Artillery and mortars of the 20th century. Post-war and modern artillery Barrel artillery of the USSR
After the end of the war, the USSR's anti-tank artillery armament included: 37-mm airborne guns of the 1944 model, 45-mm anti-tank guns mod. 1937 and arr. 1942, 57-mm anti-tank guns ZiS-2, divisional 76-mm ZiS-3, 100-mm field guns 1944 BS-3. Captured German 75-mm anti-tank guns Pak 40 were also used. They were purposefully collected, stored and repaired if necessary.
In mid-1944 it was officially adopted for service. 37-mm airborne gun ChK-M1.
It was specially designed to arm parachute battalions and motorcycle regiments. The gun weighed 209 kg in firing position and could be transported by air and parachuted. It had good armor penetration for its caliber, allowing it to hit medium and heavy side armor with a sub-caliber projectile at short range. The shells were interchangeable with the 37 mm 61-K anti-aircraft gun. The gun was transported in Willys and GAZ-64 cars (one gun per car), as well as in Dodge and GAZ-AA cars (two guns per car).
In addition, it was possible to transport the weapon on a one-horse cart or sleigh, as well as in a motorcycle sidecar. If necessary, the gun can be disassembled into three parts.
The crew of the gun consisted of four people - a commander, a gunner, a loader and a carrier. When firing, the crew takes a prone position. The technical rate of fire reached 25-30 rounds per minute.
Thanks to the original design of recoil devices, the 37-mm airborne gun model 1944 combined the powerful ballistics of an anti-aircraft gun for its caliber with small dimensions and weight. With armor penetration values close to those of the 45-mm M-42, the CheK-M1 is three times lighter and significantly smaller in size (much lower line of fire), which greatly facilitated the movement of the gun by crew forces and its camouflage. At the same time, the M-42 also has a number of advantages - the presence of a full-fledged wheel drive, allowing the gun to be towed by a car, the absence of a muzzle brake that unmasks when firing, a more effective fragmentation projectile and a better armor-piercing effect of armor-piercing projectiles.
The 37mm ChK-M1 gun was about 5 years late and was adopted and put into production when the war came to an end. Apparently she did not take part in the hostilities. A total of 472 guns were produced.
By the time the hostilities ended, 45-mm anti-tank guns were hopelessly outdated, even if they were included in the ammunition load 45 mm M-42 guns a sub-caliber projectile with normal armor penetration at a distance of 500 meters - 81 mm homogeneous armor could not correct the situation. Modern heavy and medium tanks were hit only when fired at the side, from extremely short distances. The active use of these guns until the very last days of the war can be explained by their high maneuverability, ease of transportation and camouflage, huge accumulated reserves of ammunition of this caliber, as well as the inability of Soviet industry to provide troops in the required quantity with anti-tank guns with higher characteristics.
One way or another, in the active army the “forty-fives” were extremely popular; only they could move with crew forces in the battle formations of the advancing infantry, supporting them with fire.
At the end of the 40s, “forty-fives” began to be actively removed from parts and transferred for storage. However, for quite a long period of time they continued to remain in service with the Airborne Forces and were used as training weapons.
A significant number of 45 mm M-42s were transferred to the then allies.
American soldiers from the 5th Cavalry Regiment study an M-42 captured in Korea
"Sorokapyatka" was actively used in the Korean War. In Albania, these guns were in service until the early 90s.
Mass production 57 mm anti-tank gunZiS-2 became possible in 1943, after the necessary metalworking machines were received from the USA. The restoration of serial production was difficult - technological problems with the manufacture of barrels again arose, in addition, the plant was heavily loaded with the production program of 76-mm divisional and tank guns, which had a number of common components with the ZIS-2; under these conditions, increasing the production of ZIS-2 using existing equipment could only be achieved by reducing the production volume of these weapons, which was unacceptable. As a result, the first batch of ZIS-2 for state and military tests was released in May 1943, and in the production of these guns, the reserve stock mothballed at the plant since 1941 was widely used. Mass production of the ZIS-2 was organized by October - November 1943, after the commissioning of new production facilities provided with equipment supplied under Lend-Lease.
The capabilities of the ZIS-2 made it possible, at typical combat distances, to confidently hit the 80-mm frontal armor of the most common German medium tanks Pz.IV and StuG III assault self-propelled guns, as well as the side armor of the Pz.VI Tiger tank; at distances less than 500 m, the frontal armor of the Tiger was also damaged.
In terms of cost and manufacturability of production, combat and service characteristics, the ZIS-2 became the best Soviet anti-tank gun during the war.
From the moment production resumed until the end of the war, more than 9,000 guns entered the troops, but this turned out to be not enough to fully equip anti-tank destroyer units.
Production of the ZiS-2 continued until 1949 inclusive; in the post-war period, about 3,500 guns were produced. From 1950 to 1951, only ZIS-2 barrels were produced. Since 1957, the previously produced ZIS-2s have been upgraded into the ZIS-2N variant with the ability to fight at night through the use of special night sights
In the 1950s, new sub-caliber projectiles with increased armor penetration were developed for the gun.
In the post-war period, the ZIS-2 was in service with the Soviet Army at least until the 1970s; the last case of combat use was recorded in 1968, during the conflict with the PRC on Damansky Island.
ZIS-2s were supplied to a number of countries and took part in several armed conflicts, the first of which was the Korean War.
There is information about the successful use of the ZIS-2 by Egypt in 1956 in battles with the Israelis. Guns of this type were in service with the Chinese army and were produced under license under the designation Type 55. As of 2007, ZIS-2 was still in service with the armies of Algeria, Guinea, Cuba and Nicaragua.
In the second half of the war, the anti-tank destroyer units were armed with captured German 75 mm anti-tank guns Rak 40. During the offensive operations of 1943-1944, a large number of guns and ammunition were captured. Our military appreciated the high performance of these anti-tank guns. At a distance of 500 meters, the sub-caliber projectile normally penetrated 154 mm armor.
In 1944, firing tables and operating instructions were issued for the Pak 40 in the USSR.
After the war, the guns were transferred to storage, where they remained at least until the mid-60s. Subsequently, some of them were “utilized”, and some were transferred to the allies.
A photograph of the RaK-40 guns was taken at a parade in Hanoi in 1960.
In fear of an invasion from the South, several anti-tank artillery divisions were formed within the North Vietnamese army, armed with German 75-mm PaK-40 anti-tank guns from World War II. Such guns were captured in large quantities by the Red Army in 1945, and now the Soviet Union provided them to the Vietnamese people for protection against possible aggression from the South.
Soviet divisional 76-mm guns were intended to solve a wide range of tasks, primarily fire support for infantry units, suppression of firing points, and destruction of light field shelters. However, during the war, divisional artillery guns had to fire at enemy tanks, perhaps even more often than specialized anti-tank guns.
Since 1944, due to a decrease in the production rate of 45 mm guns and a shortage of 57 mm ZIS-2 guns, despite insufficient armor penetration for that time divisional 76-mm ZiS-3 became the main anti-tank gun of the Red Army.
In many ways, this was a necessary measure. The armor-piercing ability of an armor-piercing projectile, which penetrated 75 mm armor at a distance of 300 meters, was not enough to combat medium German Pz.IV tanks.
As of 1943, the armor of the heavy tank PzKpfW VI "Tiger" was invulnerable to the ZIS-3 in the frontal projection and weakly vulnerable at distances closer than 300 m in the side projection. The new German tank PzKpfW V "Panther", as well as the modernized PzKpfW IV Ausf H and PzKpfW III Ausf M or N, were also weakly vulnerable in the frontal projection to the ZIS-3; however, all these vehicles were confidently hit on the side by the ZIS-3.
The introduction of a sub-caliber projectile since 1943 improved the anti-tank capabilities of the ZIS-3, allowing it to confidently hit vertical 80 mm armor at distances closer than 500 m, but 100 mm vertical armor remained too strong for it.
The relative weakness of the ZIS-3's anti-tank capabilities was recognized by the Soviet military leadership, but until the end of the war it was not possible to replace the ZIS-3 in anti-tank fighter units. The situation could be corrected by introducing a cumulative projectile into the ammunition load. But such a projectile was adopted by the ZiS-3 only in the post-war period.
Shortly after the end of the war and the production of over 103,000 guns, production of the ZiS-3 was discontinued. The gun remained in service for a long time, but by the end of the 40s, it was almost completely withdrawn from anti-tank artillery. This did not prevent the ZiS-3 from spreading very widely throughout the world and taking part in many local conflicts, including in the territory of the former USSR.
In the modern Russian army, the remaining serviceable ZIS-3s are often used as salute guns or in theatrical performances based on the battles of the Great Patriotic War. In particular, these guns are in service with the Separate Fireworks Division at the Moscow commandant’s office, which conducts fireworks on the holidays of February 23 and May 9.
In 1946, the design created under the leadership of chief designer F.F. Petrov was put into service. 85-mm anti-tank gun D-44. This weapon would have been in great demand during the war, but its development was delayed for a number of reasons.
Externally, the D-44 strongly resembled the German 75-mm anti-tank Pak 40.
From 1946 to 1954, 10,918 guns were manufactured at Plant No. 9 (Uralmash).
The D-44s were in service with a separate anti-tank artillery division of a motorized rifle or tank regiment (two anti-tank artillery batteries consisting of two fire platoons), 6 pieces per battery (12 in the division).
The ammunition used is unitary cartridges with high-explosive fragmentation grenades, coil-shaped sub-caliber projectiles, cumulative and smoke projectiles. The range of a direct shot of the BTS BR-367 at a target 2 m high is 1100 m. At a distance of 500 m, this projectile penetrates an armor plate 135 mm thick at an angle of 90°. The initial speed of the BR-365P BPS is 1050 m/s, armor penetration is 110 mm from a distance of 1000 m.
In 1957, night sights were installed on some of the guns, and a self-propelled modification was also developed. SD-44, which could move on the battlefield without a tractor.
The barrel and carriage of the SD-44 were taken from the D-44 with minor changes. Thus, an M-72 engine from the Irbit Motorcycle Plant with a power of 14 hp, covered with a casing, was installed on one of the cannon frames. (4000 rpm) providing self-propulsion speeds of up to 25 km/h. Power transmission from the engine was provided through the driveshaft, differential and axle shafts to both wheels of the gun. The gearbox included in the transmission provided six forward gears and two reverse gears. The frame also has a seat for one of the crew numbers, which performs the functions of a driver. He has at his disposal a steering mechanism that controls an additional, third, gun wheel, mounted on the end of one of the frames. A headlight is installed to illuminate the road at night.
Subsequently, it was decided to use the 85-mm D-44 as a divisional one to replace the ZiS-3, and to entrust the fight against tanks to more powerful artillery systems and ATGMs.
In this capacity, the weapon was used in many conflicts, including in the CIS. An extreme case of combat use was noted in the North Caucasus, during the “counter-terrorist operation”.
The D-44 is still formally in service in the Russian Federation; a number of these guns are in the internal troops and in storage.
On the basis of D-44, under the leadership of chief designer F. F. Petrov, a anti-tank 85-mm gun D-48. The main feature of the D-48 anti-tank gun was its exceptionally long barrel. To ensure the maximum initial velocity of the projectile, the barrel length was increased to 74 calibers (6 m, 29 cm).
New unitary shots were created especially for this gun. An armor-piercing projectile at a distance of 1,000 m penetrated armor 150-185 mm thick at an angle of 60°. A sub-caliber projectile at a distance of 1000 m penetrates homogeneous armor 180–220 mm thick at an angle of 60°. The maximum firing range of high-explosive fragmentation projectiles weighing 9.66 kg. - 19 km.
From 1955 to 1957, 819 copies of the D-48 and D-48N were produced (with an APN2-77 or APN3-77 night sight).
The guns entered service with individual anti-tank artillery divisions of a tank or motorized rifle regiment. As an anti-tank weapon, the D-48 gun quickly became outdated. In the early 60s of the 20th century, tanks with more powerful armor protection appeared in NATO countries. A negative feature of the D-48 was its “exclusive” ammunition, unsuitable for other 85-mm guns. For firing from the D-48, the use of shots from the D-44, KS-1, 85-mm tank and self-propelled guns is also prohibited; this significantly narrowed the scope of use of the gun.
In the spring of 1943, V.G. Grabin, in his memorandum addressed to Stalin, proposed, along with the resumption of production of the 57-mm ZIS-2, to begin designing a 100-mm cannon with a unitary shot, which was used in naval guns.
A year later, in the spring of 1944 100-mm field gun model 1944 BS-3 was put into production. Due to the presence of a wedge bolt with a vertically moving wedge with semi-automatic operation, the location of the vertical and horizontal aiming mechanisms on one side of the gun, as well as the use of unitary shots, the gun’s rate of fire is 8-10 rounds per minute. The cannon fired unitary cartridges with armor-piercing tracer shells and high-explosive fragmentation grenades. An armor-piercing tracer projectile with an initial speed of 895 m/s at a distance of 500 m at an impact angle of 90° penetrated armor 160 mm thick. The direct shot range was 1080 m.
However, the role of this weapon in the fight against enemy tanks is greatly exaggerated. By the time of its appearance, the Germans practically did not use tanks on a massive scale.
During the war, BS-3 was produced in small quantities and could not play a big role. At the final stage of the war, 98 BS-3s were assigned as a means of strengthening five tank armies. The gun was in service with light artillery brigades of 3 regiments.
As of January 1, 1945, the RGK artillery had 87 BS-3 guns. At the beginning of 1945, in the 9th Guards Army, one cannon artillery regiment of 20 BS-3s was formed in three rifle corps.
Mainly, thanks to its long firing range - 20,650 m and a fairly effective high-explosive fragmentation grenade weighing 15.6 kg, the gun was used as a hull gun to combat enemy artillery and suppress long-range targets.
BS-3 had a number of disadvantages that made it difficult to use as an anti-tank weapon. When firing, the gun jumped strongly, which made the gunner’s work unsafe and confused the sighting mounts, which, in turn, led to a decrease in the practical rate of aimed fire - a very important quality for a field anti-tank gun.
The presence of a powerful muzzle brake with a low height of the line of fire and flat trajectories characteristic of firing at armored targets led to the formation of a significant smoke and dust cloud, which unmasked the position and blinded the crew. The mobility of a gun with a mass of more than 3500 kg left much to be desired; transportation by crews to the battlefield was practically impossible.
After the war, the gun was in production until 1951 inclusive; a total of 3,816 BS-3 field guns were produced. In the 60s, the guns underwent modernization, this primarily concerned sights and ammunition. Until the early 60s, the BS-3 could penetrate the armor of any Western tank. But with the advent of: M-48A2, Chieftain, M-60 - the situation has changed. New sub-caliber and cumulative projectiles were urgently developed. The next modernization took place in the mid-80s, when the 9M117 Bastion anti-tank guided projectile was added to the BS-3 ammunition load.
This weapon was also supplied to other countries and took part in many local conflicts in Asia, Africa and the Middle East; in some of them it is still in service. In Russia, until recently, BS-3 guns were used as a coastal defense weapon in service with the 18th Machine Gun and Artillery Division stationed on the Kuril Islands, and quite a significant number of them are in storage.
Until the late 60s and early 70s of the last century, anti-tank guns were the main means of fighting tanks. However, with the advent of ATGMs with a semi-automatic guidance system, which only requires keeping the target in the sight's field of view, the situation has largely changed. The military leadership of many countries considered metal-intensive, bulky and expensive anti-tank guns an anachronism. But not in the USSR. In our country, the development and production of anti-tank guns continued in significant quantities. And at a qualitatively new level.
In 1961 it entered service 100 mm smoothbore anti-tank gun T-12, developed at the design bureau of the Yurga Machine-Building Plant No. 75 under the leadership of V.Ya. Afanasyev and L.V. Korneeva.
The decision to make a smoothbore gun at first glance may seem quite strange; the time of such guns ended almost a hundred years ago. But the creators of the T-12 did not think so.
In a smooth channel, you can make the gas pressure much higher than in a rifled channel, and accordingly increase the initial speed of the projectile.
In a rifled barrel, the rotation of the projectile reduces the armor-piercing effect of the jet of gases and metal during the explosion of the cumulative projectile.
For a smoothbore gun, the survivability of the barrel is significantly increased - you don’t have to worry about the so-called “washing out” of the rifling fields.
The gun channel consists of a chamber and a cylindrical smooth-walled guide part. The chamber is formed by two long and one short (between them) cones. The transition from the chamber to the cylindrical section is a conical slope. The shutter is a vertical wedge with a semi-automatic spring. Loading is unitary. The carriage for the T-12 was taken from the 85-mm D-48 anti-tank rifled gun.
In the 60s, a more convenient carriage was designed for the T-12 cannon. The new system received an index MT-12 (2A29), and in some sources it is called “Rapier”. The MT-12 went into mass production in 1970. The anti-tank artillery battalions of the motorized rifle divisions of the USSR Armed Forces included two anti-tank artillery batteries consisting of six 100-mm T-12 anti-tank guns (MT-12).
The T-12 and MT-12 guns have the same warhead - a long, thin barrel 60 calibers long with a “salt shaker” muzzle brake. The sliding beds are equipped with an additional retractable wheel installed at the openers. The main difference of the modernized MT-12 model is that it is equipped with a torsion bar suspension, which is locked when firing to ensure stability.
When rolling the gun manually, a roller is placed under the trunk part of the frame, which is secured with a stopper on the left frame. Transportation of T-12 and MT-12 guns is carried out by a standard MT-L or MT-LB tractor. For movement on snow, the LO-7 ski mount was used, which made it possible to fire from skis at elevation angles of up to +16° with a rotation angle of up to 54°, and at an elevation angle of 20° with a rotation angle of up to 40°.
A smooth barrel is much more convenient for firing guided projectiles, although this was most likely not yet thought about in 1961. To combat armored targets, an armor-piercing sub-caliber projectile is used with a swept warhead, which has high kinetic energy and is capable of penetrating 215 mm thick armor at a distance of 1000 meters. The ammunition load includes several types of sub-caliber, cumulative and high-explosive fragmentation shells.
ZUBM-10 shot with an armor-piercing sabot projectile
ZUBK8 shot with a cumulative projectile
When a special guidance device is installed on the gun, shots with the Kastet anti-tank missile can be used. The missile is controlled semi-automatically by a laser beam, the firing range is from 100 to 4000 m. The missile penetrates armor behind dynamic protection (“reactive armor”) up to 660 mm thick.
9M117 missile and ZUBK10-1 shot
For direct fire, the T-12 cannon is equipped with a day sight and night sights. With a panoramic sight it can be used as a field weapon from closed positions. There is a modification of the MT-12R cannon with a mounted 1A31 “Ruta” guidance radar.
MT-12R with 1A31 "Ruta" radar
The gun was widely used by the armies of the Warsaw Pact countries and was supplied to Algeria, Iraq and Yugoslavia. They took part in hostilities in Afghanistan, in the Iran-Iraq War, and in armed conflicts in the territories of the former USSR and Yugoslavia. During these armed conflicts, 100 mm anti-tank guns are mainly used not against tanks, but as ordinary divisional or corps guns.
The MT-12 anti-tank guns continue to be in service in Russia.
According to the press center of the Ministry of Defense, on August 26, 2013, with the help of an accurate shot with a UBK-8 cumulative projectile from the MT-12 "Rapier" cannon of the Yekaterinburg separate motorized rifle brigade of the Central Military District, a fire was extinguished at well No. P23 U1 near Novy Urengoy.
The fire began on August 19 and quickly turned into an uncontrollable combustion of natural gas escaping through faulty fittings. The artillery crew was transferred to Novy Urengoy by a military transport plane taking off from Orenburg. At the Shagol airfield, equipment and ammunition were loaded, after which the artillerymen under the command of the officer of the missile forces and artillery department of the Central Military District, Colonel Gennady Mandrichenko, were delivered to the scene. The gun was set for direct fire from the minimum permissible distance of 70 m. The target diameter was 20 cm. The target was successfully hit.
In 1967, Soviet experts came to the conclusion that the T-12 gun “does not provide reliable destruction of the Chieftain tanks and the promising MVT-70. Therefore, in January 1968, OKB-9 (now part of Spetstekhnika JSC) was ordered to develop a new, more powerful anti-tank gun with the ballistics of the 125-mm D-81 smoothbore tank gun. The task was difficult to complete, since the D-81, having excellent ballistics, gave strong recoil, which was still tolerable for a tank weighing 40 tons. But during field tests, the D-81 fired a 203-mm B-4 howitzer from a tracked carriage. It is clear that such an anti-tank gun weighing 17 tons and a maximum speed of 10 km/h was out of the question. Therefore, the recoil in the 125 mm gun was increased from 340 mm (limited by the dimensions of the tank) to 970 mm and a powerful muzzle brake was introduced. This made it possible to install a 125-mm cannon on a three-frame carriage from the serial 122-mm D-30 howitzer, which allowed all-round firing.
The new 125-mm gun was designed by OKB-9 in two versions: the towed D-13 and the self-propelled SD-13 (“D” is the index of artillery systems designed by V.F. Petrov). The development of SD-13 was 125-mm smoothbore anti-tank gun "Sprut-B" (2A-45M). The ballistic data and ammunition of the D-81 tank gun and the 2A-45M anti-tank gun were the same.
The 2A-45M gun had a mechanized system for transferring it from the combat position to the traveling position and back, consisting of a hydraulic jack and hydraulic cylinders. With the help of a jack, the carriage was raised to a certain height necessary for spreading or bringing the frames together, and then lowered to the ground. Hydraulic cylinders lift the gun to maximum ground clearance, as well as raise and lower the wheels.
"Sprut-B" is towed by a "Ural-4320" vehicle or an MT-LB tractor. In addition, for self-propulsion on the battlefield, the gun has a special power unit based on the MeMZ-967A engine with hydraulic drive. The engine is located on the right side of the gun under the casing. On the left side of the frame, the driver's seats and the gun control system for self-propulsion are installed. The maximum speed on dry dirt roads is 10 km/h, and the transportable ammunition is 6 rounds; Fuel range is up to 50 km.
The ammunition load of the 125-mm Sprut-B cannon includes separate-case-loading rounds with cumulative, sub-caliber and high-explosive fragmentation shells, as well as anti-tank missiles. The 125-mm VBK10 round with the BK-14M cumulative projectile can hit tanks of the M60, M48, and Leopard-1A5 types. VBM-17 shot with a sub-caliber projectile - tanks of the M1 Abrams, Leopard-2, Merkava MK2 type. The VOF-36 round with the OF26 high-explosive fragmentation projectile is designed to destroy manpower, engineering structures and other targets.
With special guidance equipment, the 9S53 Sprut can fire ZUB K-14 rounds with 9M119 anti-tank missiles, which are controlled semi-automatically by a laser beam, the firing range is from 100 to 4000 m. The mass of the shot is about 24 kg, the missiles are 17.2 kg, it penetrates armor behind dynamic protection with a thickness of 700–770 mm.
Currently, towed anti-tank guns (100- and 125-mm smoothbore) are in service with countries - former republics of the USSR, as well as a number of developing countries. The armies of leading Western countries have long abandoned special anti-tank guns, both towed and self-propelled. Nevertheless, it can be assumed that towed anti-tank guns have a future. The ballistics and ammunition of the 125-mm Sprut-B cannon, unified with the guns of modern main tanks, are capable of hitting any production tank in the world. An important advantage of anti-tank guns over ATGMs is a wider selection of means of destroying tanks and the ability to hit them at point-blank range. In addition, Sprut-B can also be used as a non-anti-tank weapon. Its OF-26 high-explosive fragmentation projectile is close in ballistic data and explosive mass to the OF-471 projectile of the 122-mm A-19 hull gun, which became famous in the Great Patriotic War.
Based on materials:
http://gods-of-war.pp.ua
http://russkaya-sila.rf/guide/army/ar/d44.shtml
Shirokorad A. B. Encyclopedia of domestic artillery. - Minsk: Harvest, 2000.
Shunkov V.N. Weapons of the Red Army. - Minsk: Harvest, 1999.
During the war, BS-3 was produced in small quantities and could not play a big role. At the final stage of the war, 98 BS-3s were assigned as a means of strengthening five tank armies. The gun was in service with light artillery brigades of 3 regiments.
As of January 1, 1945, the RGK artillery had 87 BS-3 guns. At the beginning of 1945, in the 9th Guards Army, one cannon artillery regiment of 20 BS-3s was formed in three rifle corps.
Mainly, thanks to its long firing range - 20,650 m and a fairly effective high-explosive fragmentation grenade weighing 15.6 kg, the gun was used as a hull gun to combat enemy artillery and suppress long-range targets.
BS-3 had a number of disadvantages that made it difficult to use as an anti-tank weapon. When firing, the gun jumped strongly, which made the gunner’s work unsafe and confused the sighting mounts, which, in turn, led to a decrease in the practical rate of aimed fire - a very important quality for a field anti-tank gun.
The presence of a powerful muzzle brake with a low height of the line of fire and flat trajectories characteristic of firing at armored targets led to the formation of a significant smoke and dust cloud, which unmasked the position and blinded the crew. The mobility of a gun with a mass of more than 3500 kg left much to be desired; transportation by crews to the battlefield was practically impossible.
After the war, the gun was in production until 1951 inclusive; a total of 3,816 BS-3 field guns were produced. In the 60s, the guns underwent modernization, this primarily concerned sights and ammunition. Until the early 60s, the BS-3 could penetrate the armor of any Western tank. But with the advent of: M-48A2, Chieftain, M-60 - the situation has changed. New sub-caliber and cumulative projectiles were urgently developed. The next modernization took place in the mid-80s, when the 9M117 Bastion anti-tank guided projectile was added to the BS-3 ammunition load.
This weapon was also supplied to other countries and took part in many local conflicts in Asia, Africa and the Middle East; in some of them it is still in service. In Russia, until recently, BS-3 guns were used as a coastal defense weapon in service with the 18th Machine Gun and Artillery Division stationed on the Kuril Islands, and quite a significant number of them are in storage.
Until the late 60s and early 70s of the last century, anti-tank guns were the main means of fighting tanks. However, with the advent of ATGMs with a semi-automatic guidance system, which only requires keeping the target in the sight's field of view, the situation has largely changed. The military leadership of many countries considered metal-intensive, bulky and expensive anti-tank guns an anachronism. But not in the USSR. In our country, the development and production of anti-tank guns continued in significant quantities. And at a qualitatively new level.
106 mm M40 recoilless rifle
Recoilless rifles, designed to destroy enemy personnel, firing points and armored vehicles, were used already during the Second World War, but they became widespread in the armies of various countries of the world only in the post-war period. Due to their high armor penetration, small size and weight, guns of this type are used primarily in anti-tank units of troops.
In Western countries, the most widely used recoilless rifle is the M40, adopted by the US Army in 1953. It has a rifled barrel and a piston valve with 4 outlet nozzles. Guidance mechanisms allow you to fire both direct fire using a telescopic sight, and from closed positions using an artillery panorama. To fire at tanks, a 12.7 mm caliber machine gun is mounted on top of the gun. After “hitting” the target with tracer bullets, the crew opens fire with special cumulative projectiles weighing 7.9 kg. In addition to them, the M40 ammunition also includes armor-piercing high-explosive (with plastic explosive), high-explosive fragmentation and smoke shells.
The gun carriage is equipped with three sliding frames, one of which is equipped with a wheel, and the other two with folding handles. In the American army, M40 recoilless rifles were often installed on Willys vehicles and armored personnel carriers. In this case, they were placed on machines and could conduct all-round fire. The M50 Ontos tank destroyer was created especially for US Marine units on the chassis of the M59 amphibious armored personnel carrier. Three M40 guns with a total ammunition capacity of 18 rounds were placed on both sides of the vehicle.
106-mm M40 recoilless rifles are in service with the armies of more than 30 countries. In some states, licensed production of weapons has been established. Pakistan, for example, produced similar recoilless vehicles for export, mounting them on jeeps.
Tactical and technical data
Designation: M40
Type: recoilless rifle
Caliber, mm: 106
Weight in firing position, kg: 219
Calculation, persons, 3
Initial projectile speed, m/s: 503
Rate of fire, rds/min: 5
Max. firing range, m: 7000
Armor penetration at a distance of 1100 m, mm: 450
Projectile weight, kg: 7.9
155 mm howitzer M198
The use of towed artillery in the difficult climatic conditions of Vietnam was the reason for the order for the American army of a 155-mm howitzer, superior in firing range and rate of fire to the M114A-1 howitzer. The new weapon was intended for fire support of infantry, airborne and US Marine Corps units. The development of the project was led by the Rock Island Arsenal company, which soon produced several prototypes for testing. At the end of the 70s, the howitzer, designated M198, was put into production and is still in production.
Like other guns of its time, the M198 howitzer has an autofretted monoblock barrel equipped with a two-chamber muzzle brake. Wedge shutter, semi-automatic. The recoil brake is hydraulic with variable recoil length, the knurl is hydropneumatic. The gun is aimed using hydraulic drives. The sighting devices are equipped with luminous capsules containing a radioactive substance to illuminate scales and crosshairs at night. At the combat position, the howitzer is mounted on a pallet, while the wheels are hung out. The gun does not have an auxiliary engine for independent movement, and is transported over long distances by a 5-ton vehicle. If necessary, the M198 can be airlifted by transport aircraft or Chinook helicopter. In the stowed position, the howitzer barrel rotates 180° and is secured above the frame.
In terms of ballistic characteristics, the M198 howitzer is standardized with other 155 mm guns of Western countries and can fire all standard 155 mm NATO ammunition. The ammunition of separately loaded rounds includes, in addition to conventional ones, nuclear shells, cluster shells loaded with anti-tank or anti-personnel mines, fragmentation and cumulative destructive elements, as well as Copperhead guided shells with a semi-active laser seeker, the housing of which contains electronic equipment that generates control commands tail planes.
Tactical and technical data
Designation: M198
Type: field howitzer
Caliber, mm: 155
Weight in firing position, kg: 6920
Barrel length, calibers: 39
Angle GN, degrees: 45
Angle VN, degrees: -5; +72
Initial projectile speed, m/s: 827
Rate of fire, rds/min: 4
Max. firing range, m: conventional projectile - 22000, active-missile projectile - 30000
Projectile weight, kg: 43.88
In the mid-50s, self-propelled artillery systems took a strong place in US field artillery. However, America's participation in numerous military conflicts around the world and the emergence of nuclear weapons among socialist countries gave rise to new demands for the development of self-propelled guns. For rapid airlift to any point on the globe, self-propelled guns had to be small in size and weight. In order to protect the crew from the damaging factors of nuclear weapons, the vehicles were fully armored and equipped with filter-ventilation units. Not least on the list of requirements were overcoming water obstacles by swimming, good maneuverability of self-propelled guns through the use of a special chassis, and an increased horizontal firing sector through the use of a rotating turret.
In 1961, the US Army received the 155-mm M109 self-propelled artillery mount, the body of which was welded from sheets of aluminum armor, which protected the crew from bullets and shrapnel and significantly reduced the weight of the vehicle. The 155-mm howitzer was placed in a rotating turret at the rear of the hull and was aimed in a vertical plane in the angle range from -3° to 75°. The maximum firing range of the gun was 14.7 km. A modernized version of the self-propelled howitzer, designated M109A1, appeared in the American army in the early 70s. It featured a barrel lengthened by 2.44 m, a more effective muzzle brake, improved suspension and an easier loading mechanism. After the introduction of an enhanced charge, the firing range of a conventional projectile increased to 18.1 km, and when using an active-missile projectile - to 24 km. The ammunition load of 36 rounds of separate cap loading also included nuclear projectiles and M712 Copperhead guided cumulative projectiles with a laser seeker. Subsequent versions of the M109 self-propelled gun were developed to further increase the firing range and automate the fire control system. In total, about 4,000 M109 self-propelled artillery mounts were manufactured. Currently, they are in service with the armies of more than 25 countries.
Tactical and technical data
Designation: M109A2
Type: self-propelled howitzer
Crew, people: 6
Combat weight, t: 24.95
Length, m: 9.12
Width, m: 3.15
Height, m: 2.8
Armament: 155 mm howitzer, 12.7 mm M2 machine gun
Engine: Detroit diesel 405 hp.
Max. speed, km/h: 56
Power reserve, km: 349
The M107 175 mm artillery mount entered service with the US Army in 1961 and was developed as a powerful self-propelled gun adapted for air transport. Before loading, it was dismantled: the landing gear was carried on one plane, and the artillery unit on the other.
The basis for the M107 was the T249 universal tracked chassis, on which the M110 self-propelled howitzer was also produced. In the open fighting compartment, located at the rear of the vehicle, a 175-mm M126 cannon was mounted on a pedestal carriage. A screw-on breech with a piston bolt was attached to a 10.7 m long barrel, which was a monoblock barrel or a pipe with a replaceable insert liner. To facilitate loading, there was a lift and a hydraulically driven rammer. The horizontal pointing angle of the gun was 60°, the vertical pointing angle ranged from -2° to +65°. Guidance mechanisms are hydraulic and manual. The body of the self-propelled gun was welded from armor plates of differential thickness. In its rear part there were two openers - in the combat position they were lowered to the ground using a hydraulic drive and ensured the stability of the self-propelled gun when firing at low elevation angles. The carried ammunition consisted primarily of separate cap-loading rounds with a high-explosive fragmentation projectile weighing 67 kg.
The M107 self-propelled guns received their baptism of fire during the Vietnam War, where the low survivability of the guns was unexpectedly discovered. At the usual rate of 700 shots, the gun barrels burned out and became unusable after 300. The rate of fire of the self-propelled guns did not exceed 2 rounds per minute. In the early 70s, the Americans modernized the M107, equipping it with a gun with a new autofretted barrel with greater survivability and an improved loading mechanism. Nevertheless, numerous design flaws of the self-propelled gun led to the fact that since 1978, the M107 began to be replaced in the US troops by the M110 self-propelled howitzers. 175-mm self-propelled guns were also supplied to NATO countries and are in service with the armies of Greece, Turkey, Israel and other countries.
Tactical and technical data
Designation: M107
Type: self-propelled gun
Crew, people: 5 + 8
Combat weight, t: 28.17
Length, m: 11.25 (with gun forward)
Width, m: 3.15
Armament: 175 mm M126 cannon
Max. firing range, m: 32700
Engine: Detroit Diesel 8V71Р 405 hp.
Max. speed, km/h: 55
Power reserve, km: 730
By the beginning of the war on the Korean Peninsula, the US Army air defense had a small number of M16 and M19 self-propelled anti-aircraft guns. Large-scale combat operations have shown the high efficiency of vehicles of this type, which were also used to combat lightly armored enemy vehicles. Therefore, the Americans began to develop a new self-propelled gun on the then popular M41 Walter Bulldog light tank chassis. Two twin 40-mm L/60 Bofors automatic cannons with spring-hydraulic recoil devices were mounted in a rotating turret open at the top. To aim the guns, a manual or hydraulic drive was used, and the vertical aiming angle ranged from -3° to +85°. The ammunition consisted of 480 high-explosive and armor-piercing tracer shells located around the perimeter of the turret, in the overwing boxes and in the bow of the hull. The total rate of fire of the guns reached 240 rounds per minute. The fire control system included an anti-aircraft sight with a counting device.
Self-propelled guns M42, also known as "Duster", began to arrive to American units in Korea in 1953, used primarily for the defense of Air Force bases and other important installations. During operation, significant shortcomings of the self-propelled gun were revealed: due to the lack of a fire control radar, it was ineffective in the fight against high-speed, low-flying targets, the carburetor engine limited the power reserve, and the open turret did not protect the crew from air attacks. The effective slant firing range of the ZSU against air targets was 2000–3000 m.
In 1956, the M42 underwent a modernization process and, after installing a more powerful and economical engine with direct fuel injection, became designated M42A1. In total, until 1956, American factories produced more than 3,700 40-mm Duster self-propelled guns, which were in service with the US National Guard until the early 80s.
Tactical and technical data
Designation: M42
Crew, people: 6
Combat weight, t: 22.45
Length, m: 6.35
Width, m: 3.22
Height, m: 2.84
Armament: two 40 mm L/60 cannons, 7.62 mm machine gun
Engine: Continental 500 hp
Maximum speed, km/h: 72
Power reserve, km: 160
81 mm M29 mortar
The 81-mm M29 mortar, adopted for service in 1951, was developed at the request of the US Army command to increase the firepower of infantry companies. However, combat operations in Vietnam showed that its use did not provide mortar units with sufficient maneuverability during combat missions. Primarily due to the rather large weight of the mortar and its relatively short firing range. Thus, to carry the M29 in combat conditions, almost the entire crew was required, as a result of which the carried ammunition was reduced from 40 to 18 minutes, which significantly reduced the fire capabilities of the company. Due to this, the 81 mm M29 mortars were gradually replaced by the 60 mm M19 mortars from World War II for American forces in Vietnam.
The design of the M29 is classic. The mortar consists of a smooth barrel, a two-legged carriage, sighting devices and a base plate with a central rotating unit that provides circular fire without moving the plate. There are ring grooves on the outer surface of the barrel to increase the cooling surface during intense shooting. The ammunition load includes three types of high-explosive fragmentation mines, two types of smoke mines and an illumination mine. The M374 high-explosive fragmentation mine, specially developed for this mortar, has a firing range increased to 4.5 km and a more powerful explosive. The US Army also has a self-propelled version of the 81mm mortar on the chassis of the M113 armored personnel carrier. It received the designation M125A-1. In the early 80s, American units began to replace the M29 with the more modern 60-mm M224 company mortar.
Tactical and technical data
Type: company mortar
Caliber, mm: 81
Weight in firing position, kg: 48
Mine initial speed, m/s: 268
Rate of fire, rds/min: 25–30
Firing range, m: 4730
Mine weight, kg: 3.2–5.1
106.7 mm M30 mortar
The American army, unlike the British, has not abandoned the use of heavy mortars, although they, having a mass of more than 300 kg, are too heavy for mortar crews to handle them without vehicles. Therefore, such weapons are usually installed on armored personnel carriers or fired from stationary positions.
The 106.7 mm M30 mortar, adopted by the US Army in 1951, consists of a rifled barrel with a breech, a front support with guidance mechanisms, two shock absorbers, spring recoil devices, a base plate with a rotating central part, a bracket connecting the plate to the front support, and sight. For transportation over short distances by crews or on pack animals, the M30 mortar is disassembled into six parts.
At the combat position, the 106.7 mm mortar is served by 5–6 people. Thanks to the presence of a rotating part of the base plate, it can conduct circular horizontal fire. The mortar's ammunition includes three types of high-explosive fragmentation mines, smoke, chemical and lighting mines. In flight, the mines are stabilized by rotation, similar to artillery shells, so they do not require the stabilizers found on conventional mines.
Currently, production of the M30 in the United States has been discontinued, but it still remains the heavy standard mortar in the US Army. The weapon was widely exported to various countries around the world and is still in service with the armies of Austria, Belgium, Canada, Greece, Iran, the Netherlands, Norway, Aman, South Korea, Turkey and Zaire.
Tactical and technical data
Designation: M30
Type: heavy mortar
Caliber, mm: 106.7
Weight in firing position, kg: 305
Barrel length, calibers: 14.3
Mine initial speed, m/s: 293
Max, rate of fire, rds/min: 18
Max, firing range, m: 5650
She played one of the most important roles in the defeat of Nazi Germany. An equally important place was given to artillery in ensuring the defense capability of the Soviet Union in the first post-war years.
Direct control, training, education and provision of combat, operational-tactical and special training of command and personnel of artillery, development of plans for the development and improvement of all artillery, as well as providing it with the necessary weapons and military equipment was entrusted to the Artillery Commander of the Armed Forces of the USSR.
To implement the assigned tasks, the following management bodies were subordinate to the commander: Artillery Headquarters, Main Artillery Directorate, Combat Training Directorate, Directorate of Artillery Military Educational Institutions and Personnel Directorate. In addition, the artillery commander was responsible for developing the country's air defense plan and implementing measures to prepare the territory of the USSR for air defense. In this regard, the commander of the country's air defense forces was subordinate to him. Under the leadership of the Artillery Commander, Artillery Marshal N.N. Voronov prepared plans for the transfer of artillery to peacetime states and artillery weapons of the Soviet Army, the implementation of which began after the completion of demobilization of the personnel of the active army.
After the end of the Great Patriotic War, the artillery of the Soviet Army underwent significant changes. The number of artillery units increased due to the creation of additional formations in rifle corps and divisions. Each of the surviving rifle corps received at its disposal a corps artillery brigade consisting of cannon and howitzer artillery regiments (they were created, including through reformation from anti-tank ones), as well as a reconnaissance artillery division.
In addition, each of the corps included a guards mortar regiment and an anti-aircraft artillery division (then a regiment). The rifle divisions were reinforced with a mortar and howitzer regiment, and the existing artillery regiment began to be called a cannon regiment. All these regiments were combined into an artillery brigade. In addition, each of the divisions received at its disposal 2 more separate artillery divisions - anti-aircraft and self-propelled. In the late 1940s - early 1950s. A number of artillery formations and units were disbanded.
Thus, most of the artillery corps directorates and a number of divisions and brigades ceased to exist. The number of regiments also decreased, mainly due to their enlargement. At the same time, about 70% of the units remained (especially anti-aircraft artillery), and some of the individual brigades and regiments were consolidated or transformed into divisions. Thus, by 1948, 11 additional cannon divisions were formed from individual regiments and brigades. Changes also occurred in the composition of artillery divisions - the number of brigades and regiments decreased, and the division's command staff changed.
Thus, the anti-aircraft artillery divisions were transferred from a four-regiment structure to a three-regiment structure. Many of the compounds changed their numbers and partly their composition. Thus, in the first post-war years, the activities of the Artillery Commander were aimed at improving the organizational structure of artillery units, which resulted in their disaggregation, as well as the adoption of the latest artillery systems, communications equipment and various vehicles, which contributed to increased mobility and firepower artillery formations of the ground forces.
S.Yu. Kondratenko
In the USSR, despite numerous design works in pre-war and wartime, anti-aircraft guns with a caliber larger than 85 mm were never created. The increase in speed and flight altitude created by bombers in the west required urgent action in this direction.
As a temporary measure, it was decided to use several hundred captured German anti-aircraft guns of 105-128 mm caliber. At the same time, work on the creation of 100-130 mm anti-aircraft guns was accelerated.
In March 1948, a 100-mm anti-aircraft gun of the 1947 model (KS-19) was adopted. It ensured combat against air targets with speeds of up to 1200 km/h and altitudes of up to 15 km. All elements of the complex at the combat position are connected to each other by electrical wires. The gun is aimed at the lead point by a hydraulic power drive GSP-100 from PUAZO, but it is possible to aim it manually.
Anti-aircraft gun KS-19 100 mm
The KS-19 gun is mechanized: installing the fuse, chambering the cartridge, closing the bolt, firing a shot, opening the bolt and extracting the cartridge case. Rate of fire 14-16 rounds per minute.
In 1950, in order to improve combat and operational properties, the gun and hydraulic power drive were modernized.
The GSP-100M system is designed for automatic remote guidance in azimuth and elevation angle of eight or fewer KS-19M2 guns and automatic input of values for setting the fuse according to PUAZO data.
The GSP-100M system provides the ability for manual guidance on all three channels using indicator synchronous transmission and includes GSP-100M gun sets (according to the number of guns), a central distribution box (CDB), a set of connecting cables and a battery giving device.
The source of power supply for GSP-100M is a standard power supply station SPO-30, which generates three-phase current with a voltage of 23/133 V and a frequency of 50 Hz.
All guns, SPO-30 and PUAZO are located within a radius of no more than 75 m (100 m) from the CRY.
The KS-19 - SON-4 gun-targeting radar is a two-axle towed van, on the roof of which there is a rotating antenna in the form of a round parabolic reflector with a diameter of 1.8 m with asymmetric rotation of the emitter.
It had three operating modes:
— all-round visibility for detecting targets and monitoring the air situation using the all-round visibility indicator;
— manual control of the antenna to detect targets in the sector before switching to automatic tracking and for rough determination of coordinates;
— automatic target tracking by angular coordinates for precise determination of azimuth and angle together in automatic mode and slant range manually or semi-automatically.
The detection range of a bomber when flying at an altitude of 4000 m is at least 60 km.
Accuracy of coordinate determination: at a distance of 20 m, at azimuth and elevation: 0-0.16 altitude.
From 1948 to 1955, 10,151 KS-19 guns were manufactured, which, before the advent of air defense systems, were the main means of combating high-altitude targets. But the massive adoption of anti-aircraft guided missiles did not immediately supplant the KS-19. In the USSR, anti-aircraft batteries armed with these guns were available at least until the end of the 70s.
Abandoned KC-19 in Panjer Province, Afghanistan, 2007
KS-19s were delivered to countries friendly to the USSR and participated in the Middle East and Vietnam conflicts. Some of the 85-100 mm guns being removed from service were transferred to avalanche control services and used as hail-breakers.
In 1954, mass production of the 130-mm KS-30 anti-aircraft gun began.
The gun had a height reach of 20 km and a range of 27 km. Rate of fire - 12 rounds/min. Loading is separate-case, the weight of the loaded cartridge case (with charge) is 27.9 kg, the weight of the projectile is 33.4 kg. Weight in combat position - 23500 kg. Weight in stowed position - 29,000 kg. Calculation - 10 people.
130 mm anti-aircraft gun KS-30
To facilitate the work of the crew on this anti-aircraft gun, a number of processes were mechanized: installation of the fuse, removal of the tray with shot elements (projectile and loaded cartridge case) to the loading line, sending of shot elements, closing the bolt, firing a shot and opening the shutter with extraction of the spent cartridge case. The gun is aimed by hydraulic servo drives, synchronously controlled by the PUAZO. In addition, semi-automatic guidance can be carried out using indicator devices by manually controlling hydraulic drives.
130-mm anti-aircraft gun KS-30 in the stowed position, next to an 85-mm anti-aircraft gun mod. 1939
Production of the KS-30 was completed in 1957, with a total of 738 guns produced.
The KS-30 anti-aircraft guns were very bulky and poorly mobile.
They covered important administrative and economic centers. Often the guns were placed in stationary concrete positions. Before the advent of the S-25 Berkut air defense system, about a third of the total number of these guns was deployed around Moscow.
On the basis of the 130-mm KS-30, the 152-mm KM-52 anti-aircraft gun was created in 1955, which became the most powerful domestic anti-aircraft artillery system.
152-mm anti-aircraft gun KM-52
To reduce recoil, the KM-52 was equipped with a muzzle brake, the effectiveness of which was 35 percent. The wedge shutter is of horizontal design; the shutter operates from the reeling energy. The anti-aircraft gun was equipped with a hydropneumatic recoil brake and a knurler. The wheel drive with carriage is a modified version of the KS-30 anti-aircraft gun.
The weight of the gun is 33.5 tons. Reachability in height – 30 km, in range – 33 km.
Calculation: 12 people.
Loading is separate-sleeve. The power and supply of each of the elements of the shot was carried out independently by mechanisms located on both sides of the barrel - on the left for shells and on the right for cartridges. All drives of the power and feed mechanisms were powered by electric motors. The store was a horizontally located conveyor with an endless chain. The projectile and cartridge case were located in the magazines perpendicular to the firing plane. After the automatic fuse setter was triggered, the feed tray of the projectile feed mechanism moved the next projectile to the ramming line, and the feed tray of the cartridge feed mechanism moved the next cartridge to the ramming line behind the projectile. The layout of the shot took place on the dispensing line. The chambering of the assembled shot was carried out by a hydropneumatic rammer, cocked during the roll-up. The shutter was closed automatically. Rate of fire 16-17 rounds per minute.
The gun successfully passed the test, but was not launched into large production. In 1957, a batch of 16 KM-52 guns was manufactured. Of these, two batteries were formed, stationed in the Baku region.
During the Second World War, there was a “difficult” level of altitude for anti-aircraft guns from 1500 m to 3000. Here the planes were out of reach for light anti-aircraft guns, and for the guns of heavy anti-aircraft artillery this altitude was too low. In order to solve the problem, it seemed natural to create anti-aircraft guns of some intermediate caliber.
The 57-mm S-60 anti-aircraft gun was developed at the TsAKB under the leadership of V.G. Grabina. Serial production of the gun began in 1950.
57-mm S-60 anti-aircraft gun in the Israeli museum at Hatzerim airbase
The S-60 automatic system operated using recoil energy during a short recoil of the barrel.
The gun is fed by magazine, with 4 rounds in the magazine.
The recoil brake is hydraulic, spindle type. The balancing mechanism is spring, swinging, and pulling type.
On the platform of the machine there is a table for a clip with chambers and three seats for calculations. When shooting with a sight, there are five crew members on the platform, and when the PUAZO is working, there are two or three people.
The movement of the cart is inseparable. Torsion bar suspension. Wheels from a ZIS-5 truck with sponge filling tires.
Weight of the gun in firing position is 4800 kg, rate of fire is 70 rounds/min. The initial speed of the projectile is 1000 m/s. The weight of the projectile is 2.8 kg. Reachability in range - 6000 m, in height - 4000 m. The maximum speed of an air target is 300 m/s. Calculation: 6-8 people.
The ESP-57 battery set of servo drives was intended for guidance in azimuth and elevation angle of a battery of 57-mm S-60 guns, consisting of eight or less guns. When firing, the PUAZO-6-60 and the SON-9 gun guidance radar were used, and later the RPK-1 Vaza radar instrument system. All guns were located no more than 50 m from the central distribution box.
The ESP-57 drives could carry out the following types of gun aiming:
-automatic remote aiming of battery guns according to PUAZO data (the main type of aiming);
-semi-automatic aiming of each gun according to the automatic anti-aircraft sight;
- manual aiming of battery guns according to PUAZO data using zero indicators of fine and coarse readings (indicator type of aiming).
The S-60 received its baptism of fire during the Korean War in 1950-1953. But the first pancake was lumpy - a massive failure of the guns immediately became apparent. Some installation defects were noted: breaks in the extractor legs, clogging of the power magazine, failures of the balancing mechanism.
Subsequently, non-positioning of the bolt on the automatic sear, misalignment or jamming of the cartridge in the magazine during feeding, movement of the cartridge beyond the loading line, simultaneous feeding of two cartridges from the magazine to the loading line, jamming of the clip, extremely short or long recoils of the barrel, etc. were also noted.
The design flaws of the S-60 were corrected, and the gun successfully shot down American planes.
S-60 in the Vladivostok Fortress museum
Subsequently, the 57-mm S-60 anti-aircraft gun was exported to many countries around the world and was repeatedly used in military conflicts. Guns of this type were widely used in the air defense system of North Vietnam during the Vietnam War, showing high efficiency when firing at targets at medium altitudes, as well as by Arab states (Egypt, Syria, Iraq) in the Arab-Israeli conflicts and the Iran-Iraq war. Morally obsolete by the end of the 20th century, the S-60, in case of massive use, is still capable of destroying modern fighter-bomber class aircraft, which was demonstrated during the 1991 Gulf War, when Iraqi crews used these guns to shoot down several American and British airplanes.
According to the Serbian military, they shot down several Tomahawk missiles from these guns.
S-60 anti-aircraft guns were also produced in China under the name Type 59.
Currently in Russia, anti-aircraft guns of this type are mothballed at storage bases. The last military unit to be armed with the S-60 was the 990th anti-aircraft artillery regiment of the 201st motorized rifle division during the Afghan War.
In 1957, on the basis of the T-54 tank using S-60 assault rifles, serial production of the ZSU-57-2 began. Two guns were installed in a large turret open at the top, and the parts of the right machine gun were a mirror image of the parts of the left machine gun.
Vertical and horizontal guidance of the S-68 gun was carried out using an electro-hydraulic drive. The guidance drive was powered by a DC electric motor and used universal hydraulic speed controllers.
The ZSU's ammunition consisted of 300 cannon rounds, of which 248 rounds were loaded into clips and placed in the turret (176 rounds) and in the bow of the hull (72 rounds). The remaining shots in the clips were not loaded and were placed in special compartments under the rotating floor. The clips were fed manually by the loader.
Between 1957 and 1960, about 800 ZSU-57-2 were produced.
ZSU-57-2 were sent to arm the anti-aircraft artillery batteries of two-platoon tank regiments, 2 units per platoon.
The combat effectiveness of the ZSU-57-2 depended on the qualifications of the crew, the training of the platoon commander, and was due to the absence of a radar in the guidance system. Effective lethal fire could only be fired from a stop; firing “on the move” at air targets was not provided.
ZSU-57-2 were used in the Vietnam War, in the conflicts between Israel and Syria and Egypt in 1967 and 1973, as well as in the Iran-Iraq War.
Bosnian ZSU-57-2 with a makeshift armored tank on top, which suggests its use as a self-propelled gun
Very often during local conflicts, the ZSU-57-2 was used to provide fire support to ground units.
To replace 25-mm anti-aircraft guns with clip-loading, the 23-mm ZU-23-2 installation was adopted into service in 1960. It used shells previously used in the Volkov-Yartsev (VYa) aircraft cannon. An armor-piercing incendiary projectile weighing 200 grams penetrates 25 mm armor at a normal distance of 400 m.
ZU-23-2 in the Artillery Museum, St. Petersburg
The ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun consists of the following main parts: two 23-mm 2A14 assault rifles, their mounting, a moving platform, lifting, rotating and balancing mechanisms and a ZAP-23 anti-aircraft automatic sight.
The machines are powered by tape. The belts are metal, each of them is equipped with 50 cartridges and placed in a quickly replaceable cartridge box.
The design of the machines is almost the same, only the details of the feed mechanism differ. The right machine has right power supply, the left one has left power supply. Both machines are fixed in one cradle, which, in turn, is located on the upper machine of the carriage. On the base of the upper carriage there are two seats, as well as a rotating mechanism handle. In the vertical and horizontal planes, the guns are aimed manually. The rotary handle (with brake) of the lifting mechanism is located on the right side of the gunner's seat.
The ZU-23-2 uses very successful and compact manual drives for vertical and horizontal guidance with a spring-type balancing mechanism. Brilliantly designed units allow you to transfer the trunks to the opposite side in just 3 seconds. The ZU-23-2 is equipped with a ZAP-23 anti-aircraft automatic sight, as well as a T-3 optical sight (with 3.5x magnification and a 4.5° field of view), designed for firing at ground targets.
The installation has two trigger mechanisms: foot (with a pedal opposite the gunner's seat) and manual (with a lever on the right side of the gunner's seat). Machine gun fire is fired simultaneously from both barrels. On the left side of the trigger pedal there is a brake pedal for the rotating installation unit.
Rate of fire - 2000 rounds per minute. Installation weight - 950 kg. Firing range: 1.5 km in height, 2.5 km in range.
A two-wheeled chassis with springs is mounted on road wheels. In the firing position, the wheels are raised and tilted to the side, and the gun is mounted on the ground on three support plates. A trained crew is able to transfer the charger from the traveling position to the combat position in just 15-20 s, and back in 35-40 s. If necessary, the ZU-23-2 can fire from wheels and even on the move - right when transporting the ZU behind a car, which is extremely important for a short-lived combat encounter.
The installation has excellent mobility. The ZU-23-2 can be towed behind any army vehicle, since its weight in the stowed position, together with covers and loaded ammunition boxes, is less than 1 ton. The maximum speed is allowed up to 70 km/h, and on off-road conditions - up to 20 km/h .
There is no standard anti-aircraft fire control device (FCU), which provides data for firing at air targets (lead, azimuth, etc.). This limits the capabilities of anti-aircraft fire, but makes the weapon as cheap as possible and accessible to soldiers with a low level of training.
The effectiveness of firing at air targets has been increased in the modification ZU-23M1 - ZU-23 with the Strelets kit installed on it, which ensures the use of two domestic MANPADS of the Igla type.
The ZU-23-2 installation has gained rich combat experience; it has been used in many conflicts, both against air and ground targets.
During the Afghan War, the ZU-23-2 was widely used by Soviet troops as a means of fire cover when driving convoys, mounted on trucks: GAZ-66, ZIL-131, Ural-4320 or KamAZ. The mobility of an anti-aircraft gun mounted on a truck, coupled with the ability to fire at high elevation angles, proved to be an effective means of repelling attacks on convoys in the mountainous terrain of Afghanistan.
In addition to trucks, the 23-mm installation was installed on a variety of chassis, both tracked and wheeled.
This practice was developed during the “Counter-Terrorist Operation”; ZU-23-2 were actively used to destroy ground targets. The ability to conduct intense fire turned out to be very useful when conducting combat operations in the city.
The airborne troops use the ZU-23-2 in the Skrezhet version of the gun mount based on the tracked BTR-D.
The production of this anti-aircraft gun was carried out by the USSR, and then by a number of countries, including Egypt, China, the Czech Republic/Slovakia, Bulgaria and Finland. The production of 23 mm ZU-23 ammunition was carried out at various times by Egypt, Iran, Israel, France, Finland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and South Africa.
In our country, the development of anti-aircraft artillery has followed the path of creating self-propelled anti-aircraft artillery systems with radar detection and guidance systems (Shilka) and anti-aircraft gun and missile systems (Tunguska and Pantsir).
Based on materials:
Shirokorad A. B. Encyclopedia of domestic artillery.
http://www.telenir.net/transport_i_aviacija/tehnika_i_vooruzhenie_1998_07/p6.php