美陆军正加速为其AH-64阿帕奇攻击直升机群采购30x113mm XM1225航空近炸破片弹（APEX）。此举正值美陆军寻求增强该飞机作为反无人机平台的作用之际。这些由阿帕奇机头安装的M230机炮发射的炮弹，将增加其无人机杀伤手段，提供比某些替代方案更便宜且更充足的交战选择。
- 陆军提升阿帕奇反无人机能力：美陆军正加速采购XM1225 APEX炮弹，以增强其作为反无人机平台的作用。
- 诺斯罗普·格鲁曼公司提高产量：该公司本月生产了1000枚炮弹，并计划将产量增加五倍以满足陆军需求。
- APEX炮弹提供多样化的交战选择：这些近炸引信炮弹可以针对无人机、人员、车辆和小型船只，提供独特的区域效应。
- 尤马试验场成功的实弹测试：2025年12月，阿帕奇展示了使用APEX炮弹针对无人机系统的有效空对空交战。
- 机组人员所需的培训极少：APEX炮弹的弹道特性与现有的M789炮弹相似，几乎不需要额外的培训。
核心价值：美陆军大幅增加XM1225 APEX炮弹的产量，标志着战场能力的战术进步。这些多用途炮弹在测试中已被证明有效，且对机组人员几乎不需要额外培训。
看到对这些炮弹日益增长的需求，美陆军向制造商诺斯罗普·格鲁曼公司提出要求，希望其扩大生产规模。
Staff Sgt. Tim Andrews
The TWZ Newsletter
Weekly insights and analysis on the latest developments in military technology, strategy, and foreign policy.
Army boosts Apache’s counter-drone capabilities. The Army is accelerating procurement of XM1225 APEX rounds for AH-64 Apaches to enhance their role as counter-drone platforms.
Northrop Grumman ramps up production. The company produced 1,000 rounds this month and plans to increase production fivefold to meet Army demands.
APEX rounds offer versatile engagement options. These proximity-detonating rounds can target drones, personnel, vehicles, and small boats, providing unique area effects.
Successful live-fire tests at Yuma Proving Ground. In December 2025, Apaches demonstrated effective air-to-air engagement using APEX rounds against unmanned aircraft systems.
Minimal training required for Apache crews. The ballistic properties of APEX rounds are similar to existing M789 rounds, requiring little additional training.
Bottom line: The U.S. Army is significantly increasing production of XM1225 APEX rounds for AH-64 Apaches to enhance their counter-drone capabilities. These versatile rounds have proven effective in tests and require minimal additional training for crews, marking a tactical advancement in battlefield capability.
The Army is accelerating procurement of 30x113mm XM1225 Aviation Proximity Explosive (APEX) rounds for its fleet of AH-64 Apache attack helicopters. The move comes as the service is looking to enhance the aircraft’s burgeoning role as a counter-drone platform, something The War Zone has covered frequently. These shells, fired by the Apache’s chin-mounted M230 cannon, will add to its drone-killing arsenal, giving it a cheaper and more plentiful engagement option than some of the alternatives. You can read all about the XM1225 APEX round in our previous coverage here.
Seeing a growing need for these rounds, the Army went to Northrop Grumman, which makes them, and asked them to boost production, said Maj. Gen. Clair A. Gill, commander of the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence at Fort Rucker, Alabama. He was speaking during the Army Aviation Association of America’s Army Aviation Warfighting Summit in Nashville, Tennessee, which TWZ was in attendance.
A U.S. Army AH-64 Apache helicopter fires the M230 Bushmaster chain gun during live-fire aerial gunnery training at Rodriguez Live Fire Complex, Republic of Korea, on March 6, 2025. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Neil McLean) Staff Sgt. Cornelius McLean
“We had had 600 rounds total,” Gill explained. “They produced 1,000 already this month and can produce another 1,000 and will ramp their rate up to probably five times that.”
The company could not immediately comment about this effort.
The specialized APEX ammunition works by detonating only when it is close to an object, then it explodes in a spray of shrapnel. This is critical to shooting down drones, which are small, independently moving targets. These round
