Originally Posted By: Lieste
Sorry, the velocity claim is wrong:

Not the G5, but the similar GC-45, because I have three 'extracted from FT' values for max range firing of ERFB-BB, ERFB, M107 ammunition natures.

The 'headline figures' are:

ERFB-BB mass 48kg, V0 (zone 10) 897m/s Range 39600m, *average* range-rate zero-zero 353m/s
ERFB mass 45.5kg, V0 (zone 10) 897m/s Range 29900m, *average* range-rate zero-zero 302m/s
M107 mass 43kg, V0 (zone 8) 675m/s Range 17800m, *average* range-rate zero-zero 274m/s

The actual path travelled will approximate a parabola, so 'actual average' velocity will be a bit higher, however the minimum velocity, which is usually near or just after the apex, is considerably lower.

According to the method of this paper:
http://journals.tubitak.gov.tr/engineering/issues/muh-04-28-6/muh-28-6-3-0404-5.pdf

For the M107 projectile at max charge I get 'around' 250m/s at between 10, 11km, for projectile impact at 17800m.
For ERBB, 'around' 260m/s at 15km, for projectile impact at 29900m.

The actual value may differ by a few m/s, but I'd be *very* surprised if the minimums exceeded the 'average range rate' for a max-range shot.


OK, I got it. Still, I wouldn't belive that lock on 155-mm shell with SNR-125 can be achieved - it still flies fast, and it has a small RCS. Anywhere near the apex it would be simply too far and too high, and at the terminal phase it would dive quickly. Maybe, some top-notch crew at the range could do that for an experiment, but in a combat situation... Besides, even if you did traced a few shells, you still need to calculate the firing point from this data, which is quite challenging. You need a very accurate flight profile and some really complex calculations. Possible theoretically, but practically... Very unlikely. More like one of countless tales from that war, like making boots from the skin of captured South Africans and presenting them to the Soviet general, and so on.