KINETIC INITIATED CORE MUNITIONS (KICM™) 0.50 Caliber Presented by: Keith Enlow Green Ammo Program Manager IR & D ATK LAKE CITY SMALL CALIBER AMMUNITION Randall Busky Chemical Engineer IR & D ATK LAKE CITY SMALL CALIBER AMMUNITION
Introducing ATK Lake City’s KICM™ 50 Caliber SAPHEI KICM™ SAPHEI Features: Insensitive HE Mix Using “Reactive Material” Delayed Explosive Effects Inside Targets Exposed Steel Tip For Efficient Penetration Heavy Metal Free Projectile Components Provides Enhanced “Standoff” Performance: Penetrates Ballistic Armor Similar to M8, M20 And Mk 211 Creates Overpressures at Secondary Impact Generates Incendiary Event On Secondary Impact Produces Shrapnel at Primary Impact
The .50 Caliber Family Is Ready For Improvements Background Caliber .50 family developed starting in 1919, M8 in 1941. KICM™ Introduction Plan Replace M8 API “Family of Munitions” Concept Replace linked ammunition with more lethal “Family” combination A567 ( 4 X API, 1 APIT) AA06 (MP, AP, MP, AP, Tracer) with new KICM™ linked series ( AP, API(T), SAPHEI, HEI, TRNG (Ball))
KICM™ Family Has Product Life Cycle Advantages Safe Compositions: RMs are extremely insensitive under normal handling Environmentally “Friendly” Heavy metal free Non-explosive disposal while incinerating Lean Manufacturing: Modular Design Customized Mass Production Shared general process Additional steps add value for specific characteristics Improved Performance Same ballistic performance for all cartridges in belt Increase lethality with single burst to disable target Provide different terminal effects in belt Provide same ballistic performance in belt Increase effectiveness range
KICM™ Releases Its Chemical Energy After Penetration This product’s innovation: KICM differentiates from the legacy cartridges by releasing chemical energy after initial penetration. Direction of Fire M8 MK211 KICM SAPHEI
Reactive Materials do not act like legacy High Explosives RM’s produce little to no gas phase products during oxidation Direction of Fire Condensation shock wave
Disabling An APC With The KICM™ Cartridge Is Possible 6” 1/4th” Back Plate 5/8th” Front Plate BMP2 side armor is approx. 5/8th inches
KICM™ Improves 50 Caliber Family Lethality Changes In KICM’s™ Modular Design Produces Different Explosive Effects Direction of Fire Secondary Impact Ignition Deep Impact Ignition Point Ignition
KICM™’s Introduction At The Infantry School Has Generated Other Interests
High Speed Video Reveals Impact Detonation On Second Plate Primary Impact Plate Secondary Impact Plate Terminal Ballistics Improvement: Ignition inside or exit of the target has a greater chance of secondary explosions to immobilize target.
KICM™ Penetrator Design Is Based On Best Features Of More Than 50+ Years Of 0.50 Caliber Ideas Fifty Caliber Shooters Association
KICM™ Review KICM™ SAPHEI - Technical Readiness Initiation, Reaction and Penetration performance empirically understood and demonstrated Legacy performance in penetration and accuracy Improved performance in safety of design, impact pressure generation, incendiary effects and vehicle mobility lethality
Future KICM™ Family Development Ideas Next step - Assess “extreme range” performance HEI – the introduction of 1.1 Explosives into the RM Mixes similar to “dynamite” API – the use of extremely hard materials for penetrator and body SRSD – chemically timed fragmentation What does the customer want? Tunable design.
ATK Leads Small Cal Cartridge Innovation and Design “Team ATK” to enhance KICM™ - ATK Joint Technological Strengths Key to Success of RM Program Ordnance Ground Systems for Penetration and Body Fragmentation studies Alliant Ammo and Powder for Enhanced Velocity Propellant ATK Thiokol for Reactive Materials ATK Federal and CCI/Speer for “Heavy Metal Free” Primers ATK Lake City – World Leader in small caliber ammunition production, design, and innovation.
ATK Lake City Leads Small Cal Cartridge Design Capabilities ATK Lake City – World Leader in small caliber ammunition production, design, and innovation. State-of-the-art Materials Analysis Lab World Class Ballistics Testing Lab 200 yd – 2400 Yd Range Testing capabilities to assess ballistic performance Gelatin testing capabilities for tissue simulation High Speed Video Extreme High Speed Multiple Exposure Photography High Speed Flash X-Ray Doppler Radar Decel PRODAS Ballistic Modeling Internal, External, and Terminal Ballistic Modeling Whole Bullet Recovery capabilities after firing Ballistic modeling capabilities to assess internal, external, and terminal ballistics performance Full Research and Development Manufacturing Lab
KICM™ Team Members And Their Contributions Jim Bourdlais – ATK Lake City – Project Engineer Ed Bray – ATK Lake City – Design Engineer Tod Botcher – ATK Lake City – IR& D Lab Manager Steve Baker – ATK Lake City - Process Engineer Dan B. Nielson – ATK Thiokol – Principal Scientist Randy Busky – ATK Lake City – Chemical Engineer Robert Contaldi – ATK Lake City – IR&D Engineering Manager Keith Enlow – ATK Lake City – Business Development