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There is more information available on this subject at Kinetic energy penetrator on the English Wikipedia. |
The Armor Piercing Fin Stabilized Discarding Sabot (APFSDS) round or kinetic energy penetrator (also known as a KE weapon) is a type of ammunition which, like a bullet, does not contain explosives and uses kinetic energy to penetrate the target.
This is a special kind of round that uses extremely high velocity to pierce armor or hard targets, such as a Jiralhanae.
The principle of the kinetic energy penetrator is that it uses its kinetic energy, which is a function of mass and velocity, to force its way through armor. The modern KE weapon maximizes KE and minimizes the area over which it is delivered by:
- Being fired with a very high muzzle velocity concentrating the force in a small impact area while still retaining a relatively large mass
- Maximizing the mass of whatever (albeit small) volume is occupied by the projectile—that is, using the densest metals practical, which is one of the reasons depleted uranium is often used.
- This has led to the current designs which resemble a long metal arrow.
APFSDS in Halo universe
APFSDS rounds are most commonly known for appearing in Halo in the Sniper Rifle System 99C-S2 AM and the Sniper Rifle System 99D-S2 AM. These weapons fire a 14.5x114mm cartridge at high velocity and leave a noticeable smoke trail. When used in skillful hands the APFSDS round can take out even a shielded enemy with one well placed shot, usually to the head.
Trivia
- Currently APFSDS is reserved for large Tank mounted weapons. In small arms such as the Halo sniper rifles it is called a Flechette.
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