ShVAK (20 mm)

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Description

The ShVAK (Russian: ШВАК: Шпитальный-Владимиров Авиационный Крупнокалиберный, Shpitalnyi-Vladimirov Aviatsionnyi Krupnokalibernyi, Shpitalny-Vladimirov large-calibre for aircraft) is a 20 mm autocannon which could be mounted on aircraft, either in the wings, the fuselage or in turrets. There are 3 variants of the ShVAK, 'standard' ShVAK, 'early' ShVAK (which lacks API and FI bullets), and the ShVAKs which is a standard ShVAK synchronised and regulated to fire through a propeller arc without destroying the propeller. The synchronised ShVAK has a lower rate of fire compared to the other versions.

The turreted ShVAK has the same characteristics as the standard wing or fuselage mounted ShVAK cannons.

Vehicles equipped with this weapon

Vehicles equipped with 'early' ShVAK
␗I-16 type 17 · I-16 type 27 · I-16 type 28 · I-153P

Vehicles equipped with 'standard' ShVAK or turreted ShVAK
Fighters 
Hurricane  ▂Hurricane Mk IIB
ITP  ITP (M-1)
LaGG-3  LaGG-3-4 · LaGG-3-8 · LaGG-3-11 · LaGG-3-23 · LaGG-3-35 · LaGG-3-66
Yak-1  Yak-1 · Yak-1B · ▀Yak-1B
Yak-3  Yak-3 · ▄Yak-3
Yak-7  Yak-7B
Yak-9  Yak-9 · Yak-9B · Golovachev's Yak-9M · Yak-9U
Twin-engine fighters  I-29
Jet fighters  BI
Strike aircraft  IL-2 (1941) · IL-2 M-82 · Pe-3bis · TIS MA · Yak-2 KABB
Bombers 
Pe-8  Pe-8 (Defensive)
Tu-2  Tu-2 · Tu-2S · Tu-2S-44 · ␗Tu-2S-44 · Tu-2S-59
Yer-2  Yer-2 (ACh-30B) (e) (Defensive) · Yer-2 (ACh-30B) (l) (Defensive)
Motor torpedo boats  G-5 (ShVAK)

Vehicles equipped with synchronised ShVAK
I-185  I-185 (M-71) · I-185 (M-82)
I-225  I-225
La-5  La-5 · La-5F · La-5FN · ▀La-5FN
La-7  La-7 · Dolgushin's La-7
MiG-3  MiG-3-34

General info

Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.

Available ammunition

Early:

  • Default: T · HEF-I
  • Air targets: HEF · HEF-I · HEF · T
  • Tracers: T · HEF-I · T · T
  • Stealth: HEF · HEF · HEF

Penetration statistics
Ammunition Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
10 m 100 m 500 m 1,000 m 1,500 m 2,000 m
T 10 8 7 6 0 0
HEF-I 4 3 2 2 2 2
HEF 3 3 2 2 2 2
Shell details
Ammunition Velocity
(m/s)
Projectile
mass (kg)
Fuse delay
(m)
Fuse sensitivity
(mm)
Explosive mass
(TNT equivalent) (g)
Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
T 800 0.09 - - - 47° 56° 65°
HEF-I 800 0.09 0.04 0.1 4.35 79° 80° 81°
HEF 800 0.09 0.04 0.1 5.8 79° 80° 81°

Standard/Synchronised

  • Default: FI-T · AP-I
  • Universal: FI-T · HEF · AP-I · FI-T
  • Ground targets: HEF · FI-T · AP-I
  • Tracers: FI-T · FI-T · FI-T
  • Armoured targets: AP-I · FI-T · AP-I · AP-I
  • Stealth: AP-I · HEF · HEF · FI
  • Default (turret): FI-T · HEF
  • Armoured targets (turret): AP-I · FI-T · AP-I
  • Air targets (turret): AP-I · FI-T · HEF · HEF-I

Penetration statistics
Ammunition Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
10 m 100 m 500 m 1,000 m 1,500 m 2,000 m
FI-T 3 3 2 2 2 2
AP-I 28 24 14 7 4 2
HEF 3 3 2 2 2 2
FI 3 3 2 2 2 2
Shell details
Ammunition Velocity
(m/s)
Projectile
mass (kg)
Fuse delay
(m)
Fuse sensitivity
(mm)
Explosive mass
(TNT equivalent) (g)
Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
FI-T 800 0.1 0.04 0.1 6.36 47° 56° 65°
AP-I 800 0.1 - - - 47° 56° 65°
HEF 800 0.09 0.04 0.1 5.8 79° 80° 81°
FI 800 0.1 0.04 0.1 8.62 47° 56° 65°

Naval

  • Universal: FI-T · AP-I · FI-T · AP-I
  • 20 mm HE belts: FI-T · FI · FI · AP-I
  • 20 mm AP belts: API-T · AP-I · AP-I · FI

Penetration statistics
Ammunition Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
10 m 100 m 500 m 1,000 m 1,500 m 2,000 m
FI-T 2 2 2 2 2 2
AP-I 27 25 17 10 6 4
FI 2 2 2 2 2 2
API-T 27 25 17 10 6 4
Shell details
Ammunition Velocity
(m/s)
Projectile
mass (kg)
Fuse delay
(m)
Fuse sensitivity
(mm)
Explosive mass
(TNT equivalent) (g)
Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
FI-T 770 0.1 0 0.1 4.31 47° 56° 65°
AP-I 800 0.1 - - - 47° 56° 65°
FI 770 0.1 0 0.1 4 47° 56° 65°
API-T 800 0.1 - - - 47° 60° 65°

Comparison with analogues

Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns that have firepower equal to this weapon.

Usage in battles

The ShVAK has a good rate of fire and accuracy, but it is weakened by the poor damage potential of its HEF rounds. To inflict consistent damage to the enemies, it is recommended to use Armored Targets or Ground Targets Belts containing AP and/or FI rounds.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Decent rate of fire at 720 to 800 RPM
  • Good accuracy even during prolonged bursts
  • Fragmentation-Incendiary round (FI) is good for pilot snipe and set fire
  • Tracer belt is full of FI-T aka Soviet laser beam

Cons:

  • HEI has the worst explosive effect compared to 20 mm shells of other nations
  • Struggles against large framed and heavily armoured aircraft
  • Mediocre muzzle velocity
  • Useless at defeating armour thicker than 20 mm
  • Most ShVAK installations have less than 200 rounds
  • Has a tendency to "spark"

History

The ShVAK is a 20 mm cannon. Originally designed to meet a requirement of a 12.7x108 mm aircraft machine gun intended to use the same cartridges as the DShK machine gun, the ShVAK 12.7 mm machine gun designed at Tula Arsenal by S.V. Vladimirov was a scaled up version of the ShKAS action. It was first used in synchronized mount on the I-16 and planned for use on the cancelled Yatsenko I-28 fighter. However, the action meant the ShVAK gun needed to use rimmed cartridges while the DShK used rimless cartridges. As a result, the machine gun was phased out in favour of the Berezin UB which could use DShK ammunition.

Between 1935 and 1936, the design was modified to fire a 20 mm cartridge. It retained the "bird-cage" feed system that gradually de-linked a cartridge and had the gas cylinder moved under the barrel to create an more compact profile. It became the standard Soviet aircraft cannon during World War II, used on a number of aircraft from the I-153P and I-16 fighters, to the Soviet Lend-Lease Hurricane Mk IIBs and the Tu-2 "Bat", the ground attack version of the Pe-2 "Buck", on flexible mounts in the Pe-8 and Yer-2 bombers, and on early variants of the IL-2 "Shturmovik" ground attack aircraft. In 1952, the United States tested captured guns where they noted it had the same range and rate of fire as their M3, but was lighter than that design. However, it was made of non-heat-treated parts that were filed down to fit. After World War II, the ShVAK was replaced by the Berezin B-20 which was even lighter but just as powerful.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

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  • reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;
  • references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.

External links

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  • topic on the official game forum;
  • other literature.


Germany aircraft cannons
15 mm  MG 151
20 mm  MG 151 · MG C/30L · MG FF · MG FF/M
27 mm  Mauser BK27
30 mm  MK 101 · MK 103 · MK 108
37 mm  BK 3.7
50 mm  BK 5 · Mk.214a
75 mm  BK 7.5
  Foreign:
20 mm  Hispano Mk.V (Britain) · M24A1 (USA) · M61A1 (USA) · ShVAK (USSR)
23 mm  GSh-23L (USSR) · NR-23 (USSR) · VYa-23 (USSR)
30 mm  DEFA 552 (France) · GSh-30-1 (USSR) · GSh-30-2K (USSR) · NR-30 (USSR)
37 mm  N-37D (USSR)

USSR aircraft cannons
20 mm  B-20E · B-20M · B-20S · ShVAK
23 mm  GSh-23L · NR-23 · NS-23 · NS-23K · PTB-23 · VYa-23
30 mm  2A42 · GSh-6-30 · GSh-30-1 · GSh-30-2 · GSh-30-2K · NR-30
37 mm  N-37 · N-37D · NS-37 · SH-37
45 mm  NS-45
  Foreign:
20 mm  Hispano Mk.II (Britain) · MG 151 (Germany)
37 mm  M4 (USA) · M10 (USA)

China aircraft cannons
23 mm  Type 23-1 · Type 23-2K · Type 23-3 · Type 23L
30 mm  Type 30-1
  Foreign
20 mm  AN/M2 (USA) · B-20E (USSR) · Hispano 404 (France) · Hispano Mk.II (Britain) · Ho-3 (Japan) · Ho-5 (Japan)
  M39A1 (USA) · M39A2 (USA) · M39A3 (USA) · M61A1 (USA) · ShVAK (USSR) · Type 99 Model 1 (Japan)
23 mm  NR-23 (USSR) · NS-23 (USSR) · NS-23K (USSR)
30 mm  GAU-13/A (USA)
37 mm  Ho-203 (Japan) · N-37D (USSR)

France aircraft cannons
20 mm  GIAT M.621 · Hispano 404 · Hispano HS.9 · M50
30 mm  DEFA 541 · DEFA 551 · DEFA 552 · DEFA 552A · DEFA 553 · DEFA 554 · GIAT M781
  Foreign:
20 mm  AN/M2 (USA) · Browning-Colt Mk12 Mod 3 (USA) · Hispano Mk.II (Britain) · M3 (USA) · M24A1 (USA) · M39A1 (USA) · MG 151 (Germany) · ShVAK (USSR)
37 mm  M4 (USA) · M10 (USA) · NS-37 (USSR)

USSR naval cannons
20 mm  ShVAK
25 mm  2M-3
30 mm  AK-230 · 30 mm/54 AK-630 · BP "Plamya"
37 mm  37 mm/67 70-K · V-11
45 mm  45 mm/46 21-K · 45 mm/68 21-KM · 45 mm/89 SM-20-ZIF · 45 mm/89 SM-21-ZIF
57 mm  AK-725
75 mm  75 mm/50 Canet patt.1892
76 mm  34-K · 39-K · 76 mm/60 AK-176M · AK-726 · D-56TS · F-34 · Lender AA gun, pattern 1914/15
85 mm  85 mm/52 92-K · 85 mm/54.6 ZIS-C-53 · 90-K
100 mm  100 mm/56 B-34 · 100 mm/70 SM-5-1 · Minizini
102 mm  Pattern 1911
120 mm  120 mm/50 pattern 1905
130 mm  130 mm/55 pattern 1913 · 130 mm/58 SM-2-1 · B-13
152 mm  152 mm/57 B-38
180 mm  180 mm/57 B-1-P · 180 mm/60 B-1-K
305 mm  12-inch/52 pattern 1907 · 305 mm/54 B-50
  Foreign:
40 mm  2pdr QF Mk.IIc (Britain) · Skoda (Czechoslovakia)
47 mm  3 pdr QF Hotchkiss (Britain)
76 mm  76 mm/40 Ansaldo mod.1917 (Italy)
88 mm  SK C/30 (Germany)
120 mm  120 mm/50 Mk.4 Bofors M1924 (Sweden) · 120 mm/50 O.T.O. Mod.1933 (Italy)
152 mm  152/53 mm O.T.O. Mod.1929 (Italy)
320 mm  320 mm/44 Ansaldo model 1934 (Italy)