Yesterday, on May 30, Japan’s Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA) announced that an agreement has been reached with the authorities of Germany and France for the future joint development of railguns for their Armed Forces. The signed agreement, also known as the “Implementation Guidelines for Railgun Technology Cooperation,” aims to accelerate the timeline for obtaining such a weapon in response to increasingly tense geopolitical scenarios in the two continents these countries are located.
In recent months, Japan’s Ministry of Defense had sent qualified personnel to study the U.S. Navy’s railgun project to speed up its own program. It is noteworthy that in October 2023, Japan successfully tested its own railgun project mounted on a vessel of the Maritime Self-Defense Force at sea. This was specifically a gun capable of firing 40 mm caliber steel projectiles weighing 320 grams at a speed of 2,230 m/s (Mach 6.5) and capable of making up to 120 shots before requiring a reload.
For France and Germany, cooperation in railgun production was already evident at the Saint-Louis Research Institute (ISL). The RAFIRA program, a 25 mm weapon capable of firing five projectiles in a single burst at speeds of Mach 7.35, is being developed at this facility. The caliber and the intention for it to have rapid-fire capabilities suggest a prototype primarily aimed at anti-aircraft combat, making it complementary to Japan’s current development.
As previously mentioned, the acceleration in seeking partners for cooperation to achieve the operation and production of this type of weaponry is in response to a more demanding geopolitical scenario for the three nations. Specifically, this is due to Russia’s advance on Ukraine in the case of France and Germany, and the growing Chinese military power backing its foreign policy over Taiwan, which is straining relations with neighboring countries such as Japan.
It should be noted that the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) of China tested its own railgun in September 2023. This railgun is capable of firing significantly larger projectiles than the counterparts mentioned here; for example, each usable munition weighs about 124 kilograms. The Chinese project stands out for featuring a system of two parallel rails that enhance the weapon’s capabilities and is part of the significant advances the Asian giant has made in electromagnetic technology, considering that its new aircraft carrier Fujian is close to being able to use such catapults.
*Cover image: ATLA
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