Nudelman N-37
Encyclopedia
The N-37 was a powerful, 37 mm (1.46 in) aircraft
cannon
used by the Soviet Union
. It was designed by V. Ya. Nemenov of A.E. Nudelman's OKB-16 to replace the wartime
Nudelman-Suranov NS-37
, entering service in 1946. It was 30% lighter than its predecessor at the cost of a 23% lower muzzle velocity
.
The N-37 was a sizable weapon firing a massive (735 g/26 oz HEI-T, 760 g/27 oz AP-T) shell. Its muzzle velocity was still considerable, but its rate of fire was only 400 rounds per minute. The weapon's considerable recoil
and waste gases were problematic for turbojet fighter aircraft
, as was finding space for the gun and a useful amount of ammunition
, but a single shell was often sufficient to destroy a bomber
.
The N-37 was used in the MiG-9, MiG-15, MiG-17, and early MiG-19 fighters, the Yakovlev Yak-25
, and others. Production lasted through the late 1950s, although it remained in service for many years afterwards.
N-37D: N-37 with muzzle brake
N-37L: N-37 with 1950mm long barrel (had no muzzle brake)
NN-37: improved N-37L developed during the late 1950s for the Yak-27 reconnaissance aircraft. The NN-37 differed from the N-37L in having a pneumatic counter-recoil accelerator, therefore achieving a rate of fire of 600-700rpm. The ammunition feed mechanism was redesigned as well on this version.
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
cannon
Autocannon
An autocannon or automatic cannon is a rapid-fire projectile weapon firing a shell as opposed to the bullet fired by a machine gun. Autocannons often have a larger caliber than a machine gun . Usually, autocannons are smaller than a field gun or other artillery, and are mechanically loaded for a...
used by the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. It was designed by V. Ya. Nemenov of A.E. Nudelman's OKB-16 to replace the wartime
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Nudelman-Suranov NS-37
Nudelman-Suranov NS-37
The Nudelman-Suranov NS-37 was a aircraft cannon, which replaced the unreliable Shpitalny Sh-37 gun. Large caliber was planned to allow destruction of both ground targets and planes .Developed by A. E. Nudelman and A...
, entering service in 1946. It was 30% lighter than its predecessor at the cost of a 23% lower muzzle velocity
Muzzle velocity
Muzzle velocity is the speed a projectile has at the moment it leaves the muzzle of the gun. Muzzle velocities range from approximately to in black powder muskets , to more than in modern rifles with high-performance cartridges such as the .220 Swift and .204 Ruger, all the way to for tank guns...
.
The N-37 was a sizable weapon firing a massive (735 g/26 oz HEI-T, 760 g/27 oz AP-T) shell. Its muzzle velocity was still considerable, but its rate of fire was only 400 rounds per minute. The weapon's considerable recoil
Recoil
Recoil is the backward momentum of a gun when it is discharged. In technical terms, the recoil caused by the gun exactly balances the forward momentum of the projectile and exhaust gasses, according to Newton's third law...
and waste gases were problematic for turbojet fighter aircraft
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
, as was finding space for the gun and a useful amount of ammunition
Ammunition
Ammunition is a generic term derived from the French language la munition which embraced all material used for war , but which in time came to refer specifically to gunpowder and artillery. The collective term for all types of ammunition is munitions...
, but a single shell was often sufficient to destroy a bomber
Bomber
A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
.
The N-37 was used in the MiG-9, MiG-15, MiG-17, and early MiG-19 fighters, the Yakovlev Yak-25
Yakovlev Yak-25
The Yakovlev Yak-25 was a swept wing, turbojet-powered interceptor aircraft and reconnaissance aircraft built by Yakovlev and used by the Soviet Union.-Design and development:...
, and others. Production lasted through the late 1950s, although it remained in service for many years afterwards.
Variants
N-37: basic version without muzzle brakeN-37D: N-37 with muzzle brake
N-37L: N-37 with 1950mm long barrel (had no muzzle brake)
NN-37: improved N-37L developed during the late 1950s for the Yak-27 reconnaissance aircraft. The NN-37 differed from the N-37L in having a pneumatic counter-recoil accelerator, therefore achieving a rate of fire of 600-700rpm. The ammunition feed mechanism was redesigned as well on this version.