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76 mm Super Rapid by en:User:Ketil – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Nansen-oto76mm-2006-07-03.jpg, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6255607 In the mid-1990’s I was working as a consultant to the Italian defense firm Oto Melara. Oto Melara’s name was made by its 3” (76mm) naval gun that took the world by storm. Over 100 navies globally, including the United States, adopted the 76mm gun for their corvettes, frigates and patrol boats. The original Oto Melara gun system fired at around 80 rounds per minute, which was more than adequate against the kinds of threats that were around in the 1970’s and early 1980’s. The gun could be...

The Almaz Central Maritime Design Bureau offers an export version of the Project 22800E corvette equipped with Italian-made 76-mm gun mount OTO Melara, diesel engines MTU and radioelectronic weapons Thales, reports Mil.Today referring to the design bureau. Potential buyers are also offered a fully import-substituted version with Russian engines, the gun mount and radars. The export version of the Project 22800E debuted at the Army-2016 defense show. The corvette version fitted with imported components may be more interesting for foreign customers, the design bureau staff told Mil.Today. The question is primarily about the Indian Navy which is going for maximal...

The Russian Navy has decided to equip all of its small missile ships and boats with a unique high-precision digital 76 mm automatic gun, the Russian newspaper Izvestia quoted a Russian navy source as saying. Designed to contain NATO warships equipped with Italian-made Oto Melara guns, the АК-176МА is equipped with an all-weather electro-optical system which shares its characteristics with a sniper rifle, according to the source. It said that the new gun's combination of high ballistic performance with an electronic management control system add to the AK-176MA's complete superiority over its main competitor, the 76-mm gun made by the...

At IDEF 2015, which is held in Istanbul from 5-8 May, Italian company Oto Melara is showcasing for the first time the new 20mm Gunship for which commercial contacts with the Turkish aeronautic company TAI have already started. Gunship by Oto Melara is a palletized air-to-ground gun system, designed to be operated from military cargo aircraft, such as C130s (all versions), C27s or any other which has a standard military pallet (88’x108’) capability. Oto Melara Gunship 20 mm air-to-ground gun system at IDEF 2015 In the present day stand-alone configuration, the Gunship system is self contained in a single cargo...

Finmeccanica is proposing that the OTO Melara 76mm gun be configured onto the Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship as part of an effort to improve the lethality and survivability of the shallow-water , multi-mission vessel. The naval artillery piece would replace the existing 57mm weapon now on board the LCS, per the existing proposal, said Eric Lindenbaum, vice president of Navy and Maritime programs for DRS Technologies. OTO Melara and DRS Technologies are both subsidiaries for the Italian defense company, Finmeccanica SpA. Amidst an ongoing effort to develop alternative proposals for a new small surface combatant, Navy officials are busy exploring...

Oto Melara Introduces a 76mm Version of Vulcano Multi-Mission, Long Range Naval Projectile Technology Oto Melara has conducted firing tests of the Ballistic Extended Range Vulcano 127 projectile designed for the 127/46 gun mounted on the Italian FREMM and German F125 frigates. Photo: Oto Melara/ Oto Melara unveiled yesterday a family of extended range and guided 76mm projectiles it is developing for the popular 76/62 naval gun system. The new Vulcano 76 round transforms this classic naval weapon into a multi-mission weapon system, capable of handling surface targets at sea and on land. The weapon addresses new operational requirements evolving...

Italy has bought a manufacturing license, for $34 million, to produce 500 SDB smart bombs, and fifty launchers for their aircraft. The American manufacturer (Boeing) will supply key mechanical and electrical components, and the Italian builder will supply the rest and assemble and test the bombs. Boeing previously did a similar deal with the Italian firm (Oto Melara) to produce JDAM GPS guided bombs. Oto Melara is a division of Finmeccanica, the largest defense firm (nearly $20 billion a year in sales) in Italy. It was four years ago that the air force finally got the SDB into service, in...

Deck Guns Gain Range Nov 4, 2009 Andy Nativi/Genoa The demand for naval guns is driven by two requirements, each at the extreme end of the performance spectrum. One is for artillery whose ranges go well beyond those of the big guns used in World War II. The average range of naval guns then was 35-40 km. (22-25 mi.), with the 18-in. (46-cm.) guns of Japan's Yamato-class battleships capable of firing 1,460-kg. (3,218-lb.) projectiles 26 mi. The other requirement is for small-caliber weapons to defend against airborne and asymmetric threats and for use in missions where navies confront pirates and...