It was the 1960s, and the Italian Navy was
about to design a weapon that would be unequaled even in the new millennium.
Developed by the OTO-Melara company,
the 76-millimeter Compact naval cannon didn’t take long to conquer the world markets.
Its holistic design made it a perfect fit for anti-missile and anti-aircraft roles but also for
anti-surface and general naval support missions, soon surpassing American and Russian developments.
And even as the years have gone by, the OTO-Melara has always been adaptable to the times.
Over half a century later, the weapon still arms the navies of five dozen countries,
some of which consider it the best naval gun ever created…
Small Problems
The legendary OTO-Melara 76-millimeter naval gun was designed by the Italian
defense company of the same name in the middle of the Cold War.
Based on the 76/62C, the new version later evolved into the 76/62 Super Rapid and the 76/62 Strales.
The original Compact version was the right scale to equip warships of relatively small sizes.
And with its high rate of fire, coupled with the ability to fire a wide range of ammunition,
it was a capable short-range anti-missile point defense and anti-aircraft weapon system. In
addition, it could provide anti-surface or naval support and ground support as a secondary role.
The earliest version of the weapon can be told apart from
its successors because of its angular mounting.
Developed from the earlier 76-millimeter/62 M.
M. I. mounting, the Compact used a two-piece water-cooled barrel with a replaceable liner.
Plus, it was fitted with a small-hole muzzle brake and fume extractor,
while its shield was made of fiberglass. The cannon was highly successful from the very start.
However, it is said that the Compact had reliability and accuracy issues
regarding its maximum rate of fire. According to a project engineer who
worked on its development, the mount had a tendency to self-destruct at 85 rounds per
minute and was unable to hold a 20-round burst on a 6x6-meter target at 460 meters.
After the Compact design was created in 1963, the military’s attention began drifting towards
missile-armed fast attack craft forces. For all its desirable qualities, the Compact showed
many deficiencies that prompted the company to resume design studies for a more advanced model.
Two decades later, an improved, faster-firing version specializing
in anti-ship missile defense would come forward and make a big splash.
Super Rapid
With a higher rate of fire of 120 rounds per minute,
the Super Rapid addressed the problems of its predecessor, improving accuracy
by reducing the weight of the moving parts, which in turn reduced the vibration problems.
The weapon’s minimum rate ended up at 10 rounds per minute, but it included a single fire option.
The manufacturer also stated that the changes diminished standard deviation values to less
than 0.017 degrees at 1,000 meters per each 10-round burst at a maximum rate of fire.
Meanwhile, elevation limits cover minus 15 to plus 85 degrees,
though the maximum elevation for the above deck version is limited to 70 degrees.
Moreover, both models have the option for a reduced radar cross-section RCS gun shield.
Although similar to the rounded gun shield design of the Compact,
the Super Rapid is much tougher, as its mounting was strengthened to resist overpressures twice
the rate of its predecessor at one kilogram per square centimeter.
Plus, its rocker arms were crafted in titanium instead of high-grade steel.
The weapon’s superior performance was achieved by designing a faster feed system,
and the higher rates of fire were enabled because OTO-Melara modified the ordinance itself.
Furthermore, the company changed the ammunition feed and fuzing, which resulted in the older
Compact mountings in existence not being able to be converted to the Super Rapid standard.
However, a retrofit is available to increase the rate of rife of the original system.
Finally, Super Rapid’s magazine operates independently from the turret.
The feed can be interrupted to insert various types of ammunition, rendering
the gun more capable against a wide variety of targets, as it is significantly more flexible.
The Italian Navy considered the Super Rapid a highly effective anti-missile weapon and
soon began building its new ships with it instead of the older twin “Fast 40.”
Projectiles
In 2004, the Italians developed the newer Strales System.
Able to fire DART ammunition, the weapon can counter several subsonic missiles up to
8,000 meters away. And as a medium caliber gun with a relatively long range,
the weapon can be used against surface targets in addition to its anti-missile defense role.
Furthermore, the company offers the DAVIDE anti-missile system for both new installations
and retrofitting older mountings. The system was created to allow the guns
to act as inner-defense against sea-skimming or diving supersonic and subsonic missiles.
This weapons system utilizes the steerable DART anti-missile projectile while providing
a continuous data stream to all rockets in flight by using radiofrequency beams.
The 76/62 Sovraponte, or “Over Deck” in English, is the newest version of the compact and
lightweight mount for the gun. About 30 to 40 percent lighter than the standard Super Rapid,
the Sovraponte has the benefit of not requiring penetrating the deck below for installation.
Notably, the Sovraponte was first installed on a Thaon di Revel-class patrol vessel of
the Italian Navy and was positioned above the roof of the helicopter hangar. The
mount is available for sale with or without the Stales System, housing 76 ready-to-fire rounds.
On the other hand, the gun can use special pre-fragmentation
ammunition in its anti-aircraft role, perfect for counteracting sea-skimming missiles and aircraft.
As for its surface role, the weapon fires armor-piercing ammunition, optimized for
surface targets like extended-range rounds with extended-range guided munitions or EGRMS.
These projectiles have a maximum range of 20 kilometers.
Advantages
Remarkably, the Super Rapid is still current to this day, and its manufacturer estimates
that in combination with the Dardo FCS, the system can engage missiles at about
6,000 meters. Still, the first rounds would arrive on target before that, at 5,500 meters.
Based on such incredible ranges, a single gun can deal with as many as four subsonic
sea-skimmer missiles arriving simultaneously and apart from each other at 90 degrees.
What’s more, the OTO-Melara can destroy all four before any come closer than 1,000 meters.
The guns have an actual bore diameter of 76.2 millimeters, and in terms of ammunition,
they include armor-piercing, incendiary, and directed fragmentation effects projectiles.
Besides, the gun can fire a guided round that can reportedly destroy maneuvering anti-ship missiles.
Moreover, the system can also be installed in a stealth cupola.
Unlike the US Navy’s 12.7-centimeter and Italian 127-millimeter guns, the 76-millimeter
OTO-Melara has the advantage of being able to fire more sophisticated, though smaller-caliber,
projectiles. Also, the Super Rapid demands a far lower manning requirement to function when
compared to the older American 7.62-centimeter and Italian 76-millimeter MMI guns.
Another advantage is that it can carry a much larger supply of ready-service ammunition,
which allows the cannon to fire longer bursts before requiring reloading.
Given that both the Compact and the Super Rapid mountings are nearly unmanned,
they can fire at extremely short notice, not exceeding 5 to 10 seconds from a cold start.
Usually, one man controls the gun in the operating room or the combat information center,
and the gun can be powered from the control panel on the deck or on the bridge itself.
The turret actually houses both the gun and the installation system,
while training and elevation are controlled through electric systems.
Operators
The OTO-Melara became one of the most popular naval guns ever produced, even taking into
account many US or Russian-made systems. The company reported about a thousand examples of
their Compact and Super Rapid cannons in service with an unparalleled 60 navies around the world.
By 2010, the latest model was the dominant naval weapon of its class.
The 76-millimeter cannon has been widely exported. In France, it was favored over their
own 100-millimeter naval gun for the joint nation Horizon-class frigate project and FREMM frigate.
Furthermore, the weapon is produced under license in Australia, India, and Spain.
In Japan, the OTO-Melara is produced by Japan Steel Works,
while in the US, it is manufactured by United Defense, now part of BAE Systems.
Under the nomenclature of the US Navy, the Compact is known as the Mark 75, and US Navy
ships use the Mark 92 fire control system, the American version of the Signall M20 series.
The Naval Systems Division of FMC Corporation and the Ordnance Systems Division of General
Electric Co. competed for the right to manufacture the Mark 75 in the United States.
As early as 1975, the NSD, now part of United Defense, won the competition and thus the
right to produce the first gun mount in the country, which was delivered in August of 1978.
However, from 1981 onward, all orders for production competed between NSD and OTO-Melara.
Meanwhile, the American Navy has not acquired the Super Rapid version and
reportedly has no intention to do so. Its fleet is equipped with the Compact,
while newer ships will receive the 57-millimeter Mark 110.
Because of its outstanding success, the mountings of many original
OTO-Melara 76 cannons were reconditioned for use in many new Italian constructions.
And depending on the customer’s needs, the system costs between 1.5 and 2 million dollars.
Ultimately, the gun can arm virtually all kinds of warships, having proved its worth
in the seas all around the world for decades, and it doesn’t seem to be slowing down any time soon.
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