25 mm caliber
{{Short description|Specific size of autocannon ammunition}}
{{Multiple Issues|
{{No footnotes|date=May 2021}}
{{More citations needed|date=April 2025}}
}}
25 mm caliber is a range of autocannon ammunition. It includes the NATO standardized Swiss 25×137mm, the Swiss 25×184mm, the Soviet 25x218mmSR, and the Chinese 25×183mmB.
Usage
The 25 mm round can be used for anti-materiel or anti-personnel purposes. In the anti-personnel role, a 25 mm HE rounds can kill large numbers of opposing troops either in the open or in light fortifications. In the anti-materiel role, a 25 mm weapon armed with armor-piercing rounds can disable many types of aircraft and ground vehicles, including some main battle tanks.
The US military uses 25 mm weapons in their AV-8B Harrier, AC-130 gunship, M2 Bradley, LAV-25, F-35 Lightning II and as a standard ship-based munition in the Mk 38 autocannon.
Types of 25 mm ammunition
File:Japanese 25 x 163 mm ammunition.jpg
Several sub-types of the NATO 25 mm ammunition are available—the most common being armor-piercing, high-explosive, sabot, tracer, and practice rounds. Cartridges are usually composed of a combination of the aforementioned categories. For example, the M791 is an armor-piercing discarding sabot with tracer (APDS-T) round. It is used against lightly armored vehicles, self-propelled artillery, and aerial targets such as helicopters and slow-moving fixed-wing aircraft.
25 mm weapons
=Current weapons=
| class="wikitable"
! style="width: 100px;" | Weapon ! style="width: 150px;" | Country of origin ! style="width: 150px;" | Designer ! style="width: 100px;" | Cartridge ! style="width: 150px;" | Type |
| Oerlikon KBA
| {{flag|Switzerland}} | 25×137mm |
| M242 Bushmaster
| {{flag|United States}} | 25×137mm |
| GAU-12/22 Equalizer
| {{flag|United States}} | 25×137mm |
| GIAT M811
| {{flag|France}} | 25×137mm | Autocannon |
| Oerlikon KBB
| {{flag|Switzerland}} | 25×184mm | Autocannon |
| Oerlikon KBD
| {{flag|Switzerland}} | 25×184mm | Autocannon |
| Type 61
| {{flag|China}} | | 25×218mmSR | Anti-aircraft autocannon |
| Type 95 SPAAA
| {{flag|China}} | | 25×183mmB | Anti-aircraft autocannon |
| ZPT-90
| {{flag|China}} | | 25×183mmB | Autocannon |
=Historical weapons=
| class="wikitable"
! style="width: 100px;" | Weapon ! style="width: 150px;" | Country of origin ! style="width: 150px;" | Designer ! style="width: 100px;" | Cartridge ! style="width: 150px;" | Type |
| 25 mm Hotchkiss anti-aircraft gun/Type 96 25 mm AT/AA gun
| {{flag|France}} | 25×163mm | Anti-aircraft autocannon |
| 25 mm Hotchkiss anti-tank gun
| {{flag|France}} | 25×193.5mmR |
| 25 mm M1940 anti-aircraft gun
| {{flag|Soviet Union}} | Mikhail Loginov and Lev Loktev | 25×218mmSR | Anti-tank gun |
| 25 mm Bofors M/32 anti-aircraft gun
| {{flag|Sweden}} | Bofors | 25x205mmR (initial) or 25x187mmR (later) | Anti-aircraft autocannon |
See also
Further reading
- U.S. Army Field Manual 3-22.1
External links
- [http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/25.htm Federation of American Scientists: 25mm Ammunition]
- [https://www.denix.osd.mil/denix/Public/Library/Explosives/UXOSafety/Photogallery/Small/smallmun.html UXO Safety Information]{{Dead link|date=April 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}