CN120-26 explained
| CN120-26 |
| Type: | smoothbore tank gun |
| Origin: | France |
| Is Ranged: | yes |
| Is Artillery: | yes |
| Is Uk: | no |
| Service: | 1992-present |
| Used By: | French Army, United Arab Emirates Army, and the Royal Jordanian Army |
| Wars: | Yemeni Civil War |
| Designer: | EFAB of Bourges |
| Design Date: | 1980s |
| Manufacturer: | Giat Industries |
| Production Date: | 1990-2007 |
| Number: | 800+ |
| Weight: | 2740 kg |
| Length: | 6.931m (22.74feet) |
| Part Length: | 6.24m (20.47feet) or 52 calibers |
| Cartridge: | 120×570mm NATO |
| Caliber: | 120 mm (4.72 in) |
| Action: | automatic vertical sliding-wedge breech |
| Rate: | up to 12 rounds per minute[1] |
| Velocity: | 1790 m/s (APFSDS) |
| Feed: | autoloader |
| Sights: | HL 60 or HL 130 |
| Breech: | vertical sliding-wedge |
| Recoil: | 400 mm |
| Elevation: | -8° to +17° |
| Traverse: | 360° |
The CN120-26, also simply referred to as Modèle F1 (F1 model) is a French smoothbore 120mm tank gun of 52 calibers designed by the EFAB of Bourges and produced by Giat Industries .
Description
The 120 mm smoothbore gun F1 has been designed for installation in the Leclerc main battle tank.The smooth-bore gun is chrome-plated, fitted with a thermal sleeve and has a vertical sliding breech mechanism. It is also fitted with a muzzle reference system (MRS) and the tropicalized variant of the Leclerc is fitted with a compressed air system for removing propellantfumes.[2]
In the Leclerc application, the gun is fed by a 22-rounds bustle-mounted automatic loader designed by Creusot-Loire Industries.The 120 mm F1 gun fires the same 120×570mm ammunition as the German Rh-120 and American M256 smoothbore guns.The French 120 mm F1 gun is, however, 1 m longer than the L/44 version of the Rh-120, which increases muzzle velocity and armour penetration of APFSDS projectiles; it also gives a longer effective range.[3]
Additional specifications
- Maximum service chamber pressure: [4]
- Recoil effort at trunnions: 550 kN (APFSDS fired at +51 °C)
- Overall weight: 2740 kg
- Recoiling gun mass: 1995 kg
Operators
Current operators
See also
- CN120-25 120 mm gun: French equivalent, developed by Établissement d'Études et de Fabrication d'Armements de Bourges (EFAB) in 1979.
Weapons of comparable role, performance and era
- L11A5 120 mm rifled gun: British rifled equivalent, developed by Royal Armament Research and Development Establishment (RARDE) in 1957.
- 2A46 125 mm gun: Russian 125-mm equivalent, developed by Spetstekhnika Design Bureau in 1960s.
- Rheinmetall 120 mm gun: German equivalent, developed by Rheinmetall in 1974.
- EXP-28M1 120 mm rifled tank gun: Experimental British weapon of the late 1970s/early 1980s. Was to have equipped the MBT-80.
- IMI 120 mm gun: Israeli equivalent, developed by Israeli Military Industries in 1988.
- OTO Breda 120 mm gun: Italian equivalent, developed by OTO Melara in 1988.
- L30A1 120 mm rifled gun: British rifled equivalent, developed by ROF Nottingham in 1989.
- JSW 120 mm gun: Japanese equivalent, developed by Japan Steel Works in 2008.
- CN08 120 mm gun: South Korean equivalent, developed by Agency for Defense Development (ADD) and WIA in 2008.
- 2A82-1M 125 mm gun: New Russian 125-mm equivalent, developed by Uralvagonzavod in 2014.
- MKE 120 mm tank gun: Turkish equivalent, developed by Otokar and Hyundai WIA in 2016.
Notes and References
- Book: Ferrard . Stéphane. Gerard. Turbe. The Leclerc System. 1992. Bosquet. 9781852601416. 109.
- Book: Chassillan. Marc. Char Leclerc : De la guerre froide aux conflits de demain. 2005. Editions Techniques pour l'Automobile et l'Industrie. 978-2726894385. 191.
- Book: Foss. Christopher . Jane's Armoured Fighting Vehicle Retrofit Systems 1993-94 . 1993 . ane's Information Group . London . 978-0710610799 . 33 .
- AUSA '86 . International Defense Review . December 1986 . 19 . 12 . 1809 . Interavia S.A . English . 0020-6512.
France
United Arab Emirates
Jordan