m247 sergeant york unveilingm247 sergeant york unveiling

This gave them time to mature through testing and shakedowns. Painting and Marking Options - TAKOM offers the builder 5 different painting and marking options. Technicians worked on the problem, and the system was restarted. About: M247 Sergeant York - DBpedia Association The M247's turret is installed on the hull of an M48 medium tank, because of this they have roughly similar mobility. Sprue Tree H This tree contains additional small parts including the suspension arms and the machine gun. This ultimately led one soldier to speculate that the only way the M247 would manage to take out an enemy would be by "driving over the top of it.". As an example of some of the issues here, in 1982 Ford was set to demonstrate the M247 to a gathered crowd of VIPs and military brass. There was still a need for an anti-aircraft vehicle that could keep up with modern vehicles, so Oerlikon Canada created the ADATS anti-aircraft missile system. York to ADATS -- were all canceled, at a total cost of more than $6.7 billion. The Linebacker has been retired from active service, while the M1097 Avenger HMMWV-based Stinger-equipped systems have been downsized.[26]. VADS was intended to operate in concert with the MIM-72 Chaparral missile system, which combined the AIM-9 Sidewinder missile with a more heavily modified version of the M113 chassis. The M247 Sergeant York DIVAD (Division Air Defense) was a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun (SPAAG), developed by Ford Aerospace in the late 1970s. Specifically, in 1984, Secretary of Defence Caspar Weinberger decided to oversee a set of amazingly expensive tests costing $54 million ($144 million today) to better determine what this weapon could and couldnt do. The gunner was provided with roof mounted sight incorporating a laser range-finder. Every thing I read in all these articles is as we call it today. Sprue Tree Q This tree contains turret radar parts. [25], The OT&E concluded that the gun could perform the mission as originally specified, but the tests also showed that the system had considerable reliability problems, many as the result of trying to adapt a radar system developed for aircraft to the ground role. The M247 Sergeant York DIVAD (Division Air Defense) was a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun (SPAAG), developed by Ford Aerospace in the late 1970s. Of course, the M247 required the operator to tell it to fire, so there was no real danger here, but one can imagine staring down a pair of 40mm cannons in a live demo would be a tad frightening. This belt is the best at taking out enemy aircraft because the proximity fuze rounds make it so that a direct hit on an aircraft is not needed, the shells must only pass near the aircraft to damage it. However, despite the efforts of the Ford and Army engineers, the random objects on the ground continually wreaked havoc on the radars ability to track low flying aerial targets like pop-up attacking helicopters. Here now is the story of the forgotten M247. The M247 is about 3 tons heavier than the M48A1 (49.3 tons vs. 46.4 tons), and has a slightly weaker engine, which translates into a slightly more sluggish machine compared to the M48A1. The new self-propelled anti-aircraft gun system was to be based on the M48A5 tank chassis, using as much off-the-shelf equipment as possible. In any event, around the same time of the debacle that was the 1984 tests, the Soviet Union were deploying longer-range anti-tank missiles that were capable of being fired outside of the then current range the M247 could effectively counter the attacks, even if the system did aim properly. M247 Sergeant York: Photos, History, Specification The Sergeant York had a 600 rounds-per-minute rate of fire; more than double that of its predecessors. Check out the M247 Sergeant York AA Platoon in the online store. Help Category:M247 Sergeant York From Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository Pages in category "M247 Sergeant York" This category contains only the following page. The Photo-Etch fret contains air intake cover grills and a few finer detail parts. Another major problem, as previously mentioned, was that the M247's top speed wasn't sufficient to keep up with the M1 and M2's cruising speed, meaning it literally couldn't drive fast enough to travel with the things it was specifically designed to protect. The M247 Sergeant York DIVAD (Division Air Defense) was a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun (SPAAG), developed by Ford Aerospace in the late 1970s. All the BS the press puts out there is nonsense. Due to the decent armour-piercing ammunition used by the M247, most tanks at its BR can be penetrated from the side. Although far less capable than the ADATS missile, the Linebacker is able to keep up with mobile heavy forces. Further, the system had to more or less use off the shelf parts, rather than anything being developed from scratch. Based on the M48 chassis, the M247 was equipped with a radar based target acquisition system coupled to twin Bofors 40mm guns with autoloader. The XM247 received an official name "Sergeant York" after one of the most famous and most decorated American soldiers of the Great War and an all-round badass, Alvin C. York. Unfortunately for the U.S. tax payers who spent just shy of $2 billion on it (about $4.8 billion today or, humourously enough, after appropriately adjusting for inflation to make the dollar values match, about 1/11th what the entire Apollo program cost), the final version of the weapon ended up being so useless its automatic targeting system couldnt distinguish between a toilet vent fan and a jet plane, the vehicle itself couldnt keep up with the tanks it was designed to protect, and it was made obsolete by advances in enemy weaponry after only a few dozen faulty units were made. In the aftermath, a Ford Aerospace executive claimed the glitch had been caused by the M247 being washed before the demonstration, damaging the targeting system. Although the surviving M247s are impressive to see firsthand and enjoyable to envision what they "might have been," the Sergeant York DIVAD system will remain a mere footnote in the US Army Air Defense Artillery history. The radars were mounted on booms to give them a clear view of the sky, and both had the ability to be folded down to reduce the vehicle's height during travel. Alvin C. York State Historic Park in Pall Mall, TN where its namesake hailed from, one is in the Wahner E. Brooks Historical Exhibit at the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Grounds, AZ, another is located at the AAF Museum in Danville, VA, one at the Fort Snelling Military Museum in Minneapolis, MN (now closed), and one located at the Arkansas National Guard Museum at Camp Robinson, North Little Rock, Arkansas. Sprue Tree G This set of 2 trees contains a collection of radar parts and the 40mm gun. Alvin C. York State Historic Park. If you liked this review, consider joining AMPS. It would replace the M163 Vulcan Air Defense System SPAAG and MIM-72 Chaparral missile, ad hoc systems of limited performance that had been introduced when the more advanced MIM-46 Mauler missile failed to mature. Here now is the story of the forgotten M247. Based on the M48 Patton tank, it replaced the Patton's turret with a new one that featured twin radar-directed Bofors 40 mm rapid-fire guns. The only class of vehicles that can not be penetrated in a majority of cases is the heavy tank class, which should be avoided as much as possible. In addition, FACC had developed a proximity-sensing round for the 40mm, which increased probability of a kill, and the shell carried either a greater explosive charge or higher deadweight mass than the smaller anti-aircraft platforms. The former being a 20 mm rotary cannon mounted on an armoured personnel carrier, and the latter being a heavily modified armoured personnel carrier chassis with a surface-to-air missile launcher. Ford was loseing 1 million per copy. The Sergeant York was intended to fight alongside the M1 Abrams and M2 Bradley in the U.S. Army, in a role similar to the Soviet ZSU-23-4 and German Flakpanzer Gepard. Both vehicles were optionally supported by the AN/MPQ-49 Forward Area Alerting Radar (FAAR), but this system was towed by the Gama Goat and could not be used near the front lines. [22] The tests were carried out late in 1984. Despite the use of many off the . However, the moment the M247's tracking system was turned on, it immediately targeted the stands the gathered people were sitting in, resulting in complete chaos as those present trampled one another to get out of the way. With the first production vehicles being delivered in late 1983 many problems remained, the most serious being the radar's inability to track low flying targets due to excessive ground clutter. Sperry Rand entered a system based on their older Vigilante gun, modified to fire the 35mm round from the Oerlikon KDA series, widely used in NATO in the anti-aircraft role. However, it should be noted that the M48 was previously capable of keeping up here, but Ford added about 17 tons to the original 45 in their modifications of the turret, making the tank much slower than it had previously been. An Ineffective System: The M247 Sergeant York Published on 3rd June 2013 This article has also been published in the Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers Journal. The Reagan admin needed to show the public it was reducing military spending. The first effective[citation needed] SPAAG in U.S. Army service was the all-manual M19 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, which consisted of twin 40mm L60 Bofors guns based on the same chassis as used for the M24 Chaffee. So Ford basically raised there hand. Now only did we find it, but we also found a way inside! A sad outcome to associate with the heroics of Medal of Honor recipient Sergeant Alvin York. So we've established it was a bad SPAA, but just how bad was it? 2 forward, 1 reverse. It was designed to fight alongside the M1 Abrams and M2/M3 Bradley, in order to provide cover against aircraft. With the Soviet Mi-24 Hind attack helicopter being fitted with the longer range AT-6 SPIRAL Anti-tank missiles and twin barrelled 23mm cannon, and the Mi-28 Havoc nearing deployment, the M163 and M48 systems would be out-classed in a future conflict. FINALLY FINISHED! There were other SPAA vehicles in service at the time; these were the M163 Vulcan and the MIM-72/M48 Chaparral. radar was one designed for the F-16 fighter jet. Despite all these problems to units being delivered, the Army continued to pump money into the project, mostly because there wasnt a backup option and there was a very pressing need for such a weapon. "[6][22] They measured the availability of the system at 33%, as opposed to the required 90%. M247 Sergeant York DIVAD - Federation of American Scientists Box 8071140 Thorn Run RoadMoon Township, PA 15108-9998 USA. These factors would be important in the primary scenario for which the DIVAD was to be deployed, that being the large-theater land operations vs the Warsaw Pact. In addition, it took too long for the radar to pick up a target and for the guns to actually take aim. It was introduced in Update 1.81 "The Valkyries". First Look Review TAKOM's M247 Sergeant York. The most infamous example of this was that time an M247 ignored a passing drone it was supposed to be targeting and instead locked onto a nearby latrine exhaust fan, marking it as a low priority, slow-moving target. I designed the optical gun sight. Design work spanned from 1977 to 1985 under the direction of now-defunct Ford Aerospace. The recommended ammunition belt is the M822 belt, which includes both the AP and HE-VT rounds. The end-product became the short-lived M247 "Sergeant York", a 54-ton vehicle that introduced an all-new turret mounting the required radar facilities, tracking equipment and 2 x 40mm Bofors cannons. Sprue Tree N This tree contains radar assembly parts. click hereto contact the AMPS Membership coordinator. In any event, around the same time of the debacle that was the 1984 tests, the Soviet Union were deploying longer range anti-tank missiles that were capable of being fired outside of the then current range the M247 could effectively counter the attacks, even if the system did aim properly. The M247's targeting system was so poor that even when presented with an unrealistically favorable scenario, such as a helicopter hovering completely still in mid-air, it still missed and took an agonizing 12 seconds just to acquire the target. Just posting False News from the 80s M247 - War Thunder Wiki Sprue Tree L This tree contains hull surface parts. MBK packt aus #697 - 1:35 M247 Sergeant York (Takom 2160) York's acceptance in service. Speed. Sgt York, M247 - YouTube Ribbons are clickable to their respective campaigns / operations. the heavy armor n the turret, [ roughly 3 inches tick as I recall ] was added to protect it from 73 mm smooth bore guns on BMD and BMP [russian issued] APCs at the time, Dont worry about that so much, cut the side armor to 50 mm / 2 inch, widen the bast of the turret a bit , and angle it up at a 45 degree slope to deflect rounds and you save weight..save weight = better speed..issue helped if not solved. General Dynamics' entry also mounted twin Oerlikon KDA cannons, but mounted them side by side in a new aluminum turret, as opposed to either side of the turret as in the Gepard. Today, only a handful of M247s still exist, one of which can be found at the Sgt. After the 29-month Phase One trial, Ford's entry was selected as the winner of the DIVADs contest on 7 May 1981, and given a fixed-price $6.97 billion development and initial production contract for deliveries at various rates. Sprue Tree M This tree contains the turret parts. During the late 1960s the combination of the helicopter and anti-tank missiles improved to the point where they became a major threat to armoured operations. There is no 60mm anti-aircraft gun that has ever been produced. 48 km/h on road. Suspension wheels and tracks are 20 mm thick. Sprue Tree D This set of 3 trees each contains the upper and lower track shoe pads. As Washington became increasingly fed up with the DIVAD's problems, Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger ordered a $54 million series of battlefield-condition tests. The M247s targeting system was so poor that even when presented with an unrealistically favourable scenario, such as a helicopter hovering completely still in mid-air, it still missed and took an agonising 12 seconds just to acquire the target. After a while the engineers thought theyd managed to fix the issue and the demo resumed, only to see the M247 shoot into the ground rather than the drone target it was locked on to. The Chaparral's AIM-9D missiles were capable of tail-chase launches only, but offered ranges up to five miles (8.0km). Easterbrook, still covering the ongoing debacle, described this as being similar to demonstrating the abilities of a bloodhound by having it find a man standing alone in the middle of an empty parking lot, covered with steaks. These guns have improved rate of fire. Date 11 January 2009, 13:24 Source M247 Camp Robinson AR Author Mark Holloway from Beatty, Nevada, USA Licensing[ edit] This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license. These problems proved insurmountable, and in December 1986 after about 50 vehicles had been produced the entire program was terminated. Finally, the Soviets were widely introducing the ZSU-23-4 "Shilka" SPAAG, which was cause for some concern after it appeared in the Middle East. In addition, the turret traverse speed was much too slow, the vehicle it's self was too sluggish to keep up the M1s and M2s, and it was unreliable in cold weather. Yup. For all of these reasons, the Army developed the "Advanced Radar-directed Gun Air Defense System" (ARGADS) requirement for a new weapon system combining the reaction speed of the Vulcan with the range of the Chaparral, and placing them on a chassis that could keep up with the new tanks in combat. 6 meters and a height of 3. A portion of the film discussing the M247 is captured here in this clip. When the guns were pointed upward to fire on high-angle targets, the barrels projected into the radar's line of sight and further confused the system. Surviving M247 Sergeant York and T249 Vigilante Last update: September 26, 2013 Listed here are the M247 Sergeant York DIVAD (Division Air Defense) and T249 Vigilante Self-Propelled Anti-Aircraft Guns, that still exist today. After the failure of several well publicized tests where the radar locked on to a series anomalous targets including the packed demonstration bleachers in one instance, the York's days were numbered. Several companies responded to the request with proposed systems, with the Army ultimately narrowing it down to two entrants- one developed by Ford Aerospace and one by General Dynamics, with both companies given $79 million to develop prototypes. Most of the production Sergeants York ended up as targets on air force bombing ranges. When it was finally canceled in 1985, it was clear that the Sergeant York fell victim to the very thing that was supposed to make it a success: off the shelf technology. Initial Impressions. If you want to join AMPS, However, one is on display at the Sgt. The guy who wrote this artical The Army uses excerpts of this film to teach the dangers of ever changing requirements adversely affecting systems development. Initially, ground based air defense consisted of small to medium caliber guns mounted on existing platforms such as the British Morris C9/B with Bofors 40mm gunmounted on a Morris "Quad"Field Artillery Tractor, the German Wirbelwind with a 20mm quad gun mount on aPanzer IVchassis, the U.S. Armys M16 halftrack with a quad M2 .50 cal, and the U.S. Marine Corps M19 with a twin Bofors 40mm guns mounted onto an M24 chassis. Mainly because theradar was one designed for the F-16 fighter jet. The whole radar lock idea was a waste and a way for the contractor to bilk money, add weight and make themselves feel good loose it. After further failures to actually hit a target, the drones were made to hold still and equipped with radar reflectors (Rather ironic for a weapon named after a famed WWI soldier known for his incredibly sharpshooting ability.). If you forgot your username, enter your email address below and click the 'Send Username' button. The 35 mm round allowed a larger ammunition capacity and also a higher rate of fire than the 40mm Bofors L/70 selected by the Ford Aerospace XM247. Sent Several Hundred Million Needles Into Space (Project West Ford), The DIVAD Procurement: A Weapons System Case Study, M247 Sergeant York Self-Propelled Anti-Aircraft Gun, AN INEFFECTIVE SYSTEM: THE M247 SERGEANT YORK. The contract was put out in direct response to a battle tactic known as pop-up which essentially involved helicopters harassing tanks from a distance by hiding behind cover and then popping up briefly to let loose a volley of anti-tank missiles (which themselves were a newly developed technology) before hiding once again. The Decal sheet contains a mixture of administrative and tactical unit recognition markings. You are free: The M247 Sergeant York was officially designated as a "self-propelled anti-aircraft gun" but was for all intents and purposes a tank chassis with anti-aircraft guns attached to the top. Reporting on the incident in another article on the vehicle's woes, Washington Monthly reported that "Michael Duffy, a reporter for the industry publication Defense Week, who broke this aspect of the story, received a conference call in which Ford officials asked him to describe the target as a 'building fan' or 'exhaust fan' instead. Once again TAKOM has produced a kit based of a subject where few have ventured. Ford was loseing est. "M247" redirects here. For a vehicle this heavy, it has fairly good mobility. I believe the guns were 40mm. All trademarks, logos and brand names are the property of their respective owners. Common examples of tanks that are easy to penetrate from the side are the Leopard 1 and OF-40 families. However, Mauler proved to be beyond the state-of-the-art and ran into intractable problems during development. How was this targeting system so bad, given that it was developed using off-the-shelf parts that were shown to be reliable already? .M2 Bradley tanks. The Bradley is not a tank. The radar was a modified AN/APG-68 with an AN/APG-66 transmitter. However, rumors of the Army faking positive results for the M247 via putting it in unrealistically favorable conditions (such as hovering the drones and attaching radar reflectors), including Oregon state representative Dennis Smith going so far as to publicly accuse them of this, ultimately led to something of an inquiry on the matter. General info Survivability and armour Smoke grenades Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle Of the 5 options, three depict actual vehicles from the early 1980s, and two What If markings for units participating in REFORGER 1985. [19] One of the early models was reported to have locked onto a latrine fan, mistaking its return for a moving target of low-priority. [16] The turret proved to have too slow a traverse to track fast moving targets, and had serious problems operating in cold weather, including numerous hydraulic leaks. The radar could not distinguish between a hovering helicopter and a clump of trees. - The kit arrives in a large (15 L x 10 W x 5 D) sturdy box loaded with 19 cellophane bags containing 24 sprue trees, one small photo-etch fret, a length of cable, decal sheet and a set of instructions. Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle, Reduces the error and increases the maximum measurable distance of the rangefinder. Fake News. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. The M247 "Sergeant York" was designed in the late 1970's as a purpose-built SPAAG. All was not lost, however. The relatively large and boxy turret also mounted separate long-range search and short-range tracking radars on top. The main concerns had to do with the tracking radar, which demonstrated considerable problems with ground clutter. How was this targeting system so bad, given that it was developed using off the shelf parts that were shown to be reliable already? M247 Sergeant York came out of the DIVAD (DIVision Air Defense) programme to find a replacement for the M163 VADS and went into production in 1981. M247 Sergeant York | Weaponsystems.net Category:M247 Sergeant York - Wikimedia Commons You obviously do not know what you are talking about. With fifty-three vehicles produced and one battery, E / 1-1 the Sergeant York program suffered setback after setback. The hull has adequate protection against most light tank calibre rounds, Can retract and extend both search and tracking radars to reduce silhouette, Twin stabilized 40 mm cannons have a high rate of fire, Large ammunition count ensures that you will have plenty to fire throughout a match, Potent proximity ammunition for anti-aircraft use, The HE-VT belt has no tracers making it near impossible for enemy aircraft to see and doge the incoming shells, Radar allows for high range of detection and very accurate tracking, with 10 km tracking and 40 km detection range, Has access to night vision devices, a laser rangefinder, commander sights, and commander fire control, Vulnerable to enemy armour, artillery strikes and air attacks, The turret armour is only 5 mm thick, which is easy to penetrate even for rifle-calibre MGs, Radar is tall and can expose your position, The M247 is sluggish especially when stock, will usually not be able to keep up with MBTs, The high rate of fire can deplete the ammo quickly without proper trigger discipline, Completely lacks any armour-piercing rounds in any belt, giving it very poor defensive capabilities against ground vehicles, even lightly-armoured ones, The gunner sight optics only has one zoom setting (12.0x with a sight FOV of 6) meaning that you may struggle to engage tanks and to lock/eliminate aircraft, 5-minute long restock time on a capture point after depleting ammo, No IRST mode and cannot lock onto targets when the radar is off, Using the laser rangefinder does not adjust the range of the guns. While the Chaparral had enough range to engage the "Hind", its lengthy lock-on period meant the Hind would have hit its target and hidden behind terrain again before the Sidewinder would reach it. Colonel Russell Parker testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee in March 1977 that "We expect this somewhat unorthodox approach to permit a much reduced development time, thus resulting in an earliest fielding date, albeit with higher but acceptable risks the manufacturer will be required by the fixed price warranty provisions, to correct deficiencies. Takom greift den Sgt. The arrival of attack helicopters such as the Soviet Mi-24 HIND spurred the next generation of SPAAG system in the late 1960s. (As to that cost, while its widely reported today that the project cost close to $7 billion (about $18 billion today), in fact that number includes about three decades of anti-aircraft weapon development leading up to and including the actual figure of about $1.8 billion (about $4.8 billion today) spent on the development of the M247s.). Not a problem, of course, given it's always balmy in the regions that were once the former Soviet Union (In truth, even if it was balmy, it turns out the tracking system also struggled in high ambient temperatures and had trouble dealing with vibrations, such as generated continually when the M247 moved over the ground.). Manage Settings The M247 Sergeant York DIVAD (Division Air Defense) was a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun (SPAAG), developed by Ford Aerospace in the late 1970s. [5] The pair of weapons was, at best, a nuisance to the enemy and had limited performance against modern aircraft. If you forgot your password, enter the information below and click the 'Reset Password' button. "[15] Noting that canceling the project did not imply a lack of need, he started the process of studying a missile-based system to fill the same niche. I worked with all of the people on this program; they were from Frankford Arsenal and Rock Island Arsenal. All the gunner had to do then was to select the target from the generated list and fire. No A.I. [18] In a report on the test, Easterbrook jokingly wondered if it ever rained in central Europe. The Tank Museum on Twitter: "The M247 Sergeant York was a