Oerlikon KCB

Oerlikon KCB
HS.661
TypeAutocannon
Specifications
Mass138 kg
Barrel length75 caliber
Cartridge30×170mm
Calibre30mm
Barrels1
ActionGas-operated
Rate of fire600 round/min
Muzzle velocity1,080 m/s (3,500 ft/s)
Effective firing range3,000 m

The KCB is a 30 mm caliber autocannon, developed by Hispano-Suiza as HS.831.[1] When Oerlikon purchased Hispano's armaments division in 1971, the gun became KCB.[1]

Development

HS.831 is a scaled-up version of the 20 mm HS.820 and has much the same general operating principles.[1] It uses the 30x170mm round that was developed for this gun.[2] On ground, the HS.820 was used in combination with the HS.661, a single simple anti-aircraft gun mount,[3] and was also mounted on the AMX-13 DCA (Défense Contre Avions), a self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon for the French Army.[4]

In the United Kingdom, BMARC developed A32, a locally operated naval mounting incorporating two HS.831.[1] When the gun was renamed KCB, the A32 became GCM-A series.[1] And LSE (Laurence, Scott & Electricmotors Ltd; presently MSI Defence Systems) also developed a single mount for KCB, which became DS30B.[1] Both GCM-A and DS30B were introduced by the Royal Navy.[1]

The United States Navy designated the twin HS.831 weapons system developed by Emerson Electric as EX-74.[5] This mount was never used by the USN widely, but commercialized as the Emerlec 30 and purchased by foreign navies.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Friedman 1997, pp. 459–460.
  2. ^ "30mm Rarden". Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  3. ^ Cullen & Foss 1992, p. 201.
  4. ^ Cullen & Foss 1992, pp. 63–65.
  5. ^ a b Friedman 1997, p. 464.

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