Tag Archives: 20mm Phalanx

ADA, the CIWS Way

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Official caption: Army field artillerymen conduct reload training in the Middle East on a counter-air defense Land-based Phalanx Weapon System, which can eliminate threats with its rapid-fire 20 mm Gatling gun, Aug. 12, 2026.

U.S. Army photo 260812-D-A0839-9196

The patch is of the Marion helmets of the 53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team “Gator Brigade” of the Florida National Guard, whose ADA units are drawn from the 164th Air Defense Artillery Brigade.

While some 1,000 Mk 16 CIWS mounts have been produced for use afloat around the world in 24 fleets, it is believed that the Army only has between 30 to 45 trailer-mounted LPWS/Centurion C-RAMs in its possession, a number which may be significantly lower with guns given to Ukraine.

Of note, they use specialized self-destructing rounds (M940 MPT-SD or M246) designed to detonate in the air to prevent collateral damage on the ground, and have successfully zapped incoming mortar rounds and rockets in Iraq and Afghanistan going back to May 2005.

Iranian UAVs and cruise missiles are new to the menu.

Wasp’s Tail

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How about this great detail of the layered defense of stingers in an LHD’s tail?

ATLANTIC OCEAN (July 20, 2023) Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5) conducts routine operations in the Atlantic Ocean. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Danilo Reynoso) 230720-N-VO895-3048

Sandwiched between the flight deck and the well dock doors, you see one of the ship’s two 21-cell RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile launchers, one of her two 8-cell RIM-7 Sea Sparrow missile launchers, one of her two 20mm Phalanx Mk 15 Mod 1B CIWS systems, and one of her three 25mm Mk 38 Mod 2 Machine Gun Systems. Not bad for a ‘phib.

A close-up: