KM33 APFSDS

South Korean license-derived 105 mm APFSDS round fielded on the K1 main battle tank, based on the U.S. M735/M111 family.

Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-05

Procurement snapshot

Availability & export

ROK export-licensed

DAPA-administered; aggressive export posture with financing/offset packages.

Channel: Government-to-government

Fielded & proven

Operator data not public

Status: legacy.

Lifecycle cost (est.)

No public unit price to model from.

Interoperability

105 mm NATO

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.

Caliber Bore diameter of the main gun or rifle. Larger throws heavier projectiles; not simply better, ammunition commonality matters.: 105 mm

Munition

Round type, penetration, velocity and projectile data.

Round type APFSDS (kinetic sabot), HEAT / multipurpose, HE-FRAG, canister or gun-launched ATGM.: APFSDS
Caliber Bore diameter the round is fired from.: 105 mm
Penetration Published/estimated rolled-homogeneous-armour-equivalent penetration. Values are open-source estimates; real figures are classified.: 350 mm RHA

Bottom 8% of munitions
Muzzle velocity Speed as the projectile leaves the barrel. Higher flattens trajectory and shortens time-to-target.: 1,500 m/s

Stronger than 46% of munitions

Specifications compiled from public Poongsan Corporation and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations, treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-05.

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