In the postwar years, the Soviet Union continued to improve the means of fighting the air enemy. Before the mass adoption of anti-aircraft missile systems, this task was assigned to fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft machine-gun and artillery installations.
During the war, the large-caliber 12, 7-mm machine gun DShK, created by V. A. Degtyarev and modified by G. S. Shpagin, was the main anti-aircraft means of protecting troops on the march. DShK, mounted on a tripod in the back of a truck, moving as part of a convoy, made it possible to effectively deal with enemy low-flying aircraft.
Large-caliber machine guns were widely used in air defense facility and for the defense of trains. As additional anti-aircraft weapons, they were installed on heavy tanks and self-propelled guns. DShK became a powerful means of fighting enemy aircraft. Possessing high armor penetration, it significantly surpassed the ZPU of 7, 62 mm caliber in terms of range and altitude of effective fire. Thanks to the positive qualities of the DShK machine guns, their number in the army during the war years was constantly growing. During the war, about 2,500 enemy aircraft were shot down by anti-aircraft machine guns of the ground forces.
At the end of the Great Patriotic War K. I. Sokolov and A. K. Korov carried out a significant modernization of the DShK. The power supply mechanism was improved, the manufacturability of manufacturing increased, the barrel mount was changed, a number of measures were taken to increase the survivability and reliability in operation. In 1946, under the brand name DShKM, the machine gun was put into service.
DShKM
Externally, the modernized machine gun differed not only in a different form of the muzzle brake, the design of which was changed in the DShK, but also in the silhouette of the receiver cover, in which the drum mechanism was abolished - it was replaced by a receiver with two-way power supply. The new power mechanism made it possible to use the machine gun in twin and quad mounts.
Quadruple DShKM installation of Czechoslovak production, used by the Cubans in the battles on Playa Giron
Large-caliber machine guns in the DShKMT version designed for installation on armored vehicles were used as anti-aircraft guns on almost all types of post-war Soviet medium and heavy tanks.
The DShKM machine guns were in service for a long time, at present they are practically ousted from the Russian army by more modern models.
The last case of the combat use of these machine guns by Russian units was noted during the "counter-terrorist operation" in the North Caucasus, where they were used to fire at ground targets.
In 1972, the heavy machine gun NSV-12, 7 "Cliff" designed by G. I. Nikitin, Yu. M. Sokolov and V. I. Stepanov and K. A. Baryshev. The rate of fire of the machine gun is 700-800 rds / min, and the practical rate of fire is 80-100 rds / min.
The mass of the machine gun with the machine was only 41 kg, but, unlike the DShK, on the universal machine of Kolesnikov, who had more than twice the mass with the machine, it was impossible to fire at air targets from it.
For this reason, the Main Missile and Artillery Directorate issued the KBP enterprise a task to develop a light anti-aircraft installation for a 12.7 mm machine gun.
The installation should have been developed in two versions: 6U5 for the DShK / DShKM machine gun (machine guns of this model were available in huge quantities in mobilization reserves) and 6U6 for the new NSV-12, 7 machine gun.
R. Ya. Purzen was appointed the chief designer of the installations. The field and military tests began in 1971. The proving grounds and subsequent military tests of anti-aircraft machine-gun installations confirmed their high combat and operational characteristics.
In accordance with the decision of the commission, in 1973, only the 6U6 unit entered service with the Soviet Army under the name: "Universal machine designed by R. Ya. Purzen for the NSV machine gun."
Machine gun NSV-12, 7 on the U6U universal machine
The installation carriage is the lightest of all modern similar designs. Its weight is 55 kg, and the weight of the installation with a machine gun and a cartridge box for 70 rounds does not exceed 92.5 kg. To ensure a minimum weight, the die-welded parts, of which the installation mainly consists, are made of steel sheet with a thickness of only 0.8 mm. In this case, the required strength of the parts was achieved using heat treatment.
The peculiarity of the gun carriage is such that the gunner can fire at ground targets from a prone position, while the seat back is used as a shoulder rest. To improve the accuracy of shooting at ground targets, a fine aiming reducer is introduced into the vertical guidance mechanism. For firing at ground targets, the 6U6 installation is equipped with a PU optical sight. Air targets are hit with the VK-4 collimator sight.
The universal anti-aircraft gun with the NSV-12, 7 machine gun today has no analogues in terms of weight and dimensions, it has good service and operational data. This makes it possible to use it by small mobile units with a disassembled carrying.
The NSVT-12, 7 machine gun firmly took its place as an anti-aircraft gun on the towers of Soviet and Russian main tanks T-64, T-72, T-80, T-90 and self-propelled artillery mounts.
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NSVT
NSVT is mounted on a unit that provides firing at ground and air targets at vertical guidance angles from -5 to + 75 °. For firing at aerial targets, a K10-T collimator sight is used, at ground targets - a mechanical one. The tank version of the machine gun is equipped with an electric trigger.
In the course of various local conflicts, the NSVT anti-aircraft gun was usually used for firing at ground targets. The large vertical guidance angle allows you to fire on the upper floors of buildings during military operations in the city.
In 1949, the 14.5 mm Vladimirov heavy machine gun on the Kharykin wheeled machine was adopted for service (under the designation PKP - the Vladimirov heavy infantry machine gun).
It used a cartridge previously used in anti-tank rifles. Bullet weight 60-64 g, muzzle velocity - from 976 to 1005 m / s. The muzzle energy of the KPV reaches 31 kJ (for comparison: for a 12.7 mm DShK machine gun - only 18 kJ, for a 20 mm ShVAK aircraft gun - about 28 kJ). Sighting range - 2000 meters. KPV successfully combines the rate of fire of a heavy machine gun with the armor penetration of an anti-tank rifle.
An effective ammunition for hitting air targets with armor protection at distances up to 1000-2000 m is 14.5 mm cartridges with an armor-piercing incendiary bullet B-32 weighing 64 g. This bullet penetrates armor 20 mm thick at an angle of 20 ° from the normal at a distance of 300 m and ignites aviation fuel located behind the armor.
To defeat protected air targets, as well as for zeroing and adjusting fire at a distance of 1000-2000 m, 14.5 mm cartridges with an armor-piercing incendiary tracer bullet BZT weighing 59.4 g are used (index GRAU 57-BZ T-561 and 57 -BZ T-561 s). The bullet has a cap with a pressed-in tracer compound, which leaves a luminous trail visible at a great distance.
The armor-piercing effect is somewhat reduced compared to the B-32 bullet. At a distance of 100 m, a BZT bullet penetrates 20 mm thick armor placed at an angle of 20 ° to the normal.
To combat protected targets, 14.5 mm cartridges with an armor-piercing incendiary bullet BS-41 weighing 66 g can also be used. At a distance of 350 m, this bullet penetrates armor 30 mm thick, located at an angle of 20 ° to the normal.
The result of hitting a 14.5-mm sighting-incendiary bullet in a duralumin sheet
The ammunition load of the installation can also include 14.5 mm cartridges with an armor-piercing incendiary tracer bullet BST weighing 68.5 g, with an instantaneous incendiary bullet MDZ weighing 60 g, with a sighting-incendiary bullet ZP.
In 1949, in parallel with the infantry, anti-aircraft installations were adopted: a single-barreled ZPU-1, a twin ZPU-2, a quad ZPU-4.
ZPU-1 was developed by designers E. D. Vodopyanov and E. K. Rachinsky. The anti-aircraft machine gun ZPU-1 consists of a 14.5 mm KPV machine gun, a light gun carriage, a wheel drive and sights.
ZPU-1
The carriage provides circular fire with elevation angles from –8 to + 88 °. On the upper machine of the gun carriage there is a seat on which the gunner is placed during firing. The lower carriage of the carriage is equipped with a wheel drive, which allows the installation to be towed by light army vehicles. When transferring the installation from the traveling to the combat position, the wheels of the wheel travel are turned into a horizontal position. The combat crew of 5 people transfers the installation from the traveling position to the combat one in 12-13 seconds.
The lifting and turning mechanisms of the carriage provide guidance of the weapon in the horizontal plane at a speed of 56 deg / s, in the vertical plane, the guidance is carried out at a speed of 35 deg / s. This allows you to fire at air targets flying at a speed of up to 200 m / s.
For transportation of ZPU-1 over rough terrain and in mountainous conditions, it can be disassembled into separate parts and transported (or carried) in packs weighing up to 80 kg.
The cartridges are fed from a metal link strip placed in a cartridge box with a capacity of 150 cartridges. A collimator anti-aircraft sight is used as sighting devices on the ZPU-1.
Along with the single anti-aircraft machine gun ZPU-1, a twin anti-aircraft gun was designed. Designers S. V. Vladimirov and G. P. Markov took part in its creation. The installation was adopted by the Soviet Army in 1949.
ZPU-2
ZPU-2 entered service with anti-aircraft units of motorized rifle and tank regiments of the Soviet Army. A significant number of units of this type were exported to many countries of the world via foreign economic channels.
ZPU-2 consists of two 14.5 mm KPV machine guns, a lower gun carriage with three lifts, a rotating platform, an upper gun carriage (with guidance mechanisms, cradle brackets and ammunition boxes, as well as gunner's seats), a cradle, sighting devices and wheel travel …
For firing, the installation is removed from the wheel drive and installed on the ground. Its translation from the traveling position to the combat position is carried out in 18-20 seconds. Although the mass of the installation with a wheel drive and cartridges reaches 1000 kg, it can be moved over short distances by the forces of calculation.
Guidance mechanisms allow for a circular fire with elevation angles from –7 to + 90 °. The speed of aiming the weapon in the horizontal plane is 48 deg / s, the aiming in the vertical plane is carried out at a speed of 31 deg / s. The maximum speed of the target to be fired is 200 m / s.
In order to increase the tactical mobility of anti-aircraft machine-gun subunits and provide air defense for motorized rifle units on the march in the late 1940s, a version of the ZPU-2 was designed to be placed on armored personnel carriers. He had the designation ZPTU-2.
In 1947, the design bureau of the Gorky Automobile Plant developed an anti-aircraft installation BTR-40 A, consisting of a light two-axle armored personnel carrier BTR-40 and an anti-aircraft machine gun ZPTU-2, located in the troop compartment of the armored personnel carrier.
ZSU BTR-40A
The BTR-40 installation was put into service in 1951 and was mass-produced at the Gorky Automobile Plant.
In 1952, an anti-aircraft gun was put into production, created on the basis of a three-axle armored personnel carrier BTR-152 with the placement of a twin 14.5 mm ZPTU-2 installation in it.
The quadruple ZPU-4 became the most powerful anti-aircraft machine gun developed in the USSR. It was created on a competitive basis by several design teams. Tests have shown that the best is the installation of the design of I. S. Leshchinsky. The ZPU-4 installation was adopted by the Soviet Army in 1949.
ZPU-4
To ensure the necessary stability of the installation when firing, there are screw jacks on which the installation is lowered when it is transferred from the traveling position to the combat position. A calculation of 6 people performs this operation in 70-80 seconds. If necessary, shooting from the installation can be carried out from the wheels.
The maximum rate of fire is 2200 rds / min. The affected area is provided at a distance of 2000 m, in height - 1500 m. On the campaign, the installation is towed by light army vehicles. The suspension of the wheels allows movement at high speeds. The ability to move the installation by the calculation forces is difficult due to the relatively large weight of the installation - 2.1 tons.
To control the fire on the ZPU-4, an automatic anti-aircraft sight of the building type APO-14, 5 is used, which has a calculating mechanism that takes into account the target speed, target course and dive angle. This made it possible to effectively use the ZPU-4 to destroy air targets flying at speeds up to 300 m / s.
Through foreign economic channels, it was exported to many countries of the world, and in the PRC and DPRK it was produced under license. This installation is still used today not only in the military air defense system of a number of countries, but also as a powerful means of engaging ground targets.
In 1950, an order was issued for the development of a twin unit for the airborne forces. When put into service in 1954, it received the name "14, 5-mm anti-aircraft machine gun ZU-2". The installation could be disassembled into packs of light weight. It provided a higher azimuth guidance speed.
ZU-2 in the museum "Vladivostok Fortress", photo by the author
E. K. Rachinsky, B. Vodopyanov and V. M. Gredmisiavsky, who previously created ZPU-1. The design of the ZU-2 is in many respects similar to the design of the ZPU-1 and consists of two 14.5 mm KPV machine guns, a gun carriage and sighting devices.
Unlike ZPU-1, an additional seat on the right for aiming and right and left frames for ammunition boxes is mounted on the upper machine of the carriage. The lower carriage of the carriage has a non-detachable wheel travel. By simplifying the design of the wheel travel, it was possible to reduce the weight of the installation to 650 kg compared to 1000 kg for the ZPU-2. This also increased the stability of the installation when firing. On the battlefield, the installation is moved by the crew, and for transportation in mountainous conditions it can be disassembled into parts weighing no more than 80 kg each.
However, the transportation of ZPU-1 and ZU-2, not to mention ZPU-4 on a four-wheeled cart in a mountainous and wooded area, presented great difficulties. Therefore, in 1953, it was decided to create a special small-sized mining installation under the 14.5 mm KPV machine gun, disassembled into parts, carried by one soldier.
In 1954, designers R. K. Raginsky and R. Ya. Purzen developed a project of a 14.5-mm single anti-aircraft mining installation ZGU-1. The weight of ZGU-1 did not exceed 200 kg. The installation successfully passed field tests in 1956, but did not enter mass production.
ZGU-1
She was remembered in the late 60s, when there was an urgent need for such a weapon in Vietnam. The Vietnamese comrades turned to the leadership of the USSR with a request to provide them, among other types of weapons, with a light anti-aircraft gun capable of effectively fighting American aircraft in a guerrilla war in the jungle.
ZGU-1 was ideally suited for these purposes. It was urgently modified for the tank version of the Vladimirov KPVT machine gun (the KPV version, for which the ZGU-1 was designed, had been discontinued by that time) and was put into mass production in 1967. The first batches of units were intended exclusively for export to Vietnam.
The design of the ZGU-1 is distinguished by its low mass, which in the firing position, together with the cartridge box and 70 cartridges, is 220 kg, while fast disassembly (within 4 minutes) is ensured into parts with a maximum weight of no more than 40 kg each.
Although the role of rifle-caliber anti-aircraft machine guns in the post-war period was minimized when developing and adopting new models installed on machine tools and turrets, the technical conditions specified the possibility of anti-aircraft fire.
Soon after the end of the war, the SG-43 heavy machine gun was modernized. Its improved version of the SGM on a new adjustable tripod machine with the ability to conduct anti-aircraft fire was significantly lightened.
On the armored personnel carrier and the BRDM, a variant of the SGBM was installed on the pivot installation
In 1961, a single PK machine gun, developed by M. T. Kalashnikov. Its easel versions of the PKS had the ability to conduct anti-aircraft fire. For firing at air targets, the machine has a special bar.
PKS machine gun, with night sight, in position for anti-aircraft fire
The armored vehicle version on the pivot mount received the designation PKB.
The PKB was used on armored vehicles with an open-top design without a rotating turret (BTR-40, BTR-152, BRDM-1, BTR-50), as well as on early versions of the BTR-60 - BTR-60P and BTR-60PA.
Not so long ago, there were reports about the creation of a T-90SM tank for modification, instead of the usual NSVT anti-aircraft machine gun, a remote-controlled machine gun of 7.62 mm caliber appeared.
T-90SM
Obviously, the effectiveness of such a "anti-aircraft" rifle-caliber machine gun as an air defense system will be extremely low, and this weapon is more likely intended to defeat tank-hazardous manpower.
Despite the improvement of such high-tech means of dealing with low-flying air targets such as MANPADS, they could not completely displace anti-aircraft machine-gun installations from the air defense arsenal of the ground forces. ZPU turned out to be especially in demand in local conflicts, where they are successfully used to defeat a wide variety of targets - both air and ground. Their main advantages are versatility, simplicity, ease of use and maintenance.
