M163 Vulcan Air Defense System (VADS)

History of the M163 Vulcan Air Defense System (VADS)

The M163 Vulcan Air Defense System (VADS) combines the firepower of the USAF standard air gun M61 Vulcan with the "go anywhere" envelope of the M113 Armored Personnel Carrier (APC). Its tracked nature ensures that the M163 can reach areas where wheel systems of similar scope and functionality are normally prohibited. In addition, the inherent firepower of the M61 Vulcan Gatling gun provides strong point defense to deter any low-flying enemy aircraft preparing to charge into its available kill zone. The M163 officially entered service with the U.S.

Army in 1969 and was exported to several U.S.-friendly countries during the Cold War.

The development of the M163 coincided with the development of another US Army air defense program - the missile-guided MIM-72A/M48 "Chaparral". The Chaparral system is also based on the M113 tracked undercarriage, with a forward cab and quad missile positioning launch system fitted with the air-to-air AIM-9 Sidewinder short-range air-to-air version of the missile.

The Chaparral was in service from 1969 to 1998, with nearly 2,000 examples produced. The M163 Vulcan will be deployed alongside the M48 Chaparral to complete the network, delivering a powerful close-range "double strike" using homing missiles and volumetric firepower.

The powerful weapon of the M163 Vulcan air defense system is the installation of the M61 Vulcan cannon. The revolving gun is 20mm caliber and is mounted on a powered 360-degree turret. Altitude limits are +80 and -5, and effective range is up to 5 km, depending on the type of ammunition. The cannon can fire at a high rate of fire of 3,000 rounds per minute or as low as 1,000 rounds per minute in 10, 30, 60 or 100 rounds.

Feeding systems of unconnected nature. Ammunition variety was the key to the success of the M163, ultimately offering a wide variety of ammunition. These include armor-piercing incendiary, high-explosive incendiary, HEI-T, MPT-SD, SAPHEI and APDS ammunition.

Aside from the mounting gun, the M113's chassis remains largely intact for the M163. The design is characterized by its flat sides, sloping front glass panel and angular rear. The turret is mounted in the center of the top of the fuselage. Two tracks span the sides of the fuselage and are equipped with five rubber tire wheels, the drive sprocket is located at the front of the fuselage, and the track idler is located at the rear of the fuselage. The quad is the combat area and includes the driver, commander, gunner, and loader sitting in the front left.

The rear loading ramp of the M113 is also retained. Located in the front of the fuselage, the powerplant is a 6-cylinder, 2-stroke, General Motors 6V53 series diesel engine producing 212 hp at 2,800 rpm.

In 1984, Lockheed Electronics introduced a modernization kit called PIVADS (Product Improved Vulcan Air Defense System). Among other things, the kit improves radar, weapon system accuracy and automatic notification systems. The ability to fire armor-piercing rounds was also introduced.

This kit is designed to reduce the overall workload of the gunner. While primarily designed for anti-aircraft roles, the M163 Vulcan is now used more in ground support roles due to its prodigious ability to fire large quantities of large caliber ammunition. In addition, the choice of new anti-missile systems, other more modern close-in weapons systems, and the advanced capabilities of enemy aircraft have all resulted in the M163 itself being used less as a pure anti-aircraft weapon - although the type is still at the time of writing and has been associated with various The operator provides the service.

Non-US Army operators include/have included Albania, Chile, Ecuador, Egypt, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Morocco, Portugal, South Korea, Thailand and Tunisia.

Although the M163 Vulcan officially debuted in 1969, at least six were delivered in the Vietnam War in 1968 (side numbers "1" to "6"). These non-working radars (virtual installations) with tracking kits are not yet available.

As such, these units are used more for ground support fires and physically targeting the enemy or target area (of course) without radar support.

The base series name is abbreviated as M163. The M163A1 has modifications to the original frame to better align with the changes on the M113A1. The M163A2 also met the M113A2 standard with a revised powertrain.

The M163 PIVADS was released in 1984, showing the above changes/improvements in accuracy and workload. The M167 is nothing more than an artillery system in the form of a towed gun of the M163. These were initially towed by the Gama Goat Mover, but were eventually replaced by the HMMWV ("Hummer").

The "Machbet" is an Israeli variant that is armed with 4 x FIM-92 Stinger short-range surface-to-air missile systems in addition to the 20mm M61 Vulcan. In addition, Israeli modifications resulted in a data exchange system as well as improved target tracking.

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Performance

Performance

for everyone else in our database)

Armor

2,100 x 20mm ammo

Changes