to allow for the movement of the breech
end not only in elevation, but also in azimuth.
 The installation of guns in turretless tanks is not restricted by the
diameter of the turret ring, which makes it possible to mount larger
guns in them than in turreted tanks of the same size.
 This advantage was exploited many times during the Second World
War when the need was perceived in Germany and in the Soviet
Union to mount larger guns quickly in existing vehicles.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Turretless Tanks
 This approach their overall height significantly. Some of them, such
as the JPz 4-5 produced in Germany during the mid-1960s, have
been only 1.98m high to the top of their roofs.
 There has been further interest in turretless tank when Sweden
developed S-tank between 1958 and 1961 and subsequently
produced in quantity.
 In S-Tank the gun mounting has been fixed in relation to the hull, so
that the gun can be elevated only by altering the pitch of the hull by
adjustable hydropneumatic suspension and it can only be traversed
by turning the whole vehicle.
 The steering controls have been integrated with hull pitch and gun
controls into a single unit, which makes the S-tank exceptionally easy
to operate.
 The control unit is in the form of a box with handlebars and a number
of buttons for loading and firing the armament of the tank: rotation of
the box steers the vehicle while twisting of the handlebars alters the
pitch of the hull.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Turretless Tanks
 Both the driver/gunner and the commander of the S-tank, who are
located on each side of the gun, are provided with such a control unit
as well as accelerator and brake pedals, so that either can operate it
by himself. This means that the S-tank can be operated in an
emergency by one man, which is not possible with any other tank.
 Its normal crew consists of three men, the third man being seated
behind the driver/gunner and facing rearwards. Apart from acting as a
radio operator and watching over the rear sector, the third crewman is
provided with a simplified set of driving controls so that he can drive
the S-tank backwards, giving it a unique advantage in this respect
over all other tanks.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Turretless Tanks

 Because the gun mounting is fixed close to the roof so that less of its height
needs to be exposed when firing from behind cover.
 S-tank has a relatively simple automatic loading system. It feeds ammunition
from a 50-round magazine located at the rear of the hull, where it is less
vulnerable than elsewhere and where it can be easily and quickly reloaded
from outside through two hatches in the rear hull plate.
 The engine and transmission compartment of the S-tank is at the front.
 The one major disadvantage of the S-tank is that it is not capable of
engaging targets on the move compared to other turretless tanks.
 But this disadvantage can be partially eliminated without sacrificing the
principal advantages of its configuration by adopting a semi-fixed instead of
the fixed gun mounting and by providing the gunner with an independently
stabilized sight.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Turretless Tanks

German VT-1-2 experimental turretless tank with two 120mm guns

in semi-fixed mountings. (Krupp MaK)
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Externally Mounted Guns
 The crew and all the equipment is accommodated in the hull, the frontal area
of a tank can be reduced further by mounting the gun externally, on a
pedestal.
 The gun can be on top of a manned 'pancake' turret, the top of which is
almost flush with the roof of the hull, or directly on the hull, in which case the
gun has to be traversed by remote control.

British COMRES 75 Test vehicle

 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Externally Mounted Guns
 Both types of pedestal mountings require the gun to be loaded
automatically and several different ways of doing this have been devised.
 The simplest involves locating a number of rounds in a magazine fixed to
the gun mounting.
 The advantage of this solution is that there is no relative motion between
the magazine and the gun, so that loading is simple.
 The advantages of relative simplicity which pedestal mountings of this kind
offered were offset by the vulnerability of the ammunition located by the
gun and this arrangement was not adopted.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
14
Externally Mounted Guns

Teledyne Armoured Gun System with an externally

mounted 105mm gun
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Oscillating or Trunnions-Mounted Turrets
 The basic feature of this type of turret is that instead of being in
one piece it consists of two parts - one above the other.
 The upper part is mounted on trunnions in the lower part and has
the gun fixed in it, so that they move together in elevation, while the
lower part rotates in azimuth on a turret bearing in the usual way.
16

AMX-50/120 SK-105 Kürassier

AMX-13
T-69
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Oscillating or Trunnions-Mounted Turrets

French
•AMX-13 – Widely used light tank
•AMX-50 – Heavy tank, prototypes only
•Panhard EBR – Armoured car
Austrian
•SK-105 Kürassier – Used the 105 mm FL-12 turret of the AMX-13
United States
•T69
•T54E1 Tank, Heavy, 105mm Gun – Two prototype vehicles with 105mm guns
and autoloaders were constructed on the M48 tank chassis. They were
constructed around 1952 by United Shoe Manufacturing. One T54 had a
conventional turret, the other T54E1 an oscillating turret.
•T57 Tank, Heavy, 120mm Gun – A single prototype was constructed in the
1950s on a M103 heavy tank chassis, with a 120mm gun in an oscillating
turret.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Oscillating or Trunnions-Mounted Turrets..

Advantage:-
 A simple and virtually foolproof system of sights for the gunner and the
commander, which were fixed in its upper part.
 Possible to mount the gun much closer to the turret roof than in any
conventional turret, because no space had to be provided under the roof
for the upward movement of the breech end of the gun. This minimised
the height of the turret which had to be exposed to fire from behind cover
and, therefore, reduced the chances of it being hit in defensive positions.
Disadvantages:-
1. The stowage of the ammunition in the turret bustle increased the risk of it
being hit by enemy fire and the two ammunition drums in the bustle could
only be reloaded from outside, through hatches in the turret roof.
2. The overhanging bustle also restricted the elevation that the oscillating
turret could provide to the gun mounted in it to 12.5".
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
3. The joint between the two parts of the oscillating turret was difficult to
seal against radioactive dust and airborne chemical agents, or against the
entry of water if the tank was used for the deep fording of rivers.
4. The relative movement between the two parts of the oscillating turret
required their armour to overlap to a significant extent and this made it
heavier than a corresponding conventional turret
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Cleft Turret

It is a type of turret where the gun is set between the two turret crewmen,
one either side.
The cleft turret has a shape rather as if one had taken half an orange, placed it
on a flat plate and then pressed a pencil down into it so that the upper part of
the pencil was level with the orange.
Advantage.
1. The gun can depress fully without the constraint of the turret roof.
2. If the height of the turret roof, or strictly speaking the height of the turret
either side of the cleft can be reduced then the weight of armour required to
provide the desired level of protection can also be reduced.
3. As the gun is lying in the cleft of the turret and gun recoil is not constrained
by turret ring diameter, it may be possible to reduce the size of the tank.
 Modern Trends in Combat Vehicle
Cleft Turret
4. As the breech of the gun is lying in the valley between the two sides of
the turret it is afforded a measure of protection.
5. As two identical crew stations are required, crew duties, particularly for
surveillance, can be relatively easily exchanged.
Design for Nuclear, Biologocal
and Chemical Protection

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