Tandem-charge warhead

A warhead containing two or more explosive charges detonated in sequence. In anti-armour weapons, an initial charge is often intended to trigger explosive reactive armour so a following charge can attack the underlying armour.

Explosive reactive armour: Armour that uses explosive layers to disrupt the penetration of incoming shaped-charge jets. It is the defensive layer tandem charges are commonly designed to trigger before the main charge arrives.
Explosive train: A sequence of components that transfers an initiating event into the detonation of a main explosive charge. A tandem warhead relies on an explosive train to initiate its charges in the intended order.
Anti-tank guided missile: A guided missile designed primarily to engage armored vehicles. Many anti-tank guided missiles use tandem charges to address explosive reactive armour.
Kinetic energy penetrator: A dense projectile that penetrates armour primarily through impact energy rather than an explosive jet. It defeats armour through impact mechanics instead of sequential explosive charges.
Shaped charge: An explosive charge shaped to focus its detonation into a high-speed jet that penetrates material. The main charge commonly uses this effect to attack armour after the precursor charge acts.
Detonator: A device that initiates a detonation in an explosive charge. Separate initiation events enable the precursor and main charges to function sequentially.
Rocket-propelled grenade: A shoulder-fired weapon that launches a rocket-propelled projectile, often against vehicles or structures. Some anti-armour rocket-propelled grenades use tandem-charge warheads.
Single-charge warhead: A warhead that relies on one principal explosive charge to produce its target effect. It lacks the precursor charge used to trigger reactive armour before the main attack.
Explosively formed penetrator: A metal liner formed by an explosion into a relatively coherent projectile that penetrates a target. It is a different explosive penetration mechanism from the shaped-charge jet used by many tandem warheads.
Fuze: A device that senses conditions or timing and initiates a munition's explosive train. Fuze design governs when the sequence begins and how the target encounter triggers it.

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