VMP-5/5
| VMP-5/5 | |
|---|---|
| File:VMP-5.png | |
| Type | Anti-tank mine |
| Place of origin | Astronea |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1996-present |
| Used by | Astronean Armed Forces |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Ostresh Advanced Systems |
| Designed | 1990s |
| Manufacturer | ACC Defence Division |
| Unit cost | $400 |
| Produced | 1996-present |
| Specifications | |
| Height | 115 mm (4.5 in) |
| Diameter | 250 mm (9.8 in) |
| Effective firing range | 123 m (135 yd) |
| Filling | Composition B |
| Filling weight | 5.5 kg |
Detonation mechanism | Air pressure, seismic, magnetic |
| References | |
The VMP-5/5 (standing for vibration, magnetic and pressure 5.5kg)is an Astronean plastic-case, minimal metal anti-tank mine designed by Ostresh Advanced Systems. The mine is fitted with 5.5 kg of Composition B explosive, and uses an electronic microprocessor controlled fuze with magnetic, seismic and pressure sensors allowing it to discriminate between targets. It can be command detonated.
This design also adds multiple layers of redundency, allowing for various detection and detonation methods. The mines are resistant to overpressure and shock, making them blast resistant, are waterproof and non-buoyant, and have a shelf life of over ten years.
The VMP-5/5 has an active life of between one hour and one year which can be set in one-hour increments, at the end of which the mine will either self-destruct or disarm itself. The electronic fuze is also fitted with an integral anti-lifting device by standard.
Design
The body of the VMP-5/5 mine is normally olive green or sand coloured and is circular. Its construction is entirely plastic, with the only metal aspects being the circuitry located in the electronic fuze, which is so minimal it is near impossible to detect by standard metal mine detectors. The VMP-5/5 consists of a ribbed main body containing the main charge and a larger fuze which sits on top, comprising the air pressure aspect of the fuze. A carrying handle on the side of the mine allows it to be carried and easily transported.
The explosive filling of the mine is capable of causing devastating damage to hulls of lightly armoured vehicles, outright destroying them, as well as de-track, severely damage and potentially cause crew fatalities in main battle tanks.
Electronic microprocessor fuze
The air-pressure aspect of the VMP-5/5's electronic fuze uses an air system, where air is forced through a small hole into an air bladder, the inflation of which rotates a locking collar and releases the striker into the detonator. The sudden impulse from impact or explosion does not have sufficient duration to inflate the bladder and rotate the locking collar, whereas steady pressure from a vehicle's wheel or track does.
The programmable nature of the electronic fuze allows the mine to ignore the first vehicle in a convoy, or only target vehicles of a specific type or weight, identified by their seismic profiles, level of gradual pressure or magnetic disturbance.
The mine's magnetic field sensors and movement sensors inside the VMP-5/5 detect changes to the fuze's terrestrial magnetic field of the mine caused by another ferromagnetic object. A signal processor inside the mine receives the signals from the magnetic field sensors and movement sensors and activates the detonator which will then detonate the explosives within the ordnance.