Minengeschoß

The Minengeschoß ('mine-shell') was a high-capacity autocannon ammunition originally developed in Germany and used in the Luftwaffe's larger caliber aircraft armament during World War II. This new type of high-explosive shell differed from conventional H.E. ammunition in that it had much thinner walls. The shell was drawn from high-quality steel, instead of having the explosives cavity drilled into a solid shot, which allowed thinner-wall construction and therefore a far greater amount of explosive filler.

It was used, amongst others in the Luftwaffe's 2 cm MG FF/M and MG 151/20 cannon^[1], and the 3 cm MK 103 and MK 108 cannon.^[2][3] It was first used in combat during the Battle of Britain in 1940 by the Luftwaffe's Bf 109E and Bf 110C fighters.

Ammunition for 2cm cannons

The 2 cm M-Geschoß shell (used in M151/20 and MG-FF/M cannons - the same shell was used in both cartridges) had a 18g HE filling while the typical filler load in 20mm shells at the time was 6 to 10g.

Ammunition for 3cm cannons

In 3 cm caliber different M-Geschoß designs were available: the original blunt-nosed Ausf.A had a 85g filling of nitropenta (PETN), which was reduced to 72g in the more streamlined Ausf.C shell (the "missing" B was a practice shell). In comparison, the PGU-13/B HEI round for the GAU-8/A Avenger gun of the A-10 Warthog contains only a 58g explosive filler, while 30mm OFZ shell of Russian GSh-301 and GSh-30-6 cannons has a 48.5g filler.

Post-war development

After the defeat of Germany in World War II, several countries copied the design and used it for their own post-war aircraft armament, for example in the HE shells of Britain's ADEN cannon and the French DEFA 540. The guns themselves were developments of the German MG 213.

See also

• Aircraft of the Battle of Britain
• MG FF cannon
• MG 151 cannon
• MK 103 cannon
• MK 108 cannon

References

Citations

1. ^ Williams and Gustin 2003
2. ^ Forsyth 1996, p. 168
3. ^ Note: The information in Forsyth 1996 is on the design and construction of the MK 108 and the relevant Minengeschoß.

Bibliography

• Forsyth, Robert. JV 44: The Galland Circus. Burgess Hill, West Sussex, UK: Classic Publications 1996. ISBN 0-9526867-0-8
• Smith, Anthony G and Gustin, Dr Emmanual. Flying Guns World War II. London: The Crowood Press 2003. ISBN 1-84037-227-3

External links

• Books by Anthony G Williams plus articles on aircraft weapons
• Luftwaffe Aircraft Gun and Cannon Ammunition of WW II
• Description of Rheinmetall-Borsig MK 108 30mm Cannon and ammunition
• Histavia21.net - MUNITIONS D'AVIATION LUFTWAFFE