14 results
Analyst Note:
This image shows a ‘120mm TB’ air-delivered bomb that has been adapted from a 120 mm mortar projectile. It is claimed by the manufacturer that this thermobaric munition offers improved fragmentation and blast effects when compared with standard (high explosive) 120 mm mortar projectiles. The “with special FUZE” marking refers to the use of the UT M18 impact fuze. Note that this munition cannot be fired from a mortar, despite the munition body showing features consistent with this use (e.g., gas-check bands). Instead of a standard mortar projectile tailboom which would contain an ignition cartridge and be perforated by flash holes, this munition is fitted with a simplified, plastic tailfin assembly that is designed to stabilise the munition as it falls after being released by a UAV. (ARES)
Analyst Note:
This photo shows some of the lithium-ion power banks found within a Gerbera UAV. These are used to power the onboard avionics, control surfaces, communications hardware, camera, and other components. The quantity and type of batteries fitted to the Gerbera will often vary based on the role for which the UAV has been configured—one-way attack (OWA; i.e., a ‘sacrificial’ munition), reconnaissance, signal relay, or decoy—and which specific hardware has been installed to effect this mission. (ARES)
Analyst Note:
This F-16I fighter aircraft from the Israeli Air Force is carrying a CATM-120 inert missile simulant (indicated). These devices are used for training purposes, being designed to replicate the weight and centre of gravity of a live munition. They lack any means of propulsion and are not released from the aircraft. The CATM-120 can be differentiated from the AIM-120 missile series by the presence of only blue bands on the missile, denoting both an inert rocket motor and an inert payload. A ‘live’ AIM-120 will have two brown bands on the rear section of the missile (the rocket motor), and a yellow band on the forward, or warhead, section. An AIM-120 with an inert warhead, but a live rocket motor, will have a blue band on the warhead and two brown bands on the rocket motor. (ARES)
Analyst Note:
This F-16I fighter aircraft from 107 Squadron Israeli Air Force is carrying a CATM-120 inert missile simulant (indicated). These devices are used for training purposes, being designed to replicate the weight and centre of gravity of a live munition. They lack any means of propulsion and are not released from the aircraft. The CATM-120 can be differentiated from the AIM-120 missile series by the presence of only blue bands on the missile, denoting both an inert rocket motor and an inert payload. A ‘live’ AIM-120 will have two brown bands on the rear section of the missile (the rocket motor), and a yellow band on the forward, or warhead, section. An AIM-120 with an inert warhead, but a live rocket motor, will have a blue band on the warhead and two brown bands on the rocket motor. (ARES)
Analyst Note:
This is an Israeli 120 mm tank gun round, of the ‘armour-piercing, fin-stabilised discarding sabot – tracer’ (APFSDS-T) type. The physical features identify it as either the M322 or M338.
The projectile (penetrator) of this round has no explosive content and relies on kinetic energy to penetrate armoured targets. When a projectile is of a smaller calibre than the gun’s bore, a sabot is sometimes used to ensure the projectile is centred in the bore and to trap the gas from the propellant of the cartridge and propel the projectile. In flight, the sabot separates into two or more pieces, sometimes called ‘petals’, often found along the line of fire before the impact point. (ARES)
Analyst Note:
The M329 is a multi-purpose tank gun projectile designed to engage a range of targets other than tanks. It is one of the few cluster munitions that takes the form of a tank gun projectile, dispensing six explosive submunitions over a relatively small area. It has also been referred to as the ‘APAM 120’, describing its functional role (‘anti-personnel/anti-materiel’) and calibre (120 mm). (ARES)
