Scientists have created a special bullet just to fire on aeroplanes
Air marshals and other armed aviation officers could soon carry a specialised type of ammunition designed to be fired while airborne.
The hollow-point 9mm bullets have been specially designed so as not to cause damage to the hull of a plane if fired.
Experts from the Czech Republic have spent the last five years developing the ammo. The decision to make aeroplane-safe bullets was apparently established post-9/11 as a security measure.
It was commissioned and financed by the Czech Interior Ministry that is responsible for the county's air marshal program.
The idea behind the newly-designed bullet is that it will expand all its energy on the "primary target" and therefore not damage the fuselage. Basically, it won't exit the body on the other side.
“By developing this 9mm ammunition, we’ve reached its technical and ballistic limits,” said Lt. Col. Ludek Jedlicka of the Department of Weapons and Ammunition at the Faculty of Military Technology in the Czech Republic.
Testing took place in an underground lab belonging to the University of Defence in the Czech city of Brno. The bullet leaves the gun at a speed of over 500 meters per second and on impact it expands and deforms in order to remain in the body.
Because aeroplane cabins are kept highly pressurised, the results of firing a gun on board can be catastrophic.
Aircraft-grade aluminium lining the hull is light and, if punctured, will result in a drop in cabin pressure and temperature. And that's providing it doesn't hit any critical electronics or fuel lines or a window.
Scientists have indicated that the research phase of development is finished and the ammunition is ready to be used in the field. Reportedly, several other air marshal units are interested in using the ammo.
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