Re: [Fwd: flanker New China Radar technology threatens US StealthAircraft!]

Nathan Pettigrew wrote:

> BTW, can any naval types tell me what "caliber" refers to on the big 
> guns? i.e. 5"/54  It's obvious that it's a 5in gun, but I don't know
what the > 54 refers to.

The second number refers to barrel length in calibres. All guns are
"rated" like this, not just naval ones - eg, the 120mm gun on the M1A2
or Leopard 2A5 is 120mm/44, the one on the CV90120 is an 120mm/50, and
the one on the Leopard 2A6 is IIRC 120mm/55. The longer the barrel, the
more energy you get out of the propellant gasses and therefore the
higher your muzzle velocity (and, unless your projectile looks really
weird, the longer your range).

Best wishes,

Oerjan Ohlson
oerjan.ohlson@telia.com

"Life is like a sewer.
  What you get out of it, depends on what you put into it."
- Hen3ry