Airburst round

30mm grenades shown in front of a S&T Daewoo K11, a Korean Bullpup dual-barrel airburst multi-weapon.

An airburst round is a type of tactical anti-personnel explosive ammunition, typically a shell or grenade, that detonates in midair, causing air burst effect fragment damage to an enemy.

This makes it easier to hit enemy soldiers behind a wall, in a defensive fighting position, or in a confined space or room. It is used on many guns, from artillery to the hand-held XM25 Individual Airburst Weapon System (derived from the XM29 OICW). Unlike traditional grenades, such as the 40 mm grenade, smart grenades can be electronically programmed to explode after traveling a certain distance. A fire control computer or some other electronic sighting system is used to quickly program the electronic fuse with any distance, as conditions dictate.

Orbital ATK developed 30x173mm Mk310 PABM-T airburst rounds for Mk44 Bushmaster II.^[1][2]

Terminology

It is also called an airburst shell, air burst grenade, or smart grenade.

List of airburst round platforms

• 20 mm grenade
  • XM29 OICW
  • Daewoo K11
  • QTS-11
• 25 mm grenade:
  • XM25 Individual Airburst Weapon System
  • XM307 Advanced Crew Served Weapon
  • Barrett XM109
• 30 mm
  • Shipunov 2A42^[3]
  • 2A72^[4]
  • Mk44 Bushmaster II
  • Rheinmetall MK30-2/ABM^[5][6]
  • Rheinmetall Wotan 30 ABM^[7]
• 35 mm
  • PAPOP
  • Norinco QLU-11
  • Rheinmetall Wotan 35 ABM
• 40 mm
  • Bofors 40 mm gun
  • Mk 47 Striker
  • Multi Caliber Individual Weapon System
  • Norinco LG5
  • K40
  • 40mm CTA
• 57 mm
  • AU-220M
• 84 mm
  • Carl Gustaf 8.4cm recoilless rifle

References