100 mm air defense gun KS-19 (Russian: 100-мм зенитная пушка КС-19) was a Soviet anti-aircraft gun. Following the end of the Second World War the Soviet Union introduced into service the 100 mm KS-19 and 130 mm KS-30.
The KS-19 is a heavy towed anti aircraft gun that has largely disappeared from front line arsenals due to increased use of more effective surface-to-air missiles. Being a towed weapon an external form of mobility was required, usually an AT-S Medium or AT-T Heavy tracked artillery tractor. The 15 man crew were carried on the tractor along with ready use ammunition for the gun. Ammunition was loaded as a single round into the loading tray and a well trained crew could fire 15 rounds maximum per minute.
Anti Aircraft ammunition includes high explosive, high explosive fragmentation and fragmentation types. The KS-19's onboard sights can be used to engage air targets; however increased accuracy was achieved if used in conjunction with a fire control radar such as the SON 9 (NATO Reporting name 'Fire Can') and PUAZO-6/19 director.
As the KS-19 is a heavy calibre Anti-Aircraft gun it also has some utility in the ground role especially against armored targets. As a result of this two armor piecing rounds were produced: the AP-T (Armour Piercing-Tracer) and APC-T (Armour Piercing Capped-Tracer) with the AP-T round reportedly able to penetrate 185 mm of armor at 1000 m.
The KS-19 was used in action by communist forces in both Korea and Vietnam.
Recently Iran has build an upgraded automatic version of KS-19 named Sa'ir.
Famous quotes containing the words air, defense and/or gun:
“Easily, with a few convulsive quirks, they give up their watery ghosts, like a mortal translated before his time to the thin air of heaven.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Our reliance is in the love of liberty which God has planted in our bosoms. Our defense is in the preservation of the spirit which prizes liberty as the heritage of all men, in all lands, every where.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
“What cannot stand must fall; and the measure of our sincerity and therefore of the respect of men, is the amount of health and wealth we will hazard in the defence of our right. An old farmer, my neighbor across the fence, when I ask him if he is not going to town-meeting, says: “No, ‘t is no use balloting, for it will not stay; but what you do with the gun will stay so.””
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)