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A land mine, or landmine, is an explosive weapon concealed under or camouflaged on the ground, and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it.
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, any vessel or a particular vessel type, akin to anti-infantry or anti-vehicle mines. Naval mines can be used offensively, to hamper enemy shipping movements or lock vessels into a harbour; or defensively, to protect friendly vessels and create "safe" zones. Mines allow the minelaying force commander to concentrate warships or defensive assets in mine-free areas giving the adversary three choices: undertake an expensive and time-consuming minesweeping effort, accept the casualties of challenging the minefield, or use the unmined waters where the greatest concentration of enemy firepower will be encountered.
The GATOR mine system is a United States military system of air-dropped anti-tank and anti-personnel mines developed in the 1980s to be compatible with existing cluster dispensers. It is used with two dispenser systems—the Navy 230 kg (500 lb) CBU-78/B and the Air Force 450 kg (1,000 lb) CBU-89/B. Additionally the mines are used with the land- and helicopter-based Volcano mine system.
In anti-tank warfare, an anti-tank mine is a type of land mine designed to damage or destroy vehicles including tanks and armored fighting vehicles.
The Tellermine 42 (T.Mi.42) was a German metal-cased anti-tank blast mine used during the Second World War. The mine was a development of the Tellermine 35 with improved resistance to blast. It was followed by the simplified Tellermine 43. The Tellermine consists of a circular pressed steel main body with a large central pressure plate. The pressure plate is smaller than the earlier Tellermine 35, which increases the mine's resistance to blast. Two secondary fuze wells are provided for anti-handling devices, one in the side, and one on the bottom of the mine. The mine has a carrying handle.
The L9 bar mine is a large rectangular British anti-tank landmine. The bar mine's principal advantage is its long length, and therefore its trigger length. A typical anti-tank landmine is circular, and a vehicle's wheels or tracks, which make up only a small proportion of its total width, must actually press on the mine to activate it. To increase the probability of a vehicle striking the mine, the mine's effective trigger width must be increased.
The PMD-6, PMD-7 and PMD-57 series mines are Soviet Union blast-type anti-personnel mines that consist of a wooden box with a hinged lid with a slot cut into it. The slot presses down against a retaining pin, which holds back the striker. When sufficient pressure is applied to the lid of the box the retaining pin moves, allowing the striker to hit the detonator. The mines typically have an operating pressure of 1 to 10 kg.
The PMN series of blast anti-personnel mines were designed and manufactured in the Soviet Union. They are one of the most widely used and commonly found devices during demining operations. They are sometimes nicknamed "black widow" because of their dark casings.
The PT Mi-K is a Czechoslovakian metal-cased anti-tank blast landmine. The mine uses a metal grid instead a pressure plate, this gives it resistance to overpressure. The mine is no longer produced, but is found in Afghanistan, Cambodia, Eritrea, Namibia, Nicaragua and the Western Sahara.
The M7 is a small, metal-cased United States anti-tank blast mine that was used during the Second World War. It was based on the British Hawkins grenade. Approximately 2.5 million were produced before production ceased, and although it has long since been withdrawn from U.S. service, it can be found in Angola, Burma, Cambodia, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Korea, Lebanon, Myanmar, Somalia, Thailand, and Zambia.
The M21 is a circular United States anti-tank landmine that uses a Misznay Schardin effect warhead. The mine uses an M607 pressure fuse, which can be adapted as a tilt rod fuze. The mine is triggered either by pressure, or by the tilt rod being forced beyond 20 degrees from the vertical by a force of more than 1.7 kg, either of these actions results in pressure being transferred via a bearing cap to a Belleville spring, which inverts, driving the firing pin into the M46 detonator. The M46 charge first ignites a black powder charge, which blows off the mine's cover, and clears any earth or debris that may have been on top of the mine. A fraction of a second later the main warhead detonates, driving and compressing a steel plate upwards, with enough force to penetrate 76 mm of armour at a distance of 530 mm. Approximately 200,000 M21 mines were produced in the U.S. and licensed copies, the K441 and K442, were produced in South Korea.
The P2 Mk2 and P3 Mk2 are Pakistani plastic cased minimum metal anti-tank blast mines. The P2 Mk2 has a square case with a central circular ribbed pressure plate, the P3 is circular with a central circular pressure plate. Both mines use anti-personnel mines as the fuse, typically the either the P4 Mk1 or P2 Mk2 anti-personnel mines. The anti-personnel mine sits in a cavity below the pressure plate, when enough pressure is place on the pressure plate of the mine, it collapses onto the anti-personnel mine triggering it and the main charge which sits below it. A yellow canvas carrying strap is normally fitted to the side of the mine. The mines have a secondary fuse well on the bottom which can be used with anti-handling devices. A GLM-2 electronic booby trap can be fitted to the cavity under the pressure plate. The mine is supplied with a steel disc which makes the mine more easily detectable, although this is seldom used. Since 1997 only a detectable version of the mine has been produced, and to comply with the Convention on Conventional Weapons amended protocol II, Pakistani stocks of the mine are being retrofitted with steel detection discs. The mines are found in Afghanistan, Angola, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Pakistan, Somalia, and Tajikistan.
The FMK-1 is a small circular Argentina anti-personnel blast mine which, when fitted with a stiffened pressure plate, is also used as the fuze for the FMK-3 and FMK-5 anti-tank mines. The mine has a circular plastic body, with a number of small ribs running vertically around the outside of the mine, with the circular detonator and striker protruding on each side. The pressure plate has a distinctive six pointed star shape ribbing for stiffness. The bottom of the mine has small base plug inside which a small stud is installed. The stud increases the activation pressure of the mine. A metal detector disc can be added to the bottom of the mine, but it is not often used. It is actually in service with the Argentine Army.
The MATS/2.6 is a scatterable Italian circular, plastic-cased minimum metal blast resistant anti-tank blast mine. It is very similar to the MATS/2, except that it uses a smooth pressure plate rather than a griddle pressure plate. It uses a pneumatic fuse which is resistant to shock and blast similar to the fuze fitted to the TS-50. The mine's plastic case is waterproof, and the mine can be scattered from a helicopter.
The Min AP NM AE T1 is a small Brazilian minimum metal anti-personnel mine. The mine has a plastic case in the form of a truncated cone. with a small protruding fuse and pressure plate. The small size of the pressure plate gives the mine some blast resistance. The main charge is in the form of a small inverted cone which generates a shaped charge effect when detonated.
The Anti-Tank Mine General Service Mark II was a British anti-tank blast mine used during the Second World War.
The TMD-40 was a wooden-cased Soviet anti-tank blast mine used during the Second World War. The mine consisted of a rectangular wooden box which contained a detonator assembly at each end and seven 400 gram and four 200 gram blocks of explosive. The fuse assemblies consisted of a lever device, which when pressed downward by pressure pieces attached to the lid of the mine, see-sawed upward, pulling the striker retaining pin from a pull detonator. The main charge was then triggered.
The NV-41 was a wooden-cased Soviet anti-tank blast mine used during the Second World War. The mine consists of a square wooden box with a filling plug on the bottom. The top of the box is covered by a thin pressure lid, which covers a pressure plate held up by a spring. Sufficient pressure on the lid collapses it down onto the pressure plate. Downward movement of the pressure plate moves down a pressure plunger, which in turn levers up the striker retaining lever, releasing the spring-loaded striker and allowing it to impact the stab sensitive detonator, triggering the main charge.
The VAR/40, VAR/100 and VAR/100/SP are Italian anti-personnel blast landmines produced by the Tecnovar italiana S.p.A. company.
The A.P. Mine No. 3 was a British anti-personnel mine of World War II. The mine was developed and produced by the Royal Engineers in India due to a shortage of mines for the Burma campaign. The mine was simpler to lay than previous devices and could be placed by infantrymen, rather than sappers. The A.P. Mine No. 3 was a bounding shrapnel mine that was lethal at ranges of up to 30 yards (27 m).
References
 | This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations .(June 2024) |
- Jerzy Garstka. Miny przeciwpancerne Wojska Polskiego z lat 1945-1997. Część I. Miny klasyczne. „Nowa Technika Wojskowa”. 1998. nr 11. s. str. 20-23. ISSN 1230-1655.
- PMZ-40 mine at ORDATA
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