History of weapons

A weapon is a tool employed to injure, defeat, or destroy an adversary.[1][2] Weapons may be used to attack and defend, and consequently also to threaten or protect. Metaphorically, anything used to damage (even psychologically) can be referred to as a weapon. A weapon can be as simple as a club or as complex as an intercontinental ballistic missile.

A weapon is an object that is used to increase the destructive range or power of a human and hunt for animals. From the earliest traces of mankind up to modern civilization, weapons have been a facet of human development. Weapons development has accelerated along with other areas of technology in more modern times. In ancient times, from the dawn of humanity through the Classical civilizations of Greece and Rome, weapons were primarily extensions of an individual's strength, essentially making up for the human body's lack of natural weapons such as claws. These weapons allowed the bearer to be substantially more deadly and lethal than a similar human without such a weapon. Although many weapons made in modern times were steel, wood ones were also very common.

The Medieval period, including the Middle Ages, marked a period of distinct advancement in weaponry. Due to some of the unique influences of the period, weapons revolved around two major areas. First was that of knights. These horsemen required new weapons, as well as promoting development of weapons to defeat them. Second was that of castles. The building of castles on a large scale necessitated new weapons to help defend and attack them.

The Renaissance marked the beginning of the implementation of combustion based devices in warfare. The most long-lasting effect of this was the introduction of cannon and firearms to the battlefield, where they are still at the core of modern weaponry. However, many other machines of war were experimented with.

From the American Revolution through the beginning of the 20th century, human-powered weapons were finally excluded from the battlefield for the most part. Sometimes referred to as the "Age of Rifles", this period was characterized by the development of firearms for infantry and cannons for support, as well as the beginnings of mechanized weapons such as the machine gun.

World War I marked the entry of fully industrialized warfare, and weapons were developed quickly to meet wartime needs. Many new technologies were developed, particularly in the development of military aircraft and vehicles. World War II however, perhaps marked the most frantic period of weapons development in the history of humanity. Massive numbers of new designs and concepts were fielded, and all existing technologies were improved between 1939 and 1945. Ultimately, the most powerful of all invented weapons was the Hydrogen bomb.

After World War II, with the onset of the Cold War, the constant technological development of new weapons was institutionalized, as participants engaged in a constant race to develop weapons and counter-weapons. This constant state of weapons development continues into the modern era, and remains a constant draw on the resources of most nations.

Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weapons

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Combustion-Powered Weapons

Firearms are qualitatively different from earlier weapons because they store energy in a combustible propellant such as gunpowder, rather than in a weight or spring. This energy is released quite rapidly, and can be restored without much effort by the user, so that even early firearms such as the arquebus were much more powerful than human-powered weapons. They became increasingly important and effective during the 16th century to 19th century, with progressive improvements in ignition mechanisms followed by revolutionary changes in ammunition handling and propellant. During the U.S. Civil War various technologies including the machine gun and ironclad warship emerged that would be recognizable and useful military weapons today, particularly in lower-technology conflicts. In the 19th century warship propulsion changed from sail power to fossil fuel-powered steam engines.

The age of edged weapons ended abruptly just before World War I with rifled artillery, such as howitzers which are able to destroy any masonry fortress. This single invention caused a revolution in military affairs and doctrines that continues to this day. See Technology during World War I for a detailed discussion.

An important feature of industrial age warfare was technological escalation - an innovation could, and would, be rapidly matched by copying it, and often with yet another innovation to counter it. The technological escalation during World War I was profound, producing armed aircraft and tanks.

This continued in the period between the end of that war and the next, with continuous improvements of all weapons by all major powers. Many modern military weapons, particularly ground-based ones, are relatively minor improvements on those of World War II. See military technology during World War II for a detailed discussion.

The most notable development in weaponry since World War II has been the combination and further development of two weapons first used in it—nuclear weapons and the ballistic missile, leading to its ultimate configuration: the ICBM. The mutual possession of these by the United States and the Soviet Union ensured that either nation could inflict terrible damage on the other; so terrible, in fact, that neither nation was willing to instigate direct, all-out war with the other (a phenomenon known as Mutually Assured Destruction). The indiscriminate nature of the destruction has made nuclear-tipped missiles essentially useless for the smaller wars fought since. However computer-guided weaponry of all kinds, from precision-guided munitions (or "smart bombs") to computer-aimed tank rounds, has greatly increased weaponry's accuracy.

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List of Weapons According to its Type

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Welcome to Military Future Weapons

This is an introduction to the site "MILITARY FUTURE WEAPONS". Here you can have a better view and a bigger picture on the future when talking about weapons. Many took these scenario forgranted. But if I'm you, I will start expecting BIG on the word future, especially when it comes to weapons.
Many wars have happened. With that, experiences of every past wars were carefully studied inorder to correct some mistakes and further improve the military weapons. Different countries were and are still conducting lots of extensive researches, just to have the very best weapons that will be provided for their armies.
MILITARY FUTURE WEAPONS will reveal to you the result of that researches. In here you can learn and know the weapons they consider as the future weapons. Weaponry, guns, rifles, pistols, you name it. It maybe by country, like US military weapons, Iraq infantry, or Iran weapons. And it is not just limited to hand held weapons, military vehicles are also considered as weapons - it may be on land, air, or sea. Battle tanks, combat planes, or gunships. All of it! As long as it has to do with the future of military weapons.
Well, eventhough this site shows you the difference between the weapons dated many years ago and weapons considered as the future weapons. With all that weapons, they still share the same thing. They all hurt and kill.

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XM29 Integrated Air Burst Weapon

The Objective Individual Combat Weapon (OICW) is the lethality element of the Land Warrior program. It is also planned to be fielded as a stand-alone system. The OICW, designated as XM29 by the US Army, is a developmental infantry weapon system that will revolutionize the close combat fight by substantially improving the infantry soldier's effectiveness. The XM29's unique, full-solution target acquisition/fire control system combined with precision 20mm air bursting ammunition provide a significant overmatch capability against today's threats, resulting in a dramatic increase in soldier survivability. The XM29 is one of the premier programs within the new Program Manager Soldier Weapons Office in the Program Executive Office Soldier Systems.

The XM29, developed by Alliant Techsystems and H&K, fires special air-bursting projectiles and standard 5.56mm ammunition. As of 2005 the XM29 was still is too heavy and unwieldy for Army requirements. Instead of scrapping the XM29, the Army decided to perfect each of XM29's components separately, so soldiers can take advantage of new technology sooner. The parts would be brought back together when lighter materials become available.

XM29 is an integral part of the Land Warrior system and, as such, will provide a tremendous enhancement in tactical and operational capability when fielded. The XM29 also is planned for introduction into the Objective Force as an individual system for both the Future Combat Soldier and the Objective Force Warrior. In the Objective Force, it will be linked to a networked battlefield environment, further benefiting the overall force capability.

The XM29 has a dual semi-automatic over and under configuration capable of firing 20mm air bursting ammunition or NATO standard kinetic energy 5.56mm ammunition. Both weapons are magazine-fed, providing the combat soldier an operational firepower advantage over current single shot systems. The full-solution target acquisition fire control has a laser range finder, direct view optics, integrated thermal imager, ballistic computer, fuze setter, environmental sensors, and compass. The precision 20mm ammunition includes High Explosive Air Bursting (HEAB) and Target Practice (TP) variants. The system has been demonstrated at ranges two to three times the current 40mm system to accurately deliver an air burst one meter over the lased target on the first shot fired.

The XM29 Integrated Air Burst Weapon will replace selected M16 rifles and M4 carbines. The modular, dual-barrel XM29 will combine the lethality of the 25mm family of munitions and 5.56mm NATO ammunition with a full-solution fire control to effect decisively violent and suppressive target results and to greatly improve small arms performance. This fire control will incorporate a laser rangefinder, ballistic processor, direct view optics, electronic compass (bearing, tilt, and cant), thermal sighting, and an internal display. The XM29's precision airbursting 25mm ammunition is capable of defeating not only exposed targets, but those in defilade (targets that have taken cover behind structures, terrain features, and/or vehicles), a capability lacking in current direct fire rifles and carbines.

The XM29 will provide an overmatch in system effectiveness while increasing its ability in providing effective day/night operation. It provides a significant increase in lethality for a basis of issue of four XM29s per Infantry Squad. It mitigates the aim error associated with standard KE ammunition by providing the option of firing a 25mm air-bursting projectile with a low-arc trajectory.

The XM29 will be compatible with the digital battlefield and will provide the lethality upgrade for the Objective Force Warrior. Spiral Development is being used to accelerate the fielding of both weapon subsystems separately in advance of the dual-barrel system. The XM25 is the component that provides the airbursting performance and the XM8 is the KE component of the XM29. The XM8 is currently undergoing accelerated development to allow early fielding to replace M4 Carbines and M16 Rifles.

This weapon has performance better than or equal to the M4, offers increased reliability, is configurable to meet mission requirements by easy barrel changeout, and integrates sighting and pointing/illuminating devices. Lethality modules include a 40mm grenade launcher as well as a 12-gauge shotgun module. The 40mm grenade launcher, designated the XM320, can be used in a stand alone mode or as a separable under-barrel module with the M16 Rifle, the M4 Carbine, or the XM8 Carbine. The shotgun module is also used under-barrel on the M4, M16, or XM8. Both modules are currently under development as SEP Programs.

While an M16 costs under $1000, OICW may cost $10,000. That is because OICW is a single system consisting of a fire control and combinatorial weapon. The functions contained within the system include the "add-ons" now used on the M16 or M4 such as optics, thermal weapon system, and aim light. With these functional add-ons, the existing M16/M4/203 system cost exceeds $35,000 each.

The XM29 program focused on verifying system safety and launching into the full scale engineering design of the weapon, fire control, and ammunition. The XM29 demonstrated the integrated system capability "end to end" on three different test sequences over the multiple phases of the program. These results validated that it is technically low risk to field this leap-ahead capability in shoulder-fired HEAB ammunition.

The target acquisition fire control was upgraded, primarily focusing on reducing weight by integrating the latest laser, sensor, optics, electronics, and material technologies. It incorporates improved, low-weight optics for daylight viewing and integrated thermal optics for use at night. As the lethal element of the Land Warrior, it has been designed to integrate with the Land Warrior, allowing the XM29 to communicate from the fire control to the Land Warrior heads-up display and also to accommodate power sharing between systems.

The weapon was also being upgraded with a focus on weight reduction and ruggedization. Weight optimization is the primary driver for every weapon piece part and component. The program team is evaluating alternate weapon operating principles that support weight reduction. Additional enhancements are also being made to ensure ruggedness and boresight retention between the 5.56mm barrel, 20mm barrel, and fire control.

As of 2002 initial fielding of the XM29 was scheduled for GFY08. The XM29 program has implemented a block upgrade or "evolutionary" approach to fielding the weapon system. This encompasses an "initial fielding" of a "Block 1" system, which is designed to enable insertion of future technology enhancements. This approach will expedite completion and qualification of the initial Block 1 design, while preplanning future upgrades, such as advances in sensors and electronics technologies, MEMS fuze elements, advanced composites and materials, fuel cells, Nano technologies, ceramic gun barrels, wireless connectors, and future digital technology. These enhancements will help further reduce system weight, increase lethality, improve ruggedness, and increase system reliability and effectiveness beyond the Block 1 design. As of 2002 the XM29 project schedule was aligned so the First Unit Equipped (FUE) supports the fielding of the Future Combat System (FCS). This positions the Block 1 XM29 FUE in GFY08.

The OICW will not replace all of the M16s/M4s. The current U.S. Army Basis of Issue (BOI) is 4 OICW weapon systems per 9-man squad.

ATK Integrated Defense, Plymouth, Minnesota, is the XM29 system integrator and provider of the 20mm HEAB ammunition. Brashear, LP of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is responsible for the target acquisition fire control. Heckler and Koch (H&K) of Germany is the weapon system developer and manufacturer, and Omega, Columbus, Georgia, is responsible for training concept planning. This integrated team has worked together for several years, bringing the system through the concept development and proof of principle phases into the current system development phase. Recently, the program successfully passed the Milestone 1a decision, clearing the path for final development and fabrication of the initial Block 1 weapon system.

By late 2003 the XM29’s development was progressing, but it was overweight and years behind schedule. Originally, the weapon was supposed to begin production in 2005, but that date now has been pushed back to the end of fiscal year 2010. Designers struggled with the air-burst munition, and fought to reduce the weapon’s weight. The original prototype of the XM29 weighed 18 pounds, which Army officials said was too heavy. By 2010, plans call for the weight to drop to 15.5 pounds [up from an initial goal of 14 pounds].

In early 2004 it was decided to speed up development of its components as separate weapons, instead of developing the XM29 gradually. The rifle portion wasa developed as the XM8, and the grenade launcher would become the XM25 Air Burst Weapon. In addition, it was decided tha the XM25 would fire a 25mm air-bursting munition, rather than the 20mm planned for the XM29.

Following the increase of the caliber of OICW grenade launcher component from 20mm to 25mm [the same as used in the OCSW], in July 2004 it was decided to split the OICW system into two separate weapons, the 5.56mm XM8 modular assault rifle (OICW Increment 1), and the 25mm XM25 airburst assault weapon / grenade launcher (OICW Increment 2). Development of the complete XM29 (OICW Increment 3) system was shelved, and will be resumed once the OICW Increment 1 and 2 components are developed, and weight constraints of entire system are met.

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XM312 / XM307K50 : .50 Caliber Lightweight Machine Gun

Weight:
35 pounds (16 kg) max. (weapon only)
53 pounds (24 kg) max. (ground mount system).
Dimensions: 9.9W x 7.2H x 61.5L max. inches (25.1 mm x 18.3 mm x 1562 mm)(52.5L, 1334 mm) charged).
Portability: Man portable or vehicle mountable.
Stability: Up to 18 inch (460 mm) tripod height.
Operation: Currently a hybrid gas & recoil operating group. Gas powers the bolt mechanism while recoil drives the barrel/barrel extension and the feed system. Design changes are underway to eliminate the gas system totally to provide increased reliability and reduced complexity.
Environmental: Operationally insensitive to conditions.
Reliability: 6,000 MRBF (threshold) / 10,000 MRBF (objective).
Rate of fire:
260 shots per minute (4.3 hz)(cyclic).
40 shots per minute (0.7 hz)(sustained, without barrel change). In Burst of 5 to 7 rounds, the same as the M2HB.
Dispersion: Less than 1.1 miliradian, one sigma radius.
Range: Lethal and suppressive out to 2,000 meters.
Ammunition: .50 BMG M33 ball, M8, M20 & Mk211 API, M903 SLAP.
Recoil: 300 foot-pounds (407 J)(similar to the 7.62 mm M240).
Feed system: Weapon-mountable ammunition can or feed from any can using bellmouth attachment. M9 rear stripping link - common with current M2 ammunition. Left hand feed, right hand eject of cases and links.

The XM312 is a modern heavy machine gun chambered for the 12.7 × 99 mm NATO cartridge which is derived from the XM307 25 mm autocannon. It was designed in response to a request by the US military for a replacement for the aging M2HB heavy machine gun, and as a complement to the heavier XM307. It is quickly capable of being converted to an XM307 with a small number of parts and a few minutes of work at the unit level (and vice versa from the XM307). Procurement of the XM312 will allow easier use of the XM307, as only the related kits would have to be adopted. Two years ago field testing began with the XM312, but the test results were not encouraging because of the very low rate of fire of only 260 rounds per minute, so it is unlikely the XM312 will enter service with the U.S. Military.

The XM312, formerly known as the XM307K50, is a lightweight .50 caliber (12.7mm) machine gun being developed by General Dynamics to provide support for US Army objective forces. It features increased accuracy, effectiveness and lethality over current machine guns.This item can be converted to a 25mm grenade launcher taking less than 5 minutes and changing 6 parts. In fact, the XM312 machine gun is a derivative of the XM307 25mm grenade weapon system being designed for the US Army Objective Force.

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Information Warfare

In modern warfare, since all redoubts are traps, maneuver and coordination of forces is decisive, overshadowing particular weapons. The goal of every modern commander is therefore to "operate within the observation-decision-action cycle of the enemy." In this way, the modern commander can bring overwhelming force to bear on isolated groups of the enemy, and "tactically" overwhelm an enemy.

Traditional military maneuvers tried to achieve this coordination with "fronts" made of lines of military assets. These were formerly the only way to prevent harm to friendly forces. Close-order marching and drill (a traditional military skill) was an early method to get relative superiority of coordination. Derivative methods (such as "leapfrogging units to advance a line") survived into combined arms warfare to coordinate aircraft, artillery, armor and infantry.

Computers are changing this. The most extreme example so far is the use of "swarm" tactics by the U.S. military in Iraq. The U.S. had instantaneous, reliably encrypted communications, perfect navigation using GPS and computer-mediated communications to aim precision weapons.

In swarm tactics, small units pass through possible enemy territory. When attacked they attempt to survive by calling down immediate overwhelming showers of precision-guided air-dropped munitions for armor, and cluster bombs for enemy troops. To consolidate such a region, nearby artillery begin bombardment, and ground units rush in on safe vectors through the bombardments, avoiding them by computer-mediated navigation aids.

Thus in modern warfare, satellite navigation systems, digital radios and computers give decisive advantages to ordinary military personnel armed with weapons that are otherwise unremarkable.

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