A projectile with enhanced power for penetrating a target includes an elongated thick-walled casing having a main body with a cavity and a nose with a bore. The nose is interfitted with the main body such that its bore merges with the cavity. An elongated rod-like heavy penetrator extends longitudinally through the main body cavity and into the nose bore. An incendiary charge is disposed in the nose bore, whereas an explosive charge is disposed in the main body cavity. An annular ring is anchored to the main body at the location where the nose bore merges with the main body cavity. The ring has a central opening through which the penetrator is received and aligned for forward penetrating travel upon impact of the nose with the target. The ring separates the nose bore and the main body cavity, retaining the incendiary charge in the nose bore. Finally, the ring contains spaced axial apertures which provide communication of the nose bore with the main body cavity so as to allow ignition of the incendiary charge to travel through the ring and detonate the explosive charge after impact of the nose with the target. Preferably, the penetrator is coupled to the ring for acceleration to a higher velocity upon detonation of the charge.

The invention relates to a hermetically sealed ballistic projectile having nose, material containing shell and a piston. The nose has a rearwardly increased diameter and a rearward region of decreased diameter, the shell has a forward most region of mating diameter with the rearward region of the nose and is in fixed but frangible contact with the nose. The piston is in hermetic sealed engagement with the inner surface of the forward region of the shell with its forward surface proximate the rearward surface of the nose. Material is used to fill the interior space of the shell between the piston and the rearward inner surface of the shell. The materials can be of a liquid, semi-liquid, slurry or solid consistency and are explosive, hypergolic, incendiary or otherwise reactive or inert, and contained in a single or a plurality of separate component containing compartments.

The invention relates to a projectile comprising a shell body containing an explosive charge and a ballistic nose cone in which a trigger system is disposed. The ballistic nose cone is organized as two distinct parts which are connected together in axial alignment, comprising a bottom portion that is essentially rigid and a top portion that is essentially deformable on impact on a target. Each of the portions is charged with a compressed incendiary composition, and together they form a closed functional cavity whose shape is maintained on firing and during the trajectory of the projectile. The bottom portion also receives a layer of mechanically strong pyrophoric material, said material being set off by the charge in the ballistic nose cone which is itself set off on impact by the sudden increase in the pressure of the air contained in the closed functional cavity. The invention is applicable to making destructive effect projectiles capable of penetrating multiple structures or lightly armored structures with a major incendiary effect and spraying particles of molten metal.

A baseplug for a target-penetrating projectile containing an explosive in which the baseplug is fabricated in two components each preferably fabricated from a powdered pyrophoric material. The powdered pyrophoric material may be zirconium or titanium or alloys thereof which is charged with hydrogen which upon burning of the baseplug is released to increase the fine start capability of the projectile.

A projectile for the destruction of unexploded ordnance comprising a projectile shell having a core region which contains a reactive composition comprised of a reactive metal and an oxidizer. The reactive metal is selected from the group consisting of titanium, aluminum, magnesium, lithium, beryllium, zirconium, thorium, uranium, hafnium, alloys thereof, hydrides thereof, and combinations thereof. The oxidizer is selected from the group consisting of lithium perchlorate, lithium chlorate, magnesium perchlorate, magnesium chlorate, ammonium perchlorate, ammonium chlorate, potassium perchlorate, potassium chlorate, oxides thereof, peroxides thereof, and combinations thereof. Also included are methods of destroying unexploded ordnance and disposable apparati for delivering a projectile to destroy unexploded ordnance.