FOR so long as there are wars to fight, the contest to have the best weaponry will continue. The attacks in Paris on November 13th, and their aftermath, will only reinforce this quest. Sniper technology is an area of particular interest to Western commanders. Where those faced by the armed might of the world’s great powers prefer the tactics of insurgency, military types particularly value the ability to hit a picked target at distance. And, unlike other forms of “precision” attack, such as drone strikes, sniping rarely kills nearby civilians.
Nor are sniper bullets merely anti-personnel weapons. At the moment, according to GlobalSecurity.org, a think-tank in Virginia, one of the best of them is the Raufoss MK211, made by Nammo, a Norwegian firm. This can penetrate 15mm of steel at a range of more than 500 metres, even when fired at an oblique angle of as little as 30° to the target. Moreover, once it has penetrated, a fuse sets off both an explosive charge (to spray shrapnel) and an incendiary one (to ignite any leaking fuel). According to Vegard Sande, one of Nammo’s engineers, a single MK211 shot can destroy a helicopter.
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Source: Science and technology http://ift.tt/1HaXFLB
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