105 mm (4.1 in) is a common NATO-standard
artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...
and
tank gun
A tank gun is the main armament of a tank. Modern tank guns are high-velocity, large-caliber artilleries capable of firing kinetic energy penetrators, high-explosive anti-tank, and cannon-launched guided projectiles. Anti-aircraft guns can also ...
caliber.
The rifled tank round is defined by STANAG 4458. The artillery round is defined by AOP-29 part 3 with reference to STANAG 4425.
Artillery
Since the early 21st century, most NATO armies have settled on
155 mm
155 mm (6.1 in) is a common, NATO-standard, artillery caliber. It is defined in AOP-29 part 1 with reference to STANAG 4425. It is commonly used in field guns, howitzers, and gun-howitzers.
Land warfare
The caliber originated in France after ...
weapons as having a good compromise between range and power whilst having a single calibre, which simplifies logistics; however some military forces have retained 105 mm towed howitzers for their lighter weight and greater portability, including their rapid
airlift
An airlift is the organized delivery of supplies or personnel primarily via military transport aircraft.
Airlifting consists of two distinct types: strategic and tactical. Typically, strategic airlifting involves moving material long distanc ...
and
airdrop capabilities. The reduced power and decreased range of 105 mm ammunition has led to its obsolescence in full-sized self-propelled guns such as the American
M108 howitzer and British
FV433 Abbot SPG. Russian guns and those of former Soviet bloc countries tend to use slightly larger, 122 mm (4.8 in) and
130 mm (5.1 in) weapons in similar roles.
105 mm artillery guns
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FV433 Abbot SPG ()
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G7 howitzer
The G7 is a South African 105 mm howitzer, produced by Denel Land Systems (DLS). With a maximum range of it outranges all existing 105 mm howitzers, as well as most current 155 mm howitzers (Denel's own 155's not included). During d ...
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GIAT LG1
The LG1 is a modern 105 mm towed howitzer designed and produced by GIAT Industries (now Nexter group) of France.
Design
The LG1 howitzer is a 105 mm towed artillery piece that features both low weight and a high level of accuracy over lon ...
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Indian field gun ()
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KH178 105 mm towed howitzer ()
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L118 light gun/
M119 howitzer ()
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M-56 howitzer
The M-56 Howitzer is a 105mm artillery gun from Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Early towed version is comparable to the German 10.5 cm leFH 18 and the American M101 howitzer while newer M-56A1 and self propelled M-09 Soko has more improvemen ...
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M101 howitzer
The M101A1 (previously designated M2A1) howitzer is an artillery piece developed and used by the United States. It was the standard U.S. light field howitzer in World War II and saw action in both the European and Pacific theaters and during the ...
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M102 howitzer ()
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M108 howitzer ()
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Mk 61 105 mm self-propelled howitzer
The Mk 61 105 mm Self-Propelled Howitzer was a French self-propelled artillery piece designed and built during the late 1950s for the French Army.
History
During World War II a number of nations produced self-propelled artillery. These ranged ...
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OTO Melara Mod 56 ()
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Type 74 105 mm self-propelled howitzer ()
Tank guns
During the
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
, the concept of the
main battle tank
A main battle tank (MBT), also known as a battle tank or universal tank, is a tank that fills the role of armor-protected direct fire and maneuver in many modern armies. Cold War-era development of more powerful engines, better suspension sys ...
was established and guns of 105 mm (
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
) and 100 mm (
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republic ...
) were the standard until the advent of guns of 120 mm (
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
) and 125 mm (
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republic ...
) from the 1960s to the 1990s. The
L7 was widely used by NATO countries, and with it was popularized the now-standard
105×617mmR
The 105×617mm (4.1 inch) also known as 105×617mmR is a common, NATO-standard, tank gun cartridge used in 105mm guns such as those derived from the Royal Ordnance L7.
The 105×617mmR cartridge was originally developed from the calibre Ordnanc ...
round, still used both in lighter-weight applications such as the
Stingray light tank and the
Stryker Mobile Gun System as well as older MBTs.
105 mm tank guns
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CN 105 F1 ()
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CN 105-57 ()
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Cockerill 105 HP Gun ()
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Royal Ordnance L7
The Royal Ordnance L7, officially designated Gun, 105 mm, Tank, L7, is the basic model of the United Kingdom's most successful tank gun. The L7 is a 105 mm L/52 rifled design by the Royal Ordnance Factories intended for use in armoured fighting ve ...
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XM35 ()
References
{{reflist
Artillery
Ammunition