Nudelman N-37

Nudelman N-37
Chinese N-37 at the Beijing Military Museum
Type Single-barrel autocannon
Place of origin USSR
Service history
In service 1946 -
Used by Soviet armed forces and export customers
Wars
Production history
Designer V. Ya. Nemenov
Designed 1945
Manufacturer OKB-16
Produced 1946 – ca.1960
Variants
  • N-37
  • N-37D
  • N-37L
  • NN-37
Specifications
Weight 103 kg (227 lb)
Length 2,455 millimetres (96.7 in) (N-37D)
Cartridge 37x155mm
Cartridge weight 735 g/26 oz HEI-T, 760 g/27 oz AP-T
Caliber 37 mm (1.46 in)
Barrels 1
Action Short recoil
Rate of fire 400 rounds per minute
Muzzle velocity 690 m/s (2,260 ft/s)

The Nudelman N-37 was a 37 mm (1.46 in) aircraft autocannon used by the Soviet Union. It was designed during World War II by V. Ya. Nemenov of A.E. Nudelman's OKB-16 to replace the earlier Nudelman-Suranov NS-37 and entered service in 1946. It was 30% lighter than its predecessor at the cost of a 23% lower muzzle velocity.

The N-37 was a sizable weapon firing a massive (735 g/26 oz HEI-T, 760 g/27 oz AP-T) shell. Its muzzle velocity was still considerable, but its rate of fire was only 400 rounds per minute. The weapon's considerable recoil and waste gases were problematic for turbojet fighter aircraft, as was finding space for the gun and a useful amount of ammunition, but a single shell was often sufficient to destroy a bomber.

The N-37 was used in the MiG-9, MiG-15, MiG-17, and early MiG-19 fighters, the Yakovlev Yak-25, and others. Production lasted through the late 1950s, although it remained in service for many years afterwards.

Variants

N-37D (front)
N-37
  • Basic version without muzzle brake
N-37D
  • N-37 with muzzle brake
N-37L
  • N-37 with 1950mm long barrel (had no muzzle brake)
NN-37
  • Improved N-37L developed during the late 1950s for the Yak-27 reconnaissance aircraft. The NN-37 differed from the N-37L in having a pneumatic counter-recoil accelerator, therefore achieving a rate of fire of 600–700rpm. The ammunition feed mechanism was redesigned as well on this version.

Production

The Soviet archives detail the following production numbers by year:[1]

  • 1947 — 518
  • 1948 — 508
  • 1949 — 1,314
  • 1950 — 3,043
  • 1951 — 3,885
  • 1952 — 4,433
  • 1953 — 4,600
  • 1954 — 1,700
  • 1956 — 285

Comparable Weapons

See also

References

  1. ↑ Shirokograd, p. 129; no number given for 1955

Bibliography

  • Koll, Christian (2009). Soviet Cannon - A Comprehensive Study of Soviet Arms and Ammunition in Calibres 12.7mm to 57mm. Austria: Koll. p. 341. ISBN 978-3-200-01445-9.
  • Широкорад А.Б. (2001) История авиационного вооружения Харвест (Shirokorad A.B. (2001) Istorya aviatsionnogo vooruzhenia Harvest. ISBN 985-433-695-6) (History of aircraft armament)
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