The reader has already got acquainted in detail with the design and technical features of the ZSU-23-4 "Shilka" in the 5th issue of our magazine for 1996. Today we will look at the unique anti-aircraft anti-aircraft weapon from a slightly different perspective.
NATO specialists began to take an interest in the SOVIET anti-aircraft self-propelled gun ZSU-23-4 "Shilka" from the moment when the first data on its capabilities appeared in the West. And in 1973, NATO members were already "feeling" the sample of "Shilka". The Israelis got it - during the war in the Middle East. In the early eighties, the Americans began a reconnaissance operation with the aim of acquiring another Shilka model, reaching out to the brothers of the Romanian President Nicolae Ceausescu. Why is the Soviet self-propelled gun so interested in NATO?
I really wanted to know: are there any major changes in the modernized Soviet ZSU? It was possible to understand the interest. "Shilka" was the most unique weapon, not inferior to the championship in its class for two decades. Its contours were clearly defined in 1961, when Soviet science celebrated the victory of the Gagarin flight.
So, what is the uniqueness of the ZSU-23-4? Retired Colonel Anatoly Dyakov, whose fate is closely connected with this weapon - he has served in the Air Defense Forces of the Ground Forces for decades:
“If we talk about the main thing, then for the first time we began to systematically hit air targets with the Shilka. Prior to this, anti-aircraft complexes of 23- and 37-mm guns ZU-23 and ZP-37, 57-mm guns S-60 hit high-speed targets only by accident. The shells for them are of shock action, without a fuse. To hit a target, it was necessary to hit it directly with a projectile. The likelihood of this is negligible. In a word, the previously created anti-aircraft weapons could only put a barrier in front of the aircraft, force the pilot to drop bombs away from the planned place …
Kandahar. Nagakhan turn. 1986 ZSU-23-4 … "SHILKA" … "SHAYTAN-ARBA"
The unit commanders expressed delight when they saw how "Shilka" not only hit targets right before our eyes, but also followed the subunits in the battle formations of the covered troops. A real revolution. Imagine, there is no need to roll the guns … Arranging an ambush of batteries of anti-aircraft guns S-60, you will suffer - it is difficult to hide the guns on the ground. And what is worth building a battle formation, "sticking" to the terrain, connecting all points (power units, guns, gun guidance station, fire control devices) with a large cable system. What crowded calculations were!.. And here is a compact mobile unit. She came, shot from an ambush and left, then look for the wind in the field … The officers of the present day, those who think in the categories of the nineties, the phrases "autonomous complex" are perceived differently: they say, what's so unusual? And in the sixties it was a feat of design thought, the pinnacle of engineering solutions."
The self-propelled "Shilka" has a lot of advantages. General Designer, Doctor of Technical Sciences Nikolai Astrov, as they say, is not a round anti-aircraft gunner, managed to create a machine that has shown itself in many local wars and military conflicts.
To clarify what is at stake, let's say about the purpose and composition of the 23-mm quadruple anti-aircraft self-propelled gun ZSU-23-4 "Shilka". It is intended to protect the battle formations of troops, columns on the march, stationary objects and railway echelons from an attack by an air enemy at altitudes from 100 to 1500 meters, at ranges from 200 to 2500 meters at a target speed of up to 450 m / s. "Shilka" can also be used to engage mobile ground targets at a distance of up to 2000 meters. She fires from a place and in motion, equipped with equipment that provides an autonomous circular and sector search for targets, their tracking, the development of gun guidance and control angles.
Shilka in the Middle East
The ZSU-23-4 consists of a 23-mm quadruple automatic anti-aircraft gun AZP-23, power drives intended for guidance. The next most important element is the RPU-2 radar and instrument complex. It serves, of course, to control the fire. Moreover, "Shilka" could work both with a radar and with a conventional sighting optical device. The locator is, of course, good, it provides search, detection, automatic tracking of the target, determines its coordinates. But at that time, the Americans began to install missiles on planes that could find a radar beam using a radar beam and hit it. And the vizier is the vizier. Disguised himself, saw the plane - immediately opened fire. And no problem. The tracked vehicle GM-575 provides the ZSU with high travel speed, maneuverability and increased cross-country ability. Day and night observation devices allow the driver and the ZSU commander to monitor the road and the environment at any time of the day, and the communication equipment provides external communication and communication between the crew numbers. The SPG's crew consists of four people: the ZSU commander, the search operator - the gunner, the range operator and the driver.
Iraqi ZSU-23-4M damaged during Operation Desert Storm
"Shilka" was born, as they say, in a shirt. Its development began in 1957. In 1960, the first prototype was ready, in 1961, state tests were carried out, in 1962, on October 16, an order from the Minister of Defense of the USSR was issued on acceptance into service, and three years later its mass production began. A little later - a test in battle.
Let us give the floor to Anatoly Dyakov again:
“In 1982, when the Lebanese war was going on, I was on a business trip in Syria. At that time, Israel was making serious attempts to strike at the troops stationed in the Bekaa Valley. I remember that immediately after the raid, Soviet specialists were brought in the wreckage of an F-16 aircraft, the most modern at that time, shot down by the Shilka.
I can also say that the warm wreckage made me happy, but I was not surprised by the fact itself. I knew that "Shilka" could suddenly open fire in any area and give excellent results. For I had to conduct electronic duels with Soviet planes at a training center near Ashgabat, where we trained specialists for one of the Arab countries. And never once could the pilots find us in the desert area. Themselves were targets, and only, take and open fire on them …"
And here are the memoirs of Colonel Valentin Nesterenko, who in the eighties was an adviser to the head of the Air Force and Air Defense College in North Yemen.
“In the college that is being created,” he said, “American and Soviet specialists taught. The material part was represented by the American Typhoon and Vulkan anti-aircraft guns, as well as our Shilki. At first, Yemeni officers and cadets were pro-American, believing that everything American is the best. But their confidence was shaken thoroughly during the first live fires, which were carried out by the cadets. The American Volcanoes and our Shilki were installed at the test site. Moreover, American installations were serviced and prepared for firing only by American specialists. All operations on the Shilki were carried out by the Arabs.
Both the warning about security measures and requests to set targets for the Shiloks much further than for the Volcanoes were perceived by many as Russian propaganda attacks. But when our first installation fired a volley, spewing out a sea of fire and a hail of spent cartridges, American specialists with enviable haste ducked into the hatches and took their installation away.
ZSU-23-4M army of the GDR
And on the mountain the targets were shining brightly. For the entire time of the shooting, "Shilki" worked flawlessly. The Volcanoes suffered a number of serious breakdowns. One of them was dealt with only with the help of Soviet specialists …"
Here it is pertinent to say: Israel's intelligence has sniffed out that the Arabs used the Shilka for the first time back in 1973. At the same time, the Israelis promptly planned an operation to seize a Soviet-made SPAAG and successfully carried it out. But it was NATO experts who studied the Shilka first of all. They were interested in how it is more effective than the American 20-mm ZSU "Vulcan" XM-163, whether it is possible to take into account its best design features when fine-tuning the West German 35-mm twin self-propelled gun "Gepard", which has just begun to enter the troops.
The reader will probably ask: why, later, in the early eighties, did the Americans need another sample? “Shilka” was highly appreciated by specialists, and therefore, when it became known that modernized versions were being produced, they decided to get another car overseas.
Our self-propelled unit was indeed constantly modernized, in particular, one of the variants even acquired a new name - ZSU-23-4M "Biryusa". But it did not change elementally. Unless, over time, a commander's device appeared - for the convenience of targeting, transferring the tower to the target. Blocks, on the other hand, became more perfect and more reliable every year. Locator, for example.
And, of course, Shilka's authority has grown in Afghanistan. There were no commanders there who would be indifferent to her. There is a convoy on the roads, and suddenly there is fire from an ambush, try to organize a defense, all the cars have already been shot. There is only one salvation - "Shilka". A long burst into the enemy's camp, and a sea of fire in position. There they called the self-propelled gun "shaitan-arba". The beginning of its work was determined immediately and immediately began to withdraw. Shilka saved the lives of thousands of Soviet soldiers.
In Afghanistan, "Shilka" fully realized the ability to fire at ground targets in the mountains. Moreover, a special "Afghan version" was created. A radio device complex was seized from the ZSU. Due to it, the ammunition capacity was increased from 2000 to 4000 shots. A night sight was also installed.
An interesting touch. The columns, accompanied by the Shilka, were rarely attacked not only in the mountains, but also near settlements. The ZSU was dangerous for the manpower hidden behind the adobe durals - the "Sh" projectile detonator detonated when it hit the wall. Effectively "Shilka" also hit lightly armored targets - armored personnel carriers, vehicles …
EACH weapon has its own destiny, its own life. In the post-war period, many types of weapons quickly became obsolete. 5-7 years - and a more modern generation appeared. And only "Shilka" has been in combat formation for more than thirty years. It also justified itself during the 1991 Gulf War, where the Americans used various means of air attack, including the B-52 bombers known from Vietnam. There were very confident statements: they, they say, smash targets to smithereens.
And now the next approach at low altitudes ZSU "Shilka" together with the "Strela-3" complex open fire. One aircraft immediately caught fire. No matter how hard the B-52 tried to reach the base, it was not possible.
And one more indicator. "Shilka" is in service in 39 countries. Moreover, it was bought not only by the allies of the USSR under the Warsaw Pact, but also by India, Peru, Syria, Yugoslavia … And the reasons are as follows. High fire efficiency, maneuverability. "Shilka" is not inferior to foreign analogues. Including the well-known American installation "Volcano".
The Vulkan, which was put into service in 1966, has a number of advantages, but in many respects it is inferior to the Soviet Shilka. The American ZSU can shoot at targets that travel at a speed of no more than 310 m / s, while the Shilka works at higher speeds - up to 450 m / s. My interlocutor Anatoly Dyakov said that he acted in a training battle on the Vulcan in Jordan and cannot say that the American vehicle is better, although it was adopted later. The Jordanian experts have approximately the same opinion.
Egyptian "Shilki" at the 1973 parade
The main difference from the "Shilka" is the ZSU "Gepard" (FRG). The large caliber of the cannon (35-mm) allows you to have projectiles with a fuse and, accordingly, more effective destruction - the target is hit by shrapnel. West German ZSU can hit targets at altitudes up to 3 kilometers, flying at speeds up to 350-400 m / s; its firing range is up to 4 kilometers. However, "Cheetah" has a lower rate of fire compared to "Shilka" - 1100 rounds per minute against - 3400 ("Vulcan" - up to 3000), it is more than twice as heavy - 45.6 tons. And note that the "Gepard" was adopted 11 years later than the "Shilka", in 1973, this is a machine of a later generation.
In many countries, the French anti-aircraft artillery complex "Turren" AMX-13 and the Swedish "Bofors" EAAK-40 are known. But they do not surpass the ZSU created by Soviet scientists and workers. "Shilka" is still in service with parts of the ground forces of many armies of the world, including the Russian one.
ZSU-23-4 cover T-55 tanks during exercises
Self-propelled anti-aircraft gun ZSU-23-4 "Shilka" Egypt 1973
Self-propelled anti-aircraft gun ZSU-23-4 "Shilka" Western Group of Forces. Germany 1985
