DARDO

DARDO ("Dart" in Italian) is a close-in weapon system (CIWS) built by the Italian companies Breda and Oto Melara. It is composed of two Breda-built Bofors 40 mm firing high explosive (HE) shells, a fire-control radar (RTN-10X) and a fire-control system (RTN-20X and Dardo). It is the last of a long series of Italian anti-aircraft weapons derived from the Swedish Bofors 40 mm autocannons (mounted on Breda built gun mounts such as the Type 64, Type 106, Type 107, Type 564 and Type 520).

For the infantry fighting vehicle, see Dardo IFV.
DARDO
TypeClose-in weapon system
Place of originItaly
Production history
ManufacturerOto Melara
VariantsCompact, Fast Forty
Specifications
MassComplete gun mount (less ammo): 5,500 kg (12,100 lb)
Complete round (HE): 4.05 kg (8.9 lb)
HeightEnclosed turret: 2.4 m (7 ft 10 in)
Type A mount: 1.3 m (4 ft 3 in)
Type B mount: 0.92 m (3 ft 0 in)
DiameterMount ring: 1.7 m (5 ft 7 in)
Working circle: 2.902 m (9 ft 6.3 in)
Caliber40 mm
Barrels2 × Breda-built Bofors-40 mm L/70
ElevationMinimum −13°
Maximum +85°
speed: 60°/s (70°/s Fast Forty)
TraverseFull 360° traverse, speed: 90°/s (100°/s Fast Forty)
Rate of fire2 × 300 round/min
2 × 450 round/min (Fast Forty)
Effective firing rangeHE round: 4,000 m (4,400 yd)
Maximum firing rangeAA with HE: 8,700 m (9,500 yd)
Feed systemMagazine:
736 HE rounds (444 Type B mount)
Dual feed mechanism with 736 HE and 200 APFSDS rounds (Fast Forty)

Purpose

The system's primary purpose is to defend against anti-ship missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles and other precision guided weapons. It can also be employed against conventional and rotary-wing aircraft, surface ships, small water-crafts, coastal targets and floating mines.

Installation

DARDO is installed in an enclosed turret with two different mounts: the Type A with 440-round internal and 292-round under-deck magazines; and Type B with only the 440-round internal magazine (Type B requires no deck penetration).

Other versions

The Fast Forty is an improved version of the system with a higher rate of fire, dual magazine and dual feed mechanism to allow switching from HE to armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS) rounds when a missile gets within 1,000 meters from the vessel.

Comparison with current CIWS
Comparison of some modern CIWS
AK-630[1] Phalanx CIWS[2] Goalkeeper CIWS DARDO[3]
Weight 9,114 kg (20,093 lb) 6,200 kg (13,700 lb) 9,902 kg (21,830 lb) 5,500 kg (12,100 lb)
Armament 30 mm (1.2 in) 6 barreled GSh-6-30 Gatling Gun 20 mm (0.79 in) 6 barreled M61 Vulcan Gatling Gun 30 mm (1.2 in) 7 barreled GAU-8 Gatling Gun 40 mm (1.6 in) 2 barreled Bofors 40 mm
Rate of Fire 5,000 rounds per minute 4,500 rounds per minute 4,200 rounds per minute 600/900 round per minute
(effective/ flat-trajectory) Range 4,000 m (13,000 ft) 2,000 m (6,600 ft) 3,600 m (11,800 ft) 4,000 m (13,000 ft)
Ammunition storage 2,000 rounds 1,550 rounds 1,190 rounds 736 rounds
Muzzle velocity 900 m (3,000 ft) per second 1,100 m (3,600 ft) per second 1,109 m (3,638 ft) per second 1,000 m (3,300 ft) per second
Elevation −13 to +78 degrees −75 to +55 degrees −75 to +64 degrees −13 to +85 degrees
Traverse 360 degrees -150 to +150 degrees 360 degrees 360 degrees

Operators
Map of DARDO operators in blue

Current operators

See also

References
  1. "AK-630 Gatling Gun Close in Weapon System". Indian-military.org. 2010-03-12. Archived from the original on March 15, 2010. Retrieved 2012-01-08.
  2. "The US Navy - Fact File:". Navy.mil. Archived from the original on 2014-11-04. Retrieved 2012-01-08.
  3. Tony DiGiulian (2006-05-21). "Italian 40 mm/70 (1.57") Breda". Navweaps.com. Retrieved 2012-01-08.
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