Abstract

A caseless round adapted for use as a high velocity armor piercing round which, in turn, is ideally suited for use by aircraft in air-to-air and air-to-ground modes. The preferred embodiment includes: a hollow, completely combustible, cylindrical-shaped casing with the aft closed and having an aperture therein; an aft grain charge and a fore grain charge, both hollow, cylindrical-shaped and open-ended, with the grain charges wholly within the casing and abutting each other and the internal surface of the casing; a primer charge wholly within the hollow aft grain charge at the aperture of the closed end of the casing; a booster charge also disposed wholly within the hollow aft grain charge, and abutting with the primer; a metal, high-density flechette, with a suitably shaped tip at the forward end and a plurality of spin-stabilizing fins at the aft end, centrally located wholly within the hollow fore grain charge; an open-ended sabot made of a plurality of identical glass reinforced polyester resin sections surrounding the flechette and having an air-catching fore end; a first seal of nylon, with an integral rotating band ring, fitted over the sabot; a nylon fore boot seal fitted over the aft open end of the sabot, and interposed between the first seal and the sabot; a nylon aft boot seal made of a plurality of identical sections forming a cavity in which the fins of the flechette are loosely fitted, and having a forwardly disposed air-catching groove. Among the advantages of the use of this round is the fact that it is significantly lighter than prior art rounds; results in shorter flight times to the target; and, thereby substantially increases hit probability.