What if the Strv 103 had ERA? | 125mm 3BM9 APFSDS vs S-Tank with ERA | Armour Penetration Simulation

The simulation presents the T-72’s 3BM9 APFSDS projectile impacting the upper glacis of a hypothetical Strv 103 modification, featuring ’heavy’ Explosive Reactive Armour (ERA). Some sources state that ERA and NERA were considered for Strv 103 modification, but neither entered service. The hypothetical ’heavy’ ERA modelled is thinner than contemporary designs of the time, as the base 40mm armour is unlikely to safely withstand the detonation of packages like Kontakt-5 or Relikt. The design simulated consists of a 10mm High Hardness Armour (HHA) front flyer plate, 5mm of high explosive, and a 4mm HHA rear flyer plate. This is roughly mass equivalent to 15mm of HHA (as shown in the comparison at the end). To cover the upper glacis in this ERA would weigh roughly 550kg. However, this neglects the mass of the attachment method and any dividers between ERA cassettes. It is unknown how much additional upper glacis weight the Strv 103 would have been able to support. For computational efficiency, a variable pressure load, based on the Gurney and Flis equations, has been used in the place of explicitly simulating the explosive material. AMazing Thumbnail Artwork From: uknown (please contact for credits)