Chinese self-propelled artillery mount SH1 155 mm / 52 caliber
Currently, there is an increasingly clear trend associated with the design, development and production of wheeled rather than tracked self-propelled artillery units (ACS). Consider the key players and systems in this area
As is the case with other armored vehicles, the defenders of wheeled self-propelled guns cite as their main advantages over tracked systems better strategic mobility and quick, simplified self-deployment without the need for heavy weapons transporters.
They also have lower operating and maintenance costs compared to their tracked counterparts and in many cases are based on well-proven and widespread off-road chassis, which are also the basis for many other vehicles, which allows significant savings (including on spare parts).
But wheeled self-propelled guns also have their drawbacks. As a rule, they have less transportable ammunition, poorer protection, and cannot move along with tracked armored combat vehicles over very difficult rough terrain. As always, operators faced with a choice must find a compromise in their requirements.
Many of the recently developed wheeled self-propelled guns use 6x6 off-road trucks as chassis, on the rear platform of which, as a rule, a towed artillery system is installed. As a result, the crew must leave the cockpit in order to aim and load the cannon and open fire from it, which makes it vulnerable to small arms fire and shell fragments. However, since most of the modern ammunition allows the deployment of these artillery systems deep in the rear, perhaps this is no longer the main disadvantage.
Some of the wheeled SPGs have a fully protected cockpit, while others are designed to accept an additional protection kit that can be installed just prior to deployment. This is especially important when participating in counterinsurgency operations, when a threat can appear from any direction. This flexibility is increasingly gaining acceptance from operators and economists, and wheeled ACS are now replacing fully tracked ACS and traditional towed systems.
Although the tracks beat the wheels where the SPG's patency is needed, the wheels, in turn, are more mobile compared to towed systems, which can be brought into and out of battle faster in order to avoid counter-battery fire. (However, there is a need for traditional towed artillery systems, especially in the airborne, marines, and rapid reaction forces.)
While the article describes the platforms themselves, users are also very interested in targeting systems, fire control, projectiles, charges and fuses.
ACS SH1 155 mm / 52 caliber from China North Industries Corporation (NORINCO)
China
The People's Liberation Army of China (PLA) has traditionally been armed with a combination of tracked self-propelled guns and towed systems, but like an increasing number of armies in the world, the PLA is currently moving to a more balanced fleet of tracked and wheeled armored vehicles.
The Chinese industry has developed a full line of wheeled SPGs for the PLA and the export market, with the most advanced system being the SH1 155mm / 52 caliber SPG from China North Industries Corporation (NORINCO).
It has a fully protected cab for a crew of six and a 155 mm / 52 caliber gun with power drives vertical and horizontal guidance, mounted in the rear of the chassis. The installation also has a computerized fire control system (FCS) on board, which allows it to perform independent fire missions.
NORINCO also developed, at least up to the pre-production stage, the 122mm SH2 and 105mm SH5 6x6 self-propelled artillery systems.
The SH2 has a combat weight of about 11.5 tons with a 122mm cannon mounted behind a protected four-door cockpit. The installation is serviced by a crew of five and carries a total of 24 122-mm ammunition. The SH5 is intended for the export market, it has the same 6x6 chassis as the SH2, but it is equipped with a 105mm / 37 caliber cannon with 40 rounds of ammunition.
The PLA is also armed with a variant of the Russian 122-mm D-30 cannon mounted on a truck (known as Type 86 or PL86 in the export configuration of Poly Technologies), which is quite outdated, but meets the criteria for wheeled self-propelled guns. The gun is mounted on the rear platform of a 6x6 chassis with a cabover cab; She shoots in a back arc with limited angles in azimuth of 30 ° to the left and right. Stabilizers provide better stability when firing.
Poly Technologies has developed an even simpler wheel system, consisting of a 4x4 cabover cargo chassis and a 105mm cannon that fires in the rear arc.
ACS of the French army CAESAR 155 mm / 52 caliber has a protected cabin
France
The artillery system CAESAR 155 mm / 52 caliber was originally developed by Nexter Systems with its own funds, but "the end justified the means" and this ACS was bought by four countries.
The French army took delivery of 5 + 72 CAESAR self-propelled guns, all based on the Renault Trucks Defense Sherpa 6x6 off-road truck chassis, on which a modular protection kit can be installed. These CAESAR self-propelled guns took part in the operations of the French contingent in Afghanistan, Lebanon and most recently in Mali.
The long-term goal of the French army is to replace all remaining tracked 155-mm self-propelled guns AUF1-TA and towed 155-mm artillery systems TR1 with the new CAESAR self-propelled guns, but due to financial constraints, this will not happen, at least in the next five years.
CAESAR has a combat weight of about 17, 7 tons and is served by a crew of five. When entering a firing position, a large hydraulically driven opener is lowered to the ground from behind, the power of which is enough to lift the four rear wheels.
The ammunition load is 18 155-mm rounds and the corresponding charges, while the maximum range of 42 km is achieved when firing a 155-mm high-explosive fragmentation projectile with a bottom gas generator.
ACS CAESAR has already been sold to the National Guard of Saudi Arabia (136 systems on the German UNIMOG 6x6 chassis) and to Thailand (six systems on the Sherpa chassis).
37 systems are being manufactured for Indonesia. The biggest change here is that the gun is mounted on a Sherpa chassis, but, like all previous CAESAR SPGs, they will be equipped with the SAGEM Sigma 30 navigation and positioning system.
For the Indian market, the local Ashok Leyland Defense 6x6 chassis was used as the base vehicle, and Nexter Systems is also exploring the possibility of using the Tatra 8x8 chassis, which has a very high level of off-road terrain.
There are also various options for the FCS for the CAESAR ACS. France and Saudi Arabia have adopted the ATLAS Thales MSA, which is not installed on the Indonesian and Malaysian systems.
Germany
The Artillery Gun Module (AGM) artillery system was developed on its own initiative by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, which is the main contractor of the PzH 2000 155 mm / 52 tracked ACS. Currently, it is in service with Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, and also ordered by Qatar.
For the initial firing tests, the AGM gun was originally installed on the tracked chassis of the Multiple Launch Rocket System, but was later transferred to a new tracked chassis developed by General Dynamics European Land Systems-Santa Barbara Sistemas, which resulted in the Donar tracked ACS (photo at the bottom).
AGM can be used in a stand-alone configuration to protect forward operating bases, or mounted on a trailer or wheeled chassis. The system weighs about 12 tons and can be remotely controlled from the cab.
The Rheinmetall 155 mm / 52 caliber artillery gun is the same as that of the PzH 2000 self-propelled guns, which has a combat weight of more than 53 tons. The PzH 2000 tracked vehicle accommodates a total of 60 155mm rounds and related charges, compared to 30 155mm rounds and AGM gun charges.
The first copy of the Iranian self-propelled guns 155 mm / 39 caliber is based on a cabover 6x6 chassis with an unprotected cockpit
Iran
Ironically, Iran has always bought its SPGs from foreign suppliers, but international sanctions prompted the defense industry to develop and manufacture two tracked SPGs: the 122mm Raad 1 and 155mm Raad 2.
Recently, they developed, at least until the prototype stage, a wheeled SPG based on a 6x6 cabover cargo chassis, on which the upper part of the HM42 155 mm / 39 caliber towed system from the Hadid Armament Industries Group was installed. This new SPG has a large stop at the rear, raising the four rear wheels and stabilizing the platform. The space in the rear of the cockpit is for additional crew members and an unknown number of finished shots.
While the first copy of the Iranian wheeled self-propelled gun has an unprotected cockpit, it is possible that production systems will have a protected cockpit.
Israel
On the other side of the Middle East - geographically and metaphorically - Elbit Soltam Systems has developed a modular wheeled self-propelled gun ATMOS (Autonomous Truck Mounted Howitzer System), which can be installed on various 6x6 and 8x8 chassis with optional protected cab and computer control system.
This artillery system can accept 155 mm 39/45/52 guns with mechanical drives for vertical and horizontal guidance, hydraulic (impulse) rammer to reduce the load on the calculation and increase the rate of fire.
However, Soltam Systems confirmed that all ATMOS export orders to date have been in 155mm / 52 caliber. As a rule, the company does not disclose details of any export deals, but Uganda appears to be among the buyers.
Elbit has teamed up with Aerostar to offer the Romanian army a 155mm / 52 caliber system mounted on a ROMAN 6x6 truck chassis, and Soltam offers Kazakhstan an SPG based on a Kamaz 63502 6x6, on which a 122mm D-30 cannon is installed on a turntable.
ACS ATMOS 155 mm / 39 caliber, mounted on a 6x6 cargo chassis with a cabover layout with a protected cab
155mm Ultra Light Weight Self-Propelled Wheeled Howitzer ULWSPWH concept in a field configuration. In the photo we see that the gun has an ejection (for blowing out the bore) device and a slotted muzzle brake
Italy
Italy became the first country in NATO, which began to move towards a balanced fleet of tracked and wheeled armored combat vehicles. The wheel systems include the Centauro 105 mm MGS artillery mount and the Freccia BMP.
These 8x8 vehicles were developed for the Italian army by the CIO consortium, and Oto Melara is currently working on the Ultra Light Weight Self-Propelled Wheeled Howitzer (ULWSPWH), which is designed to support them. The layout of the latter was shown in mid-2012 on the basis of the 105 mm Centauro MGS artillery system, in which a 155 mm / 39 caliber cannon was installed in the middle of the hull. The ULWSPWH calculation consists of the driver, commander and calculator.
The armament complies with the Joint Ballistics Memorandum (JBMoU) and is equipped with an ejection device and a slot-type muzzle brake. The gun is guided, loaded and fired by remote control; the vehicle has 15 155-mm rounds and the same number of modular rounds.
According to Oto Melara, the system has a maximum rate of fire of up to 18 rounds / min and the ability to fire in MRSI mode (Multiple Round Simultaneous Impact - simultaneous impact of several projectiles. The angle of inclination of the barrel changes and all projectiles fired within a certain time interval arrive at the target simultaneously) …
Serbia
Serbia has also developed a complete family of wheeled self-propelled guns, which are mainly intended for sale abroad.
The self-propelled artillery system from Yugoimport NORA B-52 155 mm / 52 caliber has recently been upgraded. Previously, it was an unprotected 8x8 chassis, but now the crew is housed in a protected cab with a cabover layout, behind which a protected turret with weapons is installed. The system usually fires with the implement turned back and the stabilizer openers lowered to the ground.
NORA appears to have been sold to at least two overseas buyers, but Yugoimport declined to name them. One of them still became famous - this is Bangladesh. This country ordered 18 self-propelled guns equipped with the Sigma 30 inertial navigation and targeting system from Sagem.
Yugoimport has also developed and tested the SOKO SP RR SPG, which also has a protected cockpit. This SPG can accept a 100mm, 105mm or 122mm cannon.
The simpler systems include the M09 self-propelled guns, which has a protected cockpit and an open-top turret, on which the Yugoslav 105-mm M56 towed howitzer is installed.
The latest fully protected artillery system 155 mm M03 (NORA K-1). In the photo in a traveling configuration with a tower turned forward
Singapore
Singapore is fully self-sufficient with 155-mm artillery systems. The Singapore Army is armed with the towed FH-77 155 mm / 39 caliber and FH-2000 155 mm / 52 caliber cannons developed by the local company Singapore Technologies Kinetics (STK); both are equipped with auxiliary power units.
Singapore also replaced its 37 105mm LG1 light cannons from Nexter Systems with 155mm / 39 Pegasus light howitzers equipped with a powerplant.
STK, meanwhile, has carried out a feasibility study of a 155 mm modern mobile artillery system, which is a remotely controlled turret with a 155 mm / 52 caliber cannon on an 8x8 chassis with a protected cab for three crew members and four hydraulic stabilizers.
The ACS accommodates 26 rounds of ammunition (shells and corresponding charges); the declared rate of fire is three rounds in 20 seconds and 6 rounds / min for three minutes.
Slovakia
The former Czechoslovakia became the first country to release a full set of wheeled SPGs. In the early 1980s, she designed and manufactured 155mm Dana systems based on the Tatra 8x8 chassis.
About 750 Dana self-propelled guns were manufactured for the Czechoslovak army and for export to Libya and Poland.
Further developments led to the creation of the Zuzana ACS in the late 90s. This is a similar solution, armed with a 155 mm / 45 caliber cannon that can fire Western-style ammunition (the vehicle has 40 rounds and charges). Cyprus received 24 Zuzana self-propelled guns, and Slovakia itself adopted 16 units.
The main contractor for the Zuzana project is Kerametal and is still promoting the system with the hope of further orders. The latest version of the system is equipped with a new 155 mm / 52 caliber turret, corresponding to the ballistics memorandum.
The system is equipped with a computer control system, an inertial navigation system and a radar for measuring the initial speed on the gun itself. ACS can fire direct fire (for this, a thermal imager and a laser rangefinder are installed) or in MRSI mode.
The 155 mm projectile and the corresponding projectile ammunition are loaded automatically. Kerametal claims a maximum rate of fire of 6 rounds per minute and a constant rate of fire of 2 rounds per minute.
The turret can be rotated 360 °, but in the firing position, the traverse angles are limited to 60 ° left and right.
In the configuration of 155 mm / 52 caliber, the combat weight of the vehicle is 32 tons, the maximum speed on the highway is 80 km / h and the cruising range is 600 km.
According to Igor Yunas, Director of Kerametal, “The development of the new Zuzana 155mm / 52 caliber SPG has been completed and it has been qualified by the Slovak Army. Production can start subject to orders."
ACS Zuzana 8x8 155 mm / 45 caliber from Kerametal is in service with Cyprus and Slovakia
South Africa
The G6 155mm / 45 self-propelled artillery system in 6x6 caliber from Denel Land Systems was developed to meet the needs of the South African army for a mobile system. It has a long range, high rate of fire and a good level of protection against small arms, mines and shell fragments.
After extensive testing at the customer's site of prototypes, prototypes and pre-production samples, 43 serial G6 self-propelled guns were manufactured for the South African army since 1988.
The layout of the ACS G6 is unique in that the driver is placed in a well-protected place in front, and based on the experience of South Africa in guerrilla warfare, the front of the hull has a swept shape.
The power unit is located just behind the driver, the power tower is armed with a 155 mm / 45 caliber cannon, which is identical to that installed in the G5 towed artillery system.
The ammunition load is 50 155-mm shells and corresponding charges. The maximum range of the gun is 41 km when firing standard shells with a bottom gas generator from Rheinmetall Denel Munitions, but can be increased to 54 km when firing a long-range artillery shell with an increased velocity of VLAP (Velocity-enhanced Long-range Artillery Projectile). Standard equipment includes a guidance system, an initial velocity radar and an inertial navigation system.
From foreign countries, ACS G6 were bought by Oman (24) and the United Arab Emirates (78).
Denel Land Systems has also developed the G6-52 self-propelled system, which has a modernized hull and is equipped with a turret with a 155 mm / 52 caliber cannon. The cannon has a 23-liter chamber, which complies with the NATO ballistics memorandum.
The original G6 had 155mm rounds and charges manually charged, but the newest G6-52 SPG is now fully automated.
In two carousels in the aft niche of the tower, 40 ready-made shells (on the left) and 40 modular charges (on the right) are placed.
For the exported ACS G6, the turret also has its own auxiliary power unit and the WMS APS (Artillery Pointing System) guidance system from Denel. According to Denel Land Systems, this allows for quick and accurate deployment of the weapon in all weather conditions (day and night), as well as eliminating all observation and orientation procedures, and reduces the deployment time from 15 minutes to less than 2 minutes. In addition, the WMS APS guidance system allows you to shoot in MRSI mode and conduct firing tactics from short stops.
The turret for ACS G6-52 can also be installed on other platforms. For example, it was installed on the chassis of the Russian T-72 tank, in addition, there is simply a separate configuration known under the designation T6 turret.
Further development of the G5 155mm / 45 gauge towed system resulted in the 155mm / 52 gauge G5 configuration, which features a semi-automatic bolt action, dual bumper with a fixed recoil system and a dual chamber muzzle brake.
Denel Land Systems has completed the development of the Condor self-propelled gun on a truck chassis, which will be supplied with either 155 mm / 45 caliber (T5-45) or 155 mm / 52 caliber (T5-52) guns.
The entire upper section of the G5 mounts to the rear of the 8x8 off-road truck chassis, which is equipped with hydraulic stabilizers. Depending on the chassis used, a total of 26 155-mm shells and charges can be placed in the ammunition rack. The cannon usually fires in a back arc in a 40 ° sector to the left and right.
The T5-52 is the most advanced system. It has a loading tray for loading a projectile / charge with a semi-automatic chain projectile / charge rammer, an automatic loading of an igniter, a ring laser gyroscope, a WMS APS guidance system for automatic guidance using a joystick, a navigation unit for the driver and a telescopic direct aiming sight for capturing targets on distances up to 2000 meters.
Denel Land Systems developed the T7 lightweight autonomous turret, which was tested on the LAV-III 8x8 chassis from General Dynamics Land Systems. It is equipped with a 105 mm / 58 caliber light experimental weapon LEO (Light Experimental Ordnance). It fires a new set of ammunition (projectile and modular charges) developed by Rheinmetall Denel Munition. The maximum range of the gun reaches 24 km using standard ammunition or 30 km using a projectile with a bottom gas generator. Also in the tower is a semi-automatic loading system using a chain rammer. Loading operations are controlled by an on-board computer with a manual backup branch.
The turret is equipped with a guidance and navigation system with a laser ring gyroscope with touch control and fully automatic guidance and navigation. That is, the system does not require topography and alignment in the firing position. The tower weighs only 3,750 kg and can be mounted on a range of tracked and wheeled platforms.
ACS G6-52 155 mm from Denel Land Systems is distinguished by a new turret with a fully automatic ammunition handling system, which reduces the number of crews and increases the rate of fire
South Korean artillery system EVO-105 from Samsung Techwin
EVO-105 video presentation
South Korea
Samsung Techwin is the main contractor for the 155mm / 52 caliber K9 Thunder tracked self-propelled guns used by the South Korean army.
The company also manufactured and tested the EVO-105 technology demo, which consists of a KM500 6x6 truck chassis and a turntable with a 105-towed M101 howitzer and conventional hydraulic stabilizers on the sides. The gun shoots in a rear arc, the angles of rotation are 90 ° to the left and to the right, the angles of vertical guidance are in the range from -5 ° to + 65 °.
The 105-mm cannon is aimed at the target using a joystick with backup manual controls. The fire missions are calculated by a computer LMS based on the LMS of the K9 tracked installation.
Currently, two EVO-105 systems are being manufactured for the Korean army, and depending on the results of the tests, the army can order up to 800 serial systems. While the original M101Al cannon was installed on the first units, the possibility is being considered that the upper part of the modernized version of the M101 cannon, bearing the designation KH178, will be installed on production systems. It has a longer barrel of 105 mm / 34 caliber, and has a range of 14.7 km using conventional ammunition or 18 km using rocket boosted projectiles. The original M101A1 cannon has a maximum range of only 11.27 km when fired with a standard 105-mm high-explosive fragmentation projectile M1. According to Samsung Techwin, the 105mm concept can also be applied to 122mm, 152mm or 155mm systems, and in addition, the gun can be mounted on an 8x8 chassis.
Sudan
The Sudanese Military Industry Corporation has developed the Khalifa artillery system on a 6x6 cargo chassis with a cabover layout and a protected cab. On the rear platform, a Russian 122 mm D-30 towed howitzer is installed, which fires along the front arc; from the rear, two coulters are lowered to the ground using hydraulic drives. The system is handled by five people, each vehicle carries 45 122-mm rounds.
Sudanese self-propelled gun Khalifa 122 mm in the firing position with openers-stabilizers lowered to the ground and deployed sides to provide access to ammunition boxes
ACS Archer 155 mm / 52 caliber fires (above)
Sweden
In March 2010, the Swedish Defense Property Administration awarded a contract to BAE Systems Weapons (formerly Bofors) for the 48 FH-77 BW L52 Archer 6x6 artillery systems.
In accordance with the original manufacturing schedule, deliveries were to go from 2011 to the end of 2014. Norway and Sweden were to receive 24 Archer self-propelled guns each as the only army artillery system.
Sweden took delivery of its first Archer self-propelled guns in September 2013, but Norway canceled its order in December, despite the fact that production of the systems was in full swing. Currently, the contract is being revised by both parties and, most likely, Norway will abandon the ordered 24 Archer self-propelled guns. The Archer self-propelled gun is based on a deeply modified Volvo 6x6 truck chassis, which is usually used in the construction business.
The crew is located in a protected cabin in the front, a 155 mm / 52 caliber cannon is installed at the back. An automatic loader allows you to load and fire a cannon without leaving the cockpit.
