Formation of explosively formed penetrator with fins and its flight characteristics

Abstract The ultimate goal of weapon system employing an explosively formed penetrator (EFP) is to defeat a target at the longest standoff. In order to do this, an EFP must be aerodynamically stable so as to strike the target at a small angle of obliquity, and the decay velocity per meter of EFP must be smaller at extended standoff. As the angle of attack increases, the penetration ability of EFP greatly reduces. The fins improve the EFP aeroballistic characteristics and decrease the flight drag of EFP as well. EFP with fins formed by three-point initiation is presented. The formation of EFP with fins is studied by LS-DYNA, and the aeroballistics is studied through experiment. The experimental results show that the decay velocity per meter of EFP with fins is much smaller than that of normal EFP, and the attitude angle steadily decreases.