TheDigger
15-01-2008, 11:33
All throughout Naval History as weapons are developed to sink ships, weapons are developed to counter act these. This weapons system was developed to cope with close in attack either by Aircraft or Missles. The system built around the design of a "Gatling Gun" basically a high rate of fire mechanically driven machine gun with nominal calibre of between 20 and 30mm is used to spray a wall of explosive shells in the path of oncoming aircraft and missles.
The MK 15 Phalanx Close-In Weapons System (CIWS - pronounced "sea-whiz") is a fast-reaction, rapid-fire 20-millimeter gun system that provides US Navy ships with a terminal defense against anti-ship missiles that have penetrated other fleet defenses. Designed to engage anti-ship cruise missiles and fixed-wing aircraft at short range, Phalanx automatically engages functions usually performed by separate, independent systems such as search, detection, threat evaluation, acquisition, track, firing, target destruction, kill assessment and cease fire.
The gun subsystem employs a gatling gun consisting of a rotating cluster of six barrels. The gatling gun fires a 20mm subcaliber sabot projectile using a heavy-metal (either tungsten or depleted uranium) 15mm penetrator surrounded by a plastic sabot and a light-weight metal pusher. The gatling gun fires 20mm ammunition at either 3,000 or 4,500 rounds-per-minute with a burst length of continuous, 60, or 100 rounds.
CIWS has been a mainstay self defense system aboard nearly every class of ship since the late 70’s. It was originally designed to defeat low altitude antiship cruise missiles (ASCMs). As antiship cruise missiles became more complex in maneuvers and ability to be detected, and warfare areas moved from open ocean to littoral environments, CIWS has evolved to meet the threat.
Primary Function Anti-ship missile defense
Contractor Raytheon Systems Company
(formerly Hughes Missile Systems Company and purchased from General Dynamics Pomona Division in 1992)
Weight 12,500 pounds (5,625 kg)
Later models 13,600 pounds (6,120 kg)
Range Classified
Gun Type M-61A1 Gatling
Type of Fire 3,000 rounds per minute
- Later models 4,500 rounds/min
(starting 1988 production, Pneumatic Gun Drive)
Magazine Capacity 989 rounds
Later models 1,550 rounds
Caliber 20mm
Ammunition Armor Piercing Discarding Sabot (APDS),
Depleted Uranium or Tungsten sub-caliber penetrator.
Sensors Self-contained search and track radar
Search Radar Ku-band; digital MTI
Track Radar Ku-band; pulse Doppler monopulse
E/O Sensor FLIR Imaging System with Automatic ACQ Tracker
Fire Control Director with closed-loop spotting
Gun Drive Pneumatic
Mount Drive Electric
So there you have it a nasty piece of work in deed and to gauge some idea of the noise of this thing look up on YouTube there is a number of videos showing this weapon system in operation
The MK 15 Phalanx Close-In Weapons System (CIWS - pronounced "sea-whiz") is a fast-reaction, rapid-fire 20-millimeter gun system that provides US Navy ships with a terminal defense against anti-ship missiles that have penetrated other fleet defenses. Designed to engage anti-ship cruise missiles and fixed-wing aircraft at short range, Phalanx automatically engages functions usually performed by separate, independent systems such as search, detection, threat evaluation, acquisition, track, firing, target destruction, kill assessment and cease fire.
The gun subsystem employs a gatling gun consisting of a rotating cluster of six barrels. The gatling gun fires a 20mm subcaliber sabot projectile using a heavy-metal (either tungsten or depleted uranium) 15mm penetrator surrounded by a plastic sabot and a light-weight metal pusher. The gatling gun fires 20mm ammunition at either 3,000 or 4,500 rounds-per-minute with a burst length of continuous, 60, or 100 rounds.
CIWS has been a mainstay self defense system aboard nearly every class of ship since the late 70’s. It was originally designed to defeat low altitude antiship cruise missiles (ASCMs). As antiship cruise missiles became more complex in maneuvers and ability to be detected, and warfare areas moved from open ocean to littoral environments, CIWS has evolved to meet the threat.
Primary Function Anti-ship missile defense
Contractor Raytheon Systems Company
(formerly Hughes Missile Systems Company and purchased from General Dynamics Pomona Division in 1992)
Weight 12,500 pounds (5,625 kg)
Later models 13,600 pounds (6,120 kg)
Range Classified
Gun Type M-61A1 Gatling
Type of Fire 3,000 rounds per minute
- Later models 4,500 rounds/min
(starting 1988 production, Pneumatic Gun Drive)
Magazine Capacity 989 rounds
Later models 1,550 rounds
Caliber 20mm
Ammunition Armor Piercing Discarding Sabot (APDS),
Depleted Uranium or Tungsten sub-caliber penetrator.
Sensors Self-contained search and track radar
Search Radar Ku-band; digital MTI
Track Radar Ku-band; pulse Doppler monopulse
E/O Sensor FLIR Imaging System with Automatic ACQ Tracker
Fire Control Director with closed-loop spotting
Gun Drive Pneumatic
Mount Drive Electric
So there you have it a nasty piece of work in deed and to gauge some idea of the noise of this thing look up on YouTube there is a number of videos showing this weapon system in operation