F-35A destroys ground targets with 25mm super cannon
According to Defence-blog, the US Air Force has just successfully tested the ability to destroy targets of the super cannon on the F-35A stealth fighter.
The 25mm Gatling gun is mounted on the left wing of the F-35A fighter, allowing pilots to "attack air-to-ground or air-to-air," the source quoted an announcement from Lockheed Martin, the F-35's design unit.
According to initial information released, the GAU-22/A has a firing rate of up to 55 rounds/second, with bullets leaving the barrel at a speed of more than 1 km/s. The GAU-22/A is hidden inside the aircraft, ensuring the F-35 maintains its stealth capabilities until it is activated.
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Despite its incredible speed, the F-35’s GAU-22/A is a controversial topic. Some have criticized it for only being able to load 181 20mm rounds, compared to the A-10 Thunderbolt’s GAU-8/A Avenger, which holds 1,174 30mm rounds.
Currently, the effectiveness of the GAU-22/A is still a matter of debate, but the US has had to spend up to 1 million USD for each of these guns.
As early as 2012, the US defense industry corporation General Dynamics received a contract worth nearly 24 million USD to provide 24 GAU-22/A rapid-fire gun systems for the F-35 fighter development program.
Production of the GAU-22/A gun only began in 2012 (after signing a contract with the F-35 development program) at a General Dynamics plant in Saco, Maine.
The plant will require 400 employees to operate the production line. Management and engineering will be performed at the General Dynamics Technology Center. In addition, production of the GAU-22/A gun will be performed by 450 employees at another plant in Marion, Ohio.
The issue that the GAU-22/A gun may be inferior to similar weapons on the older generation A-10 aircraft is explained by American experts because the missions of each aircraft are different, so there are differences.
Specifically, because the A-10 is designed to take on the mission of specializing in ground attacks, the ammunition base of this fighter will be very large. Meanwhile, the F-35A takes on the mission of being a multi-role fighter and this is the reason why the ammunition base of the F-35A is quite modest, the source said.
Some images of F-35A ground attack with 25mm gun
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