MOSCOW, (BM) – The range of guaranteed destruction of targets by prototypes of Russian electromagnetic guns in the framework of the ongoing field tests was brought up to 10 km, previously they could effectively shoot at a distance of 1-2 km, learned BulgarianMilitary.com citing TASS.
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“Tests of electromagnetic weapons have been going on since 2015, the last firing range from EMP guns [EMR – electromagnetic pulse – ed.] took place in the spring. Currently, the average effective range of electromagnetic guns firing at air targets is 7-8 km, the maximum is approximately 10,” one of the agency’s interlocutors said.
He clarified that at the initial stage, the defeat range was only “a couple of kilometers.”
Another source told TASS that “the destruction of aircraft at a distance of 10 km is provided by burning electronic components of their on-board equipment.”
The interlocutor added that the shot of the electromagnetic gun lasts a millisecond and, given the distance to the target, reaches it instantly, since electromagnetic radiation propagates at the speed of light.
Sources noted that in tests Russian EMP guns burned various devices on the ground without the possibility of recovery, and also effectively destroyed unmanned aerial vehicles.
According to the interlocutors, the main problem of such weapons today remains the need for large volumes of electricity, so a mobile shock EMP complex in the near future will not be possible to create.
The difference with electronic warfare systems
The interlocutors also explained that it is necessary to distinguish the defeat caused by an EMP weapon from the suppression of enemy electronics, which is provided by electronic warfare systems [EW].
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Most modern electronic warfare systems can suppress electronics at ranges of several hundred kilometers, however, they have incomparably lower power and do not incapacitate devices. EMP guns, in contrast, destroy equipment on a physical level.
For future fighters
In EMP guns, electromagnetic pulse [electromagnetic radiation – ed.] of superhigh frequency, also called electromagnetic “shot”, is used as a damaging factor. The radiation of an electromagnetic gun in a split second heats the affected object to extremely high temperatures.
In particular, it is planned to equip an unmanned version of a 6th generation fighter with such weapons. On a manned aircraft, electromagnetic weapons are dangerous to use, as they can cause harm to one’s own pilot.
China develops electrodynamic mass accelerator guns
China is working on electromagnetic technology to create electromagnetic weapons for its armed forces. The technical capabilities of these weapons were recently opened to the general public for the first time at a demonstration session.
Electromagnetic weapons, with variations on the design of an electromagnetic pistol, rifle, and weapons for a ground-based robot, developed by the PLA Army Logistic University [called the “Small Synchronous Induction Coilguns” – SSIC project].
This was reported by the Chinese military news website js7tv.cn. The report said that SSIC is, in fact, a miniature portable electromagnetic rail weapon [also called railguns or railguns], is considered a promising weapon for soldiers.
In many countries, the development of electromagnetic weapons for the army. Based on the demo video, bullets from such rifles can easily penetrate through several wooden plates and thin steel plates at a relatively close distance.
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Unlike conventional firearms, which use gunpowder burning to push a bullet out of a gun’s barrel at a high speed, a rail gun uses electromagnetic force to accelerate a bullet as it moves along two parallel electrodes called rails.
Compact weapons are powered by removable magazines. The caliber of bullets was not disclosed, but it is indicated that they are small-caliber.
The term railgun was proposed back in the late 1950s by the Soviet academician Lev Artsimovich to replace the existing cumbersome name “electrodynamic mass accelerator”.
The reason for developing such devices, which are a promising weapon, was that, according to experts, the use of gunpowder for firing reached its limit – the speed of the charge released with their help is limited to 2.5 km/s.
European defense companies develop EMP weapon with firing range up to 200 kilometers
Modern weapons have almost reached the peak of modernization, so more and more countries are turning to guns with a different operating principle. One of these is electromagnetic guns that use Lorentz force to act on a projectile.
Specialists from the European Defense Agency [EDA], together with the Franco-German Research Institute Saint-Louis [ISL], announced the start of research on electromagnetic guns. Scientists from five European countries, united in the PILUM consortium, are working on the EDA-PADR project.
A promising project is designed for two years for which scientists plan to prove the feasibility of using this type of weapon. The possibility of integrating electromagnetic guns on various types of platforms [aircraft, ships] will also be studied.
These studies will become the foundation for the creation of a prototype, which they plan to submit until 2028. According to EDA, the firing range of promising weapons can reach 200 kilometers.
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It is worth noting that the prepared sample will not be the first railgun of Europe. Earlier, experts from ISL introduced the Pegasus 10MJ system, which became a testing ground for testing the reliability of such weapons.
With the help of Pegasus, it was possible to give the projectile a supersonic initial velocity [over 2500 m/s], while maintaining an acceptable efficiency. The conversion efficiency of electric energy into kinetic is 35%
One of the reasons for the activity of ISL was the rapid development of electromagnetic weapons in recent years. So, last year, BAE Systems company tested a system that allows you to release a projectile every two minutes at a speed of 2041 m/s.
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