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Munitions

United States

General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems

M829A3 APFSDS

U.S. 120 mm depleted-uranium APFSDS round with a longer penetrator and improved sabot, designed to defeat modern reactive and composite armor.

Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗

Data confidence Last verified 2026-07-05 ·

Stub · 9%

Procurement snapshot

Availability & export

US ITAR-controlled

Export needs U.S. State Dept (DDTC) approval; end-use & re-transfer restrictions apply.

Channel: Foreign Military Sales (FMS) or Direct Commercial Sale

Fielded & proven

Operator data not public

Status: active.

Lifecycle cost (est.)

No public unit price to model from. Why so few systems publish one →

Interoperability

120 mm NATO smoothbore

Competitive field

74 comparable systems from 24 other manufacturers

Counted in the WeaponSpecs database: munitions built by another manufacturer. A count of what this catalog holds, not a survey of the whole market. See the alternatives →

Derived guidance from public data, export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.

Full specifications

Firepower

Armament, payload and guidance.

Firepower specifications
Caliber Bore diameter of the main gun or rifle. Larger throws heavier projectiles; not simply better, ammunition commonality matters.	120 mm

Physical

Dimensions, weight and crew.

Physical specifications
Length Overall length including gun/probe where applicable.	0.89 m
Combat weight Fully loaded weight. Lighter eases transport and bridging limits; heavier often means more armor.	22 kg

Munition

Round type, penetration, velocity and projectile data.

Munition specifications
Round type APFSDS (kinetic sabot), HEAT / multipurpose, HE-FRAG, canister or gun-launched ATGM.	APFSDS
Fired from Guns or launchers the round is qualified to fire from, by designation. Not a performance figure: it is the compatibility list that decides which platforms can actually use the munition.	120 mm M256 smoothbore (M1 Abrams)
Penetration Published/estimated rolled-homogeneous-armour-equivalent penetration. Values are open-source estimates; real figures are classified.	680 mm RHA Stronger than 77% of munitions
Muzzle velocity Speed as the projectile leaves the barrel. Higher flattens trajectory and shortens time-to-target.	1,555 m/s Stronger than 62% of munitions
Projectile mass Mass of the projectile or penetrator assembly.	10 kg

Specifications compiled from public General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations, treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-05.

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