Originally posted by BaDkaRmA158Th
I was just eating chips,and a thought poped thru my mind concerning the 39's spud gun.
I know it was loaded with HE rounds,but could it ever be loaded "or was it ever" with AP?
Yes, AP was available. The M80 solid AP shot weighed 753 g and was fired at 556 m/s (heavier and slower than the HE). However, no AP ammo was supplied to the USSR, as they primarily used the P-39 as a fighter not a ground attack plane.
and would a plane's speed be taken into account for the fps of the projectile,
No. The official penetration of the M4 AP was up to 25mm armour at 500 yards. The British reckoned that in ground attack this would be equivalent to about 35mm, taking the attack speed of the aircraft into account.
would a plane flying at 400 mph firing a spud gun have a better chance of hiting than one flying at 200mph? [/B]
In aerial combat, it isn't the speed of the aircraft that matters, it is the speed relative to that of the target.
If you are flying at 400mph and chasing a target flying away from you at 400 mph, then it is the plain muzzle velocity that counts (in fact, the case would be worse ballistically than if the two planes were stationary on the ground, because of the strong headwind). If you are attacking on the beam, or a stationary ground target, then yes you can add the plane speed to the muzzle velocity. If you are mounting a head-on attack then you can add the speed of your target to your own.
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