The original armour-piercing projectile was not particularly effective, and Sweden decided to develop a replacement. Bofors was tasked with creating a new projectile intended for use against ground targets. The result was an incendiary-explosive projectile with a steel core, designated 13,2 mm skarp patron m/40 granat m/44.
Although the cartridge was not a high-explosive round in the conventional sense, it consisted of a steel penetrator core surrounded by an explosive charge and fitted with an incendiary tip enclosed in a steel casing. A small primer located in the nose ignited the incendiary-explosive filling upon impact, rupturing the steel casing. The steel core would then continue into the target, penetrating a certain thickness of material.
This design made the projectile highly effective in both fighter and ground-attack roles, as it could ignite protected fuel tanks in aircraft and ground vehicles while still retaining armour-piercing capability.
Pictures of the round:
Here
13,2 mm granat m/44 (APHEI)
- Projectile mass: 46.75 g
- Muzzle velocity: ~810 - 820 m/s (estimated)
- Explosive filler: Incendiary/explosive compound
- Fuse: Impact striker
- Penetration: ~26 mm at 10 m
- Damage type: HEI-AP
- Explodes on impact, then drives a steel penetrator into the target.
