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XM25 CDTE
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XM25 CDTE
The XM25 Counter Defilade Target Engagement (CDTE) System, also known as the Punisher and Individual Semiautomatic Air Burst System was an airburst grenade launcher with programmable ammunition derived from the XM29 OICW. It was fielded to soldiers serving in the War in Afghanistan in 2010, after which malfunctions and 2013 program budget cuts delayed official entry into service, planned for early 2017. In early 2017, the contract with Orbital ATK was cancelled, calling the future of the entire program into question. The program was officially terminated on 24 July 2018.
The XM25 CDTE fires 25 mm grenades that are set to explode in mid-air at or near the target. A laser rangefinder in the weapon is used to determine the distance to the target. The user can manually adjust the detonating distance by up to 10 feet (3.0 m) shorter or longer; the XM25 automatically transmits the detonating distance to the grenade in the firing chamber. The grenade tracks the distance it has traveled by the number of spiral rotations after it is fired, then detonates at the proper distance to produce an airburst effect. These features make the XM25 more effective than traditional grenade launchers at the task of hitting targets that are behind cover or dug into the ground.
The system was developed by Alliant Techsystems and Heckler & Koch, while the target acquisition/fire control was developed by L-3 IOS Brashear.
The M203 grenade launcher has an effective range for point targets of 150 m (160 yd), and a maximum range for area targets of 350 m (380 yd). The XM25 has an effective range for point targets of 600 m (660 yd), and a maximum range for area targets of 700 m (770 yd). Studies indicate that the XM25 with air burst rounds is 300 percent more effective at engaging the enemy than other squad-level grenade launchers.
In 2014, the U.S. Army was working on a 40 mm autonomous airburst Small Arms Grenade Munitions (SAGM) round to give 40 mm grenade launchers airburst capabilities as a complementary system to the XM25.
In March 2013, elements of the 75th Ranger Regiment refused to take the 14 lb (6.4 kg) weapon on a raid because they found it too heavy and cumbersome. They also felt its low basic ammunition load and magazine capacity of 25 mm grenades were not enough to justify the removal of an M4A1 carbine from the mission.
Although the XM25 enables infantry units to engage enemies hiding behind cover, the weapon has been met with several points of criticism, specifically that it requires soldiers to exchange their rifle and use it as their primary weapon, making them unable to perform required tasks in many squad battle drills; there is also concern that the operator has a reduced capacity to engage targets at close range and that its basic load of 36 rounds can be depleted too quickly in direct-fire engagements.
Furthermore, critics have said that the system is too heavy for an individual soldier to carry. A US soldier equipped with an M4 carbine (the US Armed Forces primary infantry weapon), attachments and ammunition has to carry a 16 lb (7.3 kg) load. With the addition of a M320 grenade launcher and ammunition the total increases to 38 lb (17 kg). An XM25 with 36 rounds of ammunition is a 35 lb (16 kg) weapon load alone. If this was swapped in for the M320 grenade launcher, this means the infantryman needs to carry a larger load of 51 lb (23 kg).
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XM25 CDTE AI simulator
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XM25 CDTE
The XM25 Counter Defilade Target Engagement (CDTE) System, also known as the Punisher and Individual Semiautomatic Air Burst System was an airburst grenade launcher with programmable ammunition derived from the XM29 OICW. It was fielded to soldiers serving in the War in Afghanistan in 2010, after which malfunctions and 2013 program budget cuts delayed official entry into service, planned for early 2017. In early 2017, the contract with Orbital ATK was cancelled, calling the future of the entire program into question. The program was officially terminated on 24 July 2018.
The XM25 CDTE fires 25 mm grenades that are set to explode in mid-air at or near the target. A laser rangefinder in the weapon is used to determine the distance to the target. The user can manually adjust the detonating distance by up to 10 feet (3.0 m) shorter or longer; the XM25 automatically transmits the detonating distance to the grenade in the firing chamber. The grenade tracks the distance it has traveled by the number of spiral rotations after it is fired, then detonates at the proper distance to produce an airburst effect. These features make the XM25 more effective than traditional grenade launchers at the task of hitting targets that are behind cover or dug into the ground.
The system was developed by Alliant Techsystems and Heckler & Koch, while the target acquisition/fire control was developed by L-3 IOS Brashear.
The M203 grenade launcher has an effective range for point targets of 150 m (160 yd), and a maximum range for area targets of 350 m (380 yd). The XM25 has an effective range for point targets of 600 m (660 yd), and a maximum range for area targets of 700 m (770 yd). Studies indicate that the XM25 with air burst rounds is 300 percent more effective at engaging the enemy than other squad-level grenade launchers.
In 2014, the U.S. Army was working on a 40 mm autonomous airburst Small Arms Grenade Munitions (SAGM) round to give 40 mm grenade launchers airburst capabilities as a complementary system to the XM25.
In March 2013, elements of the 75th Ranger Regiment refused to take the 14 lb (6.4 kg) weapon on a raid because they found it too heavy and cumbersome. They also felt its low basic ammunition load and magazine capacity of 25 mm grenades were not enough to justify the removal of an M4A1 carbine from the mission.
Although the XM25 enables infantry units to engage enemies hiding behind cover, the weapon has been met with several points of criticism, specifically that it requires soldiers to exchange their rifle and use it as their primary weapon, making them unable to perform required tasks in many squad battle drills; there is also concern that the operator has a reduced capacity to engage targets at close range and that its basic load of 36 rounds can be depleted too quickly in direct-fire engagements.
Furthermore, critics have said that the system is too heavy for an individual soldier to carry. A US soldier equipped with an M4 carbine (the US Armed Forces primary infantry weapon), attachments and ammunition has to carry a 16 lb (7.3 kg) load. With the addition of a M320 grenade launcher and ammunition the total increases to 38 lb (17 kg). An XM25 with 36 rounds of ammunition is a 35 lb (16 kg) weapon load alone. If this was swapped in for the M320 grenade launcher, this means the infantryman needs to carry a larger load of 51 lb (23 kg).