The termination in the USSR of work on the creation of almost all types of artillery weapons in the late 50s led to the lag of domestic artillery behind the United States and other NATO countries in a number of areas, and primarily in the field of self-propelled, heavy and long-range guns. History has proven the mistake of Soviet military strategists: despite the successful development of tactical and operational-tactical missiles, the role of long-range cannon artillery in local wars did not diminish, but increased. Thus, in the late 1950s and early 1960s, our advisers in China found themselves in an uncomfortable position. The Kuomintang set up batteries of American long-range guns on islands in the Taiwan Strait and opened fire on mainland China. The Chinese had nothing to answer. The most long-range 130-mm Soviet-made M-46 cannons did not reach the Kuomintang batteries. Fortunately, one of our specialists found a clever way out - to heat up the charges and wait for a favorable wind. They waited, warmed up and got it, to the great surprise of the Americans. A somewhat belated Soviet response to the American M107 was the 152-mm self-propelled gun 2S5 "Hyacinth", the development of which began in the SKV of the Perm Engineering Plant (PMZ) in December 1968.
From the very beginning, the work was carried out in two directions: the towed and self-propelled versions of the gun were created - "Hyacinth-B" and "Hyacinth-S". The GRAU (Main Missile and Artillery Directorate) assigned these guns the indexes 2A36 and 2A37, respectively. Both versions had identical ballistics, and ammunition was specially developed for them. There were no other 152-mm guns interchangeable with the Hyacinth in the Soviet Army.
SKB PMZ designed the artillery unit, the Sverdlovsk Transport Engineering Plant (SZTM) designed the chassis, and the Scientific Research Engineering Institute (NIMI) designed the ammunition. In September 1969, the GRAU received projects of the GIAU "Hyacinth" in open (felling) and tower versions, but the first was accepted. In June 1970, CM decree No. 427-151 authorized full-scale work on the Hyacinth self-propelled gun. In March-April 1971, two experimental 152-mm guns "Hyacinth" (ballistic installations) were manufactured, but due to the lack of casings not provided by NIMI, the shooting had to be carried out from September 1971 to March 1972. Initially, it was planned to equip the CAU with a 7.62 mm PKT machine gun, but in August 1971 it was decided to remove it. However, he later appeared again. By April 1972, the projects of "Hyacinth" in self-propelled and towed versions with separate-case loading guns were finalized and finalized. An alternative version of the Hyacinth-BK self-propelled gun was also developed with a 2A43 cannon for cap-loading. Nevertheless, they finally adopted a separate-sleeve one. The Hyacinths were put into mass production in 1976, and they immediately began to enter service with artillery brigades and divisions.
The barrel of the 2A37 gun consists of a monoblock pipe, breech and muzzle brake. The multi-bore slotted muzzle brake is screwed onto the tube. Semi-automatic shutter - horizontal wedge rolling pin. The recoil brake is hydraulic groove type, equipped with a pneumatic knurler, the cylinders of which roll back together with the barrel. The longest recoil length is 950 mm, and the shortest is 730 mm. A chain rammer with an electric drive produces a ramming in two steps: first a projectile, and then a sleeve. The cannon has sector lifting and turning mechanisms and a pneumatic pushing counterbalancing mechanism.
The rotating part of the cannon is a machine tool mounted on the center pin of the chassis. The gun pointing angle in the horizontal plane is 30 °, in the vertical plane - from -2.5 ° to 58 °. The cannon is equipped with a light shield covering the gunner and part of the mechanisms from bullets, small fragments and the action of a muzzle gas wave when firing. It is a stamped sheet steel structure fixed to the left cheek of the upper machine. The gun sighting devices include a mechanical sight D726-45 with a gun panorama PG-1M and an optical one - OP4M-91A. Chassis "Hyacinth" was created on the same basis as the chassis of the ACS 2S3 "Akatsia". Ammunition is also located inside the body, but the supply of shells and charges from the vehicle is done manually. When firing, the self-propelled guns are stabilized using a hinged base plate-opener, located outside in the aft part of the hull. For this reason, shooting on the move is fundamentally impossible. The time to transfer the vehicle from the traveling position to the combat position is no more than four minutes.
Initially, the standard ammunition was a VOF39 round with a mass of 80.8 kg with an OF-29 high-explosive fragmentation projectile (46 kg), stuffed with 6, 73 kg of a potent explosive A-IX-2 and having a V-429 shock head fuse. Depending on the target, the shooting could be carried out with one of four types of charges used. Later, the ZVOF86 round with an extended-range projectile OF-59 was developed for 2S5, which can be fired at a distance of up to 30 km. According to information from the Western press, the ammunition load of the Hyacinth includes a round with a low-yield nuclear ordnance of 0, 1-2 kT. Several new 152-mm shells are being developed in Russia today. Among them are a 3-0-13 cluster projectile with fragmentation submunitions, cluster projectiles with self-aiming submunitions equipped with target sensors, projectiles for active and passive radio interference.
The 2A37 cannon is intended for counter-battery warfare, destruction of long-term firing points and field installations, for suppressing rear services and command posts, for fighting heavy self-propelled artillery and enemy tanks. Sights provide firing from closed positions and direct fire. ACS can be operated in various weather and climatic conditions.
Currently, the 2S5 self-propelled gun is obsolete. Nevertheless, "Hyacinth" is, so far, the longest-range domestic weapon and is second only to the 203-mm self-propelled gun 2S7 "Pion".
Specifications
caliber, mm 152
crew (crew), 5 people
maximum firing range, m up to 30,000
rate of fire, rounds per minute 5-6
muzzle velocity, m / s 942
elevation / declination angles, degrees -2 … + 57
angles of horizontal guidance, degrees -15 … + 15
weight, t 28.2
full length, m 8.95 (with gun)
full width, m 3.25
height, m 2.6
crawler chassis
no booking
engine, type, name, power (hp) 4-stroke diesel V-59, 382 kW
maximum speed, km / h 60
cruising range, km 500
