Review Fri SAU of all nations. Anti-tank self-propelled guns Differences between self-propelled guns and tanks

They call combat vehicles, which are nothing more than an artillery piece mounted on a self-propelled chassis. In everyday life, they are sometimes called self-propelled guns or self-propelled guns. In this article, we will understand what self-propelled guns are, where they are used, how they are classified and how they differ from other types of weapons.

Summary

So what is SAU? In a broad sense, all combat vehicles that are armed with guns can be considered as self-propelled guns. However, in narrow sense self-propelled guns include only those vehicles that are armed with guns or howitzers, but are not tanks or armored vehicles.

The types of ACS are diverse, as well as the scope of their application. They may have a wheeled or tracked chassis, be protected or not protected by armor, have a fixed or turret mounted main gun. Many self-propelled artillery installations of the world, equipped with a turret installation, outwardly resemble tanks. However, they differ significantly from tanks in terms of tactical use and armor-weapon balance.

The self-propelled artillery installation (SAU) began its history at about the same time as the first cannon armored vehicles, at the beginning of the 20th century. Moreover, from the point of view of modern military science, the former were more like an analogue of later self-propelled guns than tanks. In the middle and second half of the twentieth century, a period of rapid development of all kinds of self-propelled artillery installations began in the leading states.

At the beginning of the twenty-first century, thanks to an impressive leap in military science, self-propelled guns, according to many experts, began to claim superiority among other armored vehicles. Previously, it certainly belonged to the tanks. The role of self-propelled guns in the conditions of a modern military battle is growing every year.

The history of development

On the battlefield of the First World War, self-propelled units built on the basis of trucks, tractors or tracked chassis were used. Later, with the development of tanks, engineers realized that a tank base was best suited for mounting powerful artillery systems. Guns on unarmored chassis were also not forgotten, because they were famous for their great mobility.

In Russia, the first armored self-propelled guns were proposed by the son of D. I. Mendeleev - V. D. Mendeleev. During World War I and civil war actively used 72-mm Lender guns built on the basis of the Russo-Balt truck. The cabins of some of them were even partially armored. In the 20s of the last century, the USSR, Germany and the USA were engaged in the development of self-propelled guns, but most of the projects were nothing more than surrogate installations.

When the Soviet Union and Germany began to actively develop their tank forces, it became possible to massively install artillery mounts on tank chassis. So, in the USSR, a prototype of the SU-14 self-propelled guns was created on the basis of the T-35 and T-28 tanks. In Germany, outdated Pz Kpfw I tanks were used to convert them to self-propelled guns.

Second World War required the use of all the resources of the participants. Germany massively produced self-propelled guns based on old and captured tanks. Based on their own machines, they made simpler and cheaper installations. History included such German models: StuG III, and StuG IV, Hummel and Wespe, self-propelled artillery "Ferdinand" (as the tank destroyers Hetzer and Elefant were called) and some others. Since the end of 1944, the production of self-propelled guns in Germany has exceeded the production of tanks in terms of volume.

The Red Army began to fight without mass-produced self-propelled artillery. The production of the only self-propelled howitzer SU-5 was stopped back in 1937. But already in July 1941, the ZiS-30 self-propelled guns of a surrogate type appeared. And the following year, assault guns of the SU-122 model rolled off the assembly line. Later, the famous SU-100 and ISU-152 appeared as a counterweight to German heavy armored vehicles.

The engineers of England and America concentrated their forces mainly on the production of self-propelled howitzers. So there were models: Sexton, Bishop, M12, and M7 Priest.

Due to the development of main battle tanks, the need to use assault guns has disappeared. systems, together with combat helicopters, can quite successfully replace anti-tank self-propelled guns. But howitzers and anti-aircraft installations are still being developed.

With the development of ACS, the scope of their application grew, and the classification expanded. Consider the types of self-propelled artillery installations that appear in military science today.

As the name implies, these combat vehicles are specialized in the destruction of armored vehicles. As a rule, they are armed with long-barreled semi-automatic guns with a caliber of 57 to 100 mm with a unitary loading method, which makes it possible to achieve a high rate of fire. Heavy tank destroyers, designed to fight similar enemy vehicles and heavy tanks, can be armed with long-barreled guns with separate loading, the caliber of which reaches 155 mm. Installations of this class are ineffective against fortifications and infantry. They got a jump in development during the Second World War. Characteristic representatives of tank destroyers of that time are the Soviet self-propelled guns of the SU-100 model and the German Jagdpanther. Currently, installations of this class have given way to rocket anti-tank systems and combat helicopters, which are much more effective in dealing with tanks.

Assault guns

They are armored vehicles for fire support of tanks and infantry. Self-propelled guns of this type are armed with large-caliber (105-203 mm) short-barreled or long-barreled guns, which easily hit fortified infantry positions. In addition, assault guns could be effectively used against tanks. This type of self-propelled guns, like the previous one, was actively developed during the Second World War. The StuG III, StuG H42, and Brummbar were prominent examples of German assault self-propelled guns. Among the Soviet machines distinguished: Su-122 and Su-152. After the war, the development of main battle tanks led to the fact that they began to be armed with large-caliber guns that could easily hit enemy fortifications and unarmored targets. Thus, the need to use assault guns disappeared.

Self-propelled howitzers

They are mobile guns for indirect fire. In fact, this is a self-propelled analogue of towed artillery. Such self-propelled guns were armed with artillery systems with a caliber from 75 to 406 millimeters. They had light anti-fragmentation armor, which protected only from counter-battery fire. From the very beginning of the development of self-propelled artillery, self-propelled howitzers also developed. Large-caliber guns, along with high mobility and modern systems positioning make this type of weapon one of the most effective to this day.

Self-propelled howitzers with a caliber of more than 152 millimeters are especially widespread. They can strike the enemy with nuclear weapons, which makes it possible to destroy large objects and entire groups of troops with a small number of shots. During World War II, German Wespe and Hummel vehicles, American M7 (Priest) and M12 howitzers, as well as british self-propelled guns Sexton and Bishop. The USSR tried to establish the production of such machines (model Su-5) back in the 40s, centuries passed, but this attempt was unsuccessful. Today, the modern Russian army is armed with one of the best self-propelled howitzers in the world - 2S19 "Msta-S" with a caliber of 152 mm. In the armies of the NATO countries, its alternative is the 155-mm self-propelled guns "Paladin".

anti-tank

Self-propelled guns of this class are semi-open or open vehicles armed with anti-tank weapons. Usually they are built on the basis of lightly armored tank chassis, which are already outdated for their intended purpose. Such machines were distinguished by a good combination of price and efficiency and were produced in fairly large volumes. At the same time, they still lost in terms of combat characteristics to machines of a narrower specialization. A good example of an anti-tank self-propelled guns of World War II are the German Marder II and the domestic SU-76M. As a rule, such installations were armed with small- or medium-caliber guns. However, sometimes more powerful versions were also encountered, for example, the German Nashorn in 128 mm caliber. V modern army such units are not used.

Anti-aircraft installations

These are specialized cannon and machine gun installations, the task of which is to defeat low-flying and medium-high aircraft, as well as enemy helicopters. Usually they were armed with small-caliber automatic cannons (20-40 mm) and / or large-caliber machine guns (12.7-14.5 mm). An important element was the guidance system for high-speed targets. Sometimes they were additionally armed with surface-to-air missiles. In urban battles and in cases where you need to resist big mass infantry, anti-aircraft installations showed themselves as well as possible. During the Second World War, the German anti-aircraft installations Wirbelwind and Ostwind, as well as the Soviet ZSU-37, especially distinguished themselves. The modern Russian army is armed with two ZSU: 23-4 ("Shilka") and "Tunguska".

Surrogate

They are improvised combat vehicles designed on the basis of commercial or tractors. As a rule, surrogate self-propelled guns did not have reservations. Among domestic installations of this class, the 57-mm anti-tank self-propelled fighting machine ZIS-30, built on the basis of the caterpillar artillery tractor "Komsomolets". The most widely surrogate vehicles were used by Nazi Germany and fascist Italy due to the lack of other armored vehicles.

A typical Soviet self-propelled artillery mount successfully combined the functions of several classes at once. A clear example of this was the ISU-152 model. The Germans followed the strategy of creating highly specialized self-propelled guns. As a consequence, some German installations were the best in their classes.

Tactics of use

Having figured out what ACS are and what they are, let's find out how they are used in practice. The main task of a self-propelled artillery installation on the battlefield is to support other branches of the armed forces with artillery fire from closed positions. Due to the fact that self-propelled guns have high mobility, they can accompany tanks during breakthroughs through the enemy defense line, significantly increasing the combat capabilities of tank and motorized infantry troops.

High mobility also gives self-propelled artillery the ability to independently attack the enemy. To do this, all shooting parameters are calculated in advance. Then the self-propelled guns go to firing position and without sighting they conduct a massive attack on the enemy. After that, they quickly leave the firing line, and by the time the enemy calculates the place for a retaliatory strike, the positions will already be empty.

If enemy tanks and motorized infantry break through the line of defense, self-propelled artillery can act as a successful anti-tank weapon. To do this, some models of self-propelled guns receive special shells in their ammunition load.

V last years self-propelled artillery began to be used to destroy snipers who were hiding in places that were inconvenient for attacking with other fire weapons.

Single self-propelled artillery mounts armed with nuclear projectiles can destroy large objects, fortified settlements, as well as places where enemy troops accumulate. At the same time, nuclear self-propelled guns are almost impossible to intercept. At the same time, the radius of possible hit targets at artillery ammunition less than aviation or tactical missiles, as well as the power of the explosion.

Layout

The most common self-propelled vehicles today are usually built on the basis of a tank chassis or lightly armored tracked vehicles. In both cases, the layout of components and assemblies is similar. Unlike tanks, the SPG turret is located at the rear of the armored hull, and not in the middle. So the process of supplying ammunition from the ground is greatly facilitated. The engine-transmission group, respectively, is located in the front and middle parts of the body. Due to the fact that the transmission is located in the bow, it is advisable that the front wheels be driven. However, in modern self-propelled guns there is a tendency to use rear-wheel drive.

Department of Management, it is - workplace driver, located near the gearbox in the center of the machine or closer to its port side. The motor is located between the driver's seat and the fighting compartment. The fighting compartment includes ammunition and devices for aiming guns.

In addition to the described option for the placement of components and assemblies, the ZSU can be assembled according to a tank model. Sometimes they even represent a tank at all, the standard turret of which has been replaced with a special turret with a rapid-fire gun and guidance equipment. Here we have learned what ACS is.

Plan:

Introduction

• 1 The history of development
• 2 Outstanding examples of anti-tank self-propelled guns
  • 2.1 Germany
  • 2.2 Soviet Union
  • 2.3 United States
  • 2.4 UK
• 3 Layout features

Introduction

Soviet light anti-tank self-propelled guns SU-76M

Anti-tank self-propelled guns- partially specialized and lightly armored self-propelled artillery unit (ACS) specialized for combating enemy armored vehicles. It is in its armor that an anti-tank self-propelled gun differs from a tank destroyer, which has full and good armor protection.

1. History of development

During the Second World War, the massive use of tanks by the belligerents raised the question of creating adequate countermeasures. The anti-tank towed guns that existed before represented only a partial solution to the problem. towed anti-tank artillery as a rule, it was effective in the case of a pre-prepared defense, saturated with a large number of fortifications, engineering barriers and minefields, providing basic protection for guns and sharply restricting the enemy in freedom of maneuver. However, even with the presence of a sufficient number of tractors, towed anti-tank guns were not a highly mobile anti-tank defense (ATD). The crews and materiel of towed anti-tank guns in combat position are extremely vulnerable to enemy rifle and machine-gun fire, artillery shelling with fragmentation shells, or any air attacks. For the most effective action, anti-tank towed guns require well-functioning tactical interaction with their infantry and anti-aircraft gunners, which is far from always possible.

The solution to the problem was the development and launch into mass production of specialized tank destroyers, but this required time and significant resources, while the acute issue of organizing a mobile anti-tank gun was urgent. A good way out of this situation was the installation of field anti-tank guns on the chassis of obsolete or captured tanks, rather powerful tractors or armored personnel carriers. As a rule, both the gun and the tank base were subjected to the least possible alterations in order to speed up production processes conversions. To ensure the convenience of the calculation, the cabin or tower of the anti-tank self-propelled guns were made open, in the vast majority of cases, the armor of the vehicle was bulletproof.

Anti-tank self-propelled guns could be equipped with very powerful (and therefore heavy) guns, up to such models as the German 128-mm 12.8 cm Pak 44 gun. 3 tons in the direction of an enemy tank attacking from the flank or rear was almost impossible - for calculation, this situation was guaranteed death). Cheapness in production often led to the fact that initially conceived as a temporary measure, anti-tank self-propelled guns were produced and fought until the end of the war.

The disadvantages of anti-tank self-propelled guns are largely common with the disadvantages of towed anti-tank guns, with the exception of the low mobility of the latter: they are still vulnerable to fragments of shells during shelling, high-explosive and cumulative shells due to the "leakage" of the shock wave from the explosion into the open fighting compartment, any attacks from the air, and are also weak in close combat against enemy infantry - to destroy the calculation of such an ACS, it is enough to throw a hand grenade into its fighting compartment. Also, anti-tank self-propelled guns are relatively ineffective against unarmored targets. On the other hand, an open fighting compartment allows you to interact very closely with your infantry in battle, gives you a chance to quickly leave a wrecked vehicle, and also eliminates the problem of self-propelled guns gassing during prolonged firing.

Despite all the advantages, in the post-war period, due to their inherent shortcomings, anti-tank self-propelled guns quickly disappeared from the scene. An important role in this was played by the orientation towards the use of technology in the conditions of use. nuclear weapons- the crew receives basic protection from damaging factors only in a hermetically sealed combat vehicle, which is impossible in principle for anti-tank self-propelled guns.

2. Outstanding samples of anti-tank self-propelled guns

2.1. Germany

Nashorn (Hornisse) - one of the heaviest and most powerfully armed self-propelled guns of this class based on the Pz Kpfw IV tank

Marder III is a highly mobile and technologically advanced anti-tank self-propelled gun based on the Czech tank TNHP-S "Prague" (Pz Kpfw 38 (t)).

SU-76 is a highly mobile and technologically advanced anti-tank self-propelled gun based on a modified base of the T-70 tank.

2.3. USA

American anti-tank self-propelled guns were officially classified as "tank destroyers", however, incomplete and partial armor does not allow them to be classified as full-fledged tank destroyers. characteristic feature American machines were the placement of weapons in a rotating turret open from above with a developed counterweight on its aft side.

• M10 Wolverine is a highly mobile and technologically advanced anti-tank self-propelled gun based on the M4 Sherman medium tank.
• M18 Hellcat - A version of the M10 with reduced armor protection but higher mobility. In addition, it was armed with a Browning M2HB heavy anti-aircraft machine gun to protect against air attacks and combat enemy manpower.
• M36 Jackson (or Slugger) - slow-moving, but very powerfully armed anti-tank self-propelled guns based on the M4 Sherman medium tank; had good frontal armor, but the side armor still remained bulletproof.

2.4. Great Britain

• Archer - slow-moving, but very powerfully armed anti-tank self-propelled guns based on the Valentine medium tank;

3. Layout features

In terms of their layout, anti-tank self-propelled guns (with the placement of a gun in the wheelhouse) are quite typical - the wheelhouse with the gun is located in the stern, the engine is in the middle, and the control compartment is in the bow of the vehicle. An interesting exception is the Archer self-propelled guns, which outwardly resemble all other vehicles of this class, but in fact are similar in layout to the Soviet SU-85 tank destroyer - the fighting compartment and the control compartment are located in the nose of the vehicle, and the engine is in the stern. The difference lies in the fact that the SU-85 gun is directed in the direction of the self-propelled gun, while the Archer is directed against it. In the combat position, the Archer turned stern forward and its driver did not see the battlefield. However, this made it possible to quickly leave the firing position moving forward without turning the car.

, armored personnel carrier or other armored personnel carrier and armed with means of combating tanks at medium and long distances: an anti-tank gun or a rocket.

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The history of development

During the Second World War, the massive combat use of tanks by the belligerents raised the question of creating adequate countermeasures. Previously existing anti-tank towed guns only partly solved the problem. Towed anti-tank artillery, as a rule, was effective in conditions of pre-prepared anti-tank defense (AT), saturated with a large number of fortifications, engineering barriers and minefields, giving basic protection to the guns and sharply limiting the enemy in maneuver. However, even with a sufficient number of tractors, towed anti-tank guns are not characterized by high mobility. The crews and materiel of towed anti-tank guns in combat position are extremely vulnerable to enemy rifle and machine-gun fire, artillery shelling with fragmentation shells, or any air attacks. For the most effective action, anti-tank towed guns require well-functioning tactical interaction with their rifle troops (infantry) and military air defense, which is far from always possible.

The solution to the problem was the development and launch into mass production of specialized tank destroyers (tank destroyers), but this required time and significant resources, while the acute issue of organizing a mobile anti-tank gun was urgent. A good way out of this situation was the simple installation of field anti-tank guns on the chassis of obsolete or captured tanks, rather powerful tractors or armored personnel carriers. As a rule, both the gun and the tank base were subjected to the least possible modifications in order to speed up the conversion of production. To ensure the convenience of the calculation, the cabin or tower of the anti-tank self-propelled guns were often made open, in the overwhelming majority of cases, the armor of the vehicle was bulletproof.

Anti-tank self-propelled guns (PT-SAUs) could be equipped with very powerful and, therefore, heavy guns, up to such samples as the German 128-mm 12.8 cm Pak 44 gun. Thus, the problems of their mobility and quick turn in a given direction were solved - it was almost impossible to manually turn a gun weighing more than three tons in the direction of an enemy tank attacking from the flank or rear (for calculation, this situation was guaranteed death). Cheapness in production often led to the fact that initially conceived as a temporary measure, anti-tank self-propelled guns were produced and fought until the end of the war.

Quite a few tank destroyers, being self-propelled guns with an open fighting compartment, largely retained most of the shortcomings of towed anti-tank guns, with the exception of the low mobility of the latter: they were still vulnerable to:

• fragments of shells during shelling of positions,
• hits of high-explosive and cumulative projectiles due to the "leakage" of the shock wave from the explosion into the open fighting compartment,
• any attacks from the air,
• and also weak in close combat against enemy infantry - to destroy the crew of such an ACS, it is enough to throw a hand-held anti-personnel grenade into its fighting compartment.

At the same time, the open fighting compartment allows you to interact very closely with your infantry in battle, provides the crew with the opportunity to quickly leave the wrecked vehicle, and also eliminates the problem of gas pollution in the fighting compartment of the self-propelled guns during intense long-term firing.

Despite all the advantages, in the post-war period, due to their inherent shortcomings, anti-tank self-propelled guns with an open fighting compartment quickly lost their combat value. Not the last role in this was played by the orientation towards the use of equipment in a nuclear war - the crew receives basic protection from damaging factors only inside a hermetically sealed combat vehicle, which is impossible in principle for anti-tank self-propelled guns with an open fighting compartment.

It turned out differently with tank destroyers with a closed fighting compartment, which combined all the advantages of towed anti-tank guns and self-propelled guns with a closed fighting compartment. A striking example of such tank destroyers is the Soviet SU-100, created on the basis of the T-34-85 tank and inheriting fairly good armor protection from it. In particular, such tank destroyers reliably protected their crews from fire. small arms, the effects of shock waves from nearby explosions, shell fragments and shrapnel. It was already possible to destroy such a tank destroyer only with anti-tank weapons. But such a tank destroyer is also characterized by all the shortcomings of any self-propelled guns with a closed fighting compartment. This type of tank destroyer in the USSR developed until the advent of tank destroyers based on BRDM, armed with ATGMs. (Subsequently, such missile tank destroyers were also made on a tracked base.)

And any tank destroyers are rather ineffective against unarmored targets.

Outstanding examples of anti-tank self-propelled guns

Germany

• Jagdtigr - the most powerfully armed German anti-tank self-propelled guns of the Second World War from mass-produced, armed with a 12.8 cm Pak-44 L / 55 anti-tank gun; made on the chassis of the tank PzKpfw. VIB Tiger II .
• Ferdinand is one of the most heavily armed and heavily armored representatives of the German armored vehicles of the Second World War period, based on the chassis of the PzKpfw VI Tiger (P) tank, which was not adopted for service.
• Nashorn (Rhino) - a similar self-propelled gun of this class based on the Pz Kpfw IV tank with lighter armor.
• Marder III is a highly mobile and technologically advanced anti-tank self-propelled gun based on the Czech tank TNHP-S Prague (Pz Kpfw 38(t)) .
• Hetzer is a German light self-propelled artillery mount (SPG) of the tank destroyer class.
• Marder I (Sd.Kfz. 135) - German self-propelled artillery, tank destroyer.

• SU-76 is a highly mobile and technologically advanced anti-tank self-propelled gun based on a modified base of the T-70 tank.
• SU-100 - anti-tank self-propelled guns, created on the basis of a medium tank

Self-propelled artillery pieces in World War II performed a wide variety of roles - from infantry support during defense to mobile anti-tank weapons capable of conducting an offensive in conjunction with other units.

The main weapons of the self-propelled guns, depending on their type, were anti-tank guns with a caliber of 47 to 128 millimeters or howitzers with a caliber of up to 380 millimeters. Depending on the power of the gun, the armor and the mass of self-propelled guns changed. At the "Sturmtigr" it reached 68 tons, and at the anti-tank self-propelled gun "Jagdtigr" - 70 tons, this self-propelled gun was the heaviest vehicle of the Second World War. Most often, self-propelled guns were designed on the chassis of various tanks, sometimes obsolete, but preserved in large numbers (like the German Pz-I and Pz-II by 1941). The main difference between self-propelled guns and tanks was the absence of a rotating turret, which reduced the height (and, accordingly, vulnerability) of the vehicle, but also reduced its combat characteristics. Most often, self-propelled guns were used in mobile units, especially in tank divisions when breaking through enemy defenses, as well as when repelling tank attacks. They showed their high efficiency, although heavy self-propelled guns with powerful guns (Ferdinand, Nashorn, Jagdpanther) were vulnerable to aviation and much more mobile medium tanks.
Assessing progress German troops in Africa Millentin wrote:
“How then should the brilliant successes of the Afrika Korps be explained? In my opinion, our victories were determined by three factors: the qualitative superiority of our anti-tank guns, the systematic application of the principle of interaction between military branches and, last but not least, our tactical methods. while the British limited the role of their 3.7-inch anti-aircraft guns (very powerful guns) to fighting aircraft, we used our 88-mm guns to shoot both tanks and aircraft.

The main means of anti-tank defense were considered tanks and artillery fire, primarily anti-tank in combination with the engineering equipment of the terrain and natural obstacles, aviation and minefields. The charters required the creation of anti-tank defense along the lines (battalion, regimental and divisional) and, first of all, in front of the front line. Defensive combat was required to begin on the distant approaches to the main strip, inflicting, on the enemy, air strikes and long-range artillery. In the supply zone, forward detachments entered the battle. And then the units allocated to combat guards. The main forces and firepower of rifle units and formations were introduced into the battle for the main line of defense. When enemy tanks break through into the depths of the main line of defense, the formation commander must organize a counterattack in order to delay the advance of the enemy.

To combat the new medium and heavy tanks that appeared in the United States and Great Britain, several types of anti-tank self-propelled guns were developed in the USSR after the war.

In the mid-50s, the production of the SU-122 self-propelled guns designed on the basis of the T-54 medium tank began. The new self-propelled gun, designated as SU-122-54 to avoid confusion, was designed and manufactured taking into account previous combat experience in using self-propelled guns during the war years. A.E. was appointed the lead designer. Sulin.

The main armament of the SU-122 was the D-49 gun (52-PS-471D) - a modernized version of the D-25 gun, which was armed with post-war production tanks of the IS series. The gun was equipped with a wedge horizontal semi-automatic shutter with an electromechanical ramming mechanism, due to which it was possible to increase the gun's rate of fire to five rounds per minute. The lifting mechanism of the sector-type gun provides pointing angles of the gun from -3° to +20° vertically. When the barrel was given an elevation angle of 20 °, the firing range using HE ammunition was 13,400 m. With the advent of the early 1960s. the American M60 tank and the English Chieftain tank for the D-49 rifled gun, sub-caliber and cumulative shells were developed. Ammunition - 35 shots of a separate-sleeve type. Additional armament was two 14.5 mm KPVT machine guns. One with a pneumatic reloading system is paired with a gun, the other is anti-aircraft.

The hull of the self-propelled guns is completely closed and welded from armored rolled plates, the thickness in the frontal part is 100 mm, the side is 85 mm. The fighting compartment was combined with the control compartment. In front of the hull was the conning tower, which housed the gun.
In a rotating turret, located on the right on the roof of the cabin, a rangefinder was installed.

The SU-122-54 self-propelled guns would not have been equal on the battlefields of World War II. But the improvement of the tanks themselves, which became capable of hitting not only fire weapons and infantry, but also armored targets, as their weapons improved, and the appearance of ATGMs, made the production of specialized tank destroyers pointless.

From 1954 to 1956, the total number of cars produced was 77 units. Subsequently, after repairs, these vehicles were converted into armored tractors and technical support vehicles.

By the beginning of the 80s, in most armies of developed countries, self-propelled anti-tank artillery installations had practically disappeared. Their functions were taken over by anti-tank systems and partly by the so-called "wheeled tanks" - lightly armored universal vehicles with powerful artillery weapons.

In the USSR, the development of tank destroyers continued to provide anti-tank defense for airborne units. Especially for the Airborne Forces (VDV), several types of self-propelled guns were designed and produced.

The first model of armored vehicles designed specifically for the airborne troops was the ASU-76 armed with a 76-mm cannon, created under the leadership of N. A. Astrov. The design of the machine was developed in October 1946 - June 1947, and the first prototype of the self-propelled guns was completed in December 1947. ASU-76 had a crew of three people, minimized dimensions, light bulletproof armor and a power plant based on automotive units. After the completion of the tests carried out in 1948-1949, on December 17, 1949, the ASU-76 was put into service, however, its mass production, with the exception of two machines of the installation batch assembled in 1950, which did not pass field tests, was not carried out. Due to a number of reasons, first of all, the refusal to produce the Il-32 heavy transport glider, the only means of landing a 5.8-ton machine at that time.

In 1948, in the design bureau of plant No. 40, under the leadership of N. A. Astrov and D. I. Sazonov, an ACS-57 self-propelled gun was created, armed with a 57-mm Ch-51 semi-automatic cannon, with Grabinskaya ZiS-2 ballistics. In 1951, the ASU-57 was adopted by the Soviet Army.

The main armament of the ASU-57 was the 57-mm Ch-51 semi-automatic rifled gun, in the basic modification or the Ch-51M modification. The gun had a monoblock barrel with a length of 74.16 calibers. The technical rate of fire of the Ch-51 was up to 12, the practical sighting rate was 7 ... 10 rounds per minute. The horizontal guidance angles of the guns were ±8°, vertical guidance - from −5° to +12°. Ch-51 ammunition was 30 unitary shots with all-metal shells. The ammunition could include shots with armor-piercing, sub-caliber and fragmentation shells, according to the assortment of ammunition, the Ch-51 was unified with the ZIS-2 anti-tank gun.

For self-defense of the ASU-57 crew in the early years, it was equipped with a 7.62-mm easel machine gun SGM or RPD light machine gun.

ASU-57 had light bulletproof armor protection. The hull of the self-propelled guns, of a semi-closed type, was a rigid supporting box-shaped structure, assembled from sheets of armored steel 4 and 6 mm thick, connected to each other mainly by welding, as well as non-armored duralumin sheets connected to the rest of the hull with riveting.

The ASU-57 was equipped with an in-line 4-cylinder four-stroke carburetor automobile engine of the M-20E model manufactured by the GAZ plant, with a maximum power of 55 hp.

Before the advent of a new generation of military transport aircraft, the ASU-57 could only be transported by air using the Yak-14 towed transport glider. ASU-57 drove into the glider and left it under its own power through the hinged nose; in flight, the installation was fastened with cables, and to prevent rocking, its suspension units were blocked on the body.

The situation has changed significantly with the adoption of the new An-8 and An-12 military transport aircraft with increased payload capacity, which ensured the landing of the ACS-57 both by landing and by parachute. Also, a heavy military transport helicopter Mi-6 could be used to land the self-propelled guns.

The ASU-57 entered service with the USSR Airborne Forces in relatively small quantities. So, according to the staffing table, in the seven airborne divisions available by the end of the 1950s, not counting one training division, in total there should have been only 245 self-propelled guns. In the troops, the self-propelled guns, for their characteristic design features, received the nickname "bare-assed Ferdinand", previously worn by the SU-76, which the ACS-57 replaced in self-propelled artillery battalions.

Since the transport equipment in service with the Airborne Forces in the early 1950s did not have airborne landing equipment, self-propelled guns were also used as a light tractor, as well as for transporting up to four paratroopers on armor, the latter was used, in particular, for flank or rear detours of the enemy, when a quick transfer of forces was required.

The appearance of more advanced models in service with the Airborne Forces did not entail the removal of the ACS-57 from service; the latter only, after a series of reorganizations, were transferred from the divisional level of the Airborne Forces to the regimental level. ASU-57 for a long time remained the only model of armored vehicles of the Airborne Forces capable of providing fire support to the landing, capable of landing by parachute. As the airborne regiments were re-equipped in the 1970s with the new airborne BMD-1s, which provided anti-tank defense and fire support up to the squad level, the ASU-57 regimental batteries were gradually disbanded. The ASU-57s were finally decommissioned in the early 1980s.

The success of the light airborne self-propelled gun ASU-57 gave rise to the desire of the Soviet command to also have a medium self-propelled gun with an 85-mm cannon.

In 1959, the developed OKB-40 headed by N.A. Astrov
ASU-85. The main armament of the ASU-85 was the 2A15 gun (factory designation - D-70), which had a monoblock barrel, equipped with a muzzle brake and an ejector to remove residual powder gases from the barrel. The manual sector lifting mechanism provides elevation angles in the range from -5 to +15 degrees. Horizontal guidance - 30 degrees. A 7.62 mm SGMT machine gun was paired with a cannon

The portable ammunition load of 45 unitary shots included unitary shots weighing 21.8 kg each with several types of projectiles. These included high-explosive fragmentation grenades UO-365K weighing 9.54 kg, which had an initial speed of 909 m / s and were intended to destroy manpower and destroy enemy fortifications. When firing at mobile, armored targets - tanks and self-propelled guns - armor-piercing tracer sharp-headed projectiles Br-365K weighing 9.2 kg with an initial speed of 1150 m / s were used. These shells could conduct aimed fire at a distance of up to 1200 m. An armor-piercing projectile at a distance of 2000 m pierced an armor plate 53 mm thick, located at an angle of 60 °, and a cumulative projectile - 150 mm. The maximum firing range of a high-explosive fragmentation projectile was 13400 m.

The security of the ASU-85 in the frontal part of the hull was at the level of the T-34 tank. The corrugated bottom gave the body additional strength. In the bow on the right was the control compartment, which housed the driver's seat. The fighting compartment was in the middle of the car.

An automobile 6-cylinder, V-shaped, two-stroke 210-horsepower diesel engine YaMZ-206V was used as a power plant.

For a long time, the self-propelled gun could only land by landing. It was not until the 1970s that special parachute systems were developed.
ASU-85, as a rule, were transported by military transport An-12. The self-propelled gun was mounted on a platform to which several parachutes were attached. Before contact with the ground, special brake rocket engines began to work, and the self-propelled unit landed safely. After unloading the machine was transferred to a combat position within 1-1.5 minutes.

ASU-85 was in production from 1959 to 1966, during which time the installation was modernized twice. First, a ventilated roof made of rolled steel sheets 10 mm thick with four hatches was installed over the fighting compartment. In 1967, the ASU-85 participated in the Arab-Israeli conflict, known as the "six-day war", and the experience of their combat use revealed the need to install a 12.7-mm DShKM anti-aircraft machine gun on the wheelhouse. Delivered to the GDR and Poland. Participated in early period Afghan war as part of the artillery units of the 103rd Airborne Division.

The bulk of the vehicles produced were sent to equip individual self-propelled artillery battalions of airborne divisions. Despite the cessation of mass production, ASU-85 remained in service with the airborne troops until the end of the 80s of the last century. ASU-85 withdrawn from service Russian army in 1993.

In 1969, the BMD-1 airborne combat vehicle was adopted. This made it possible to raise the capabilities of the Airborne Forces to a qualitatively new level. The BMD-1 weapon system made it possible to solve the problems of combating manpower and armored vehicles. The anti-tank capabilities of the vehicles increased even more after the replacement of the Malyutka ATGM with the 9K113 Konkurs in 1978. In 1979, the self-propelled ATGM "Robot" created on the basis of the BMD was put into service. In 1985, the BMD-2 entered service with a 30 mm automatic cannon.

It would seem that air transport vehicles on a single chassis make it possible to solve all the tasks facing the Airborne Forces. However, the experience of the participation of these vehicles in numerous local conflicts revealed an urgent need for airborne, amphibious armored vehicles with powerful artillery weapons.
Which would be capable of providing fire support to the advancing landing force, acting on a par with the BMD, as well as fighting with modern tanks.

The 2S25 Sprut-SD self-propelled anti-tank gun was created in the early 90s, on an extended (two rollers) base of the BMD-3 airborne combat vehicle by the Volgograd Tractor Plant joint-stock company, and the artillery unit for it was created at the N9 artillery plant (g . Yekaterinburg). In contrast to the Sprut-B towed artillery system, the new self-propelled guns received the name Sprut-SD ("self-propelled" - landing).

Self-propelled guns "Sprut-SD" at the firing position

The 125 mm 2A75 smoothbore gun is the main armament of the Sprut-SD self-propelled guns.
The gun was created on the basis of the 125-mm 2A46 tank gun, which is installed on the T-72, T-80 and T-90 tanks. When installed on a lighter chassis, the gun was equipped with a new type of recoil device, providing a recoil of no more than 700 mm. The high-ballistic smoothbore gun installed in the fighting compartment is equipped with a computerized fire control system from the commander's and gunner's workplaces, which are functionally interchangeable.

The gun without a muzzle brake is equipped with an ejector and a heat-insulating casing. Stabilization in the vertical and horizontal planes allows you to fire 125-mm cartridge-separate ammunition. Sprut-SD can use all types of 125-mm domestic ammunition, including armor-piercing piercing feathered shells and tank ATGMs. The ammunition load of the gun (40 125-mm rounds, 22 of them in the automatic loader) can include a laser-guided projectile, which ensures the destruction of a target located at a distance of up to 4000 m. The gun can fire afloat with waves up to three points in a sector of ±35 hail., maximum rate of fire - 7 rounds per minute.

As an auxiliary armament, the Sprut-SD self-propelled guns are equipped with a 7.62-mm machine gun coaxial with a cannon with an ammunition load of 2000 rounds loaded in one tape.

SAU Sprut-SD appearance and firepower is indistinguishable from a tank, but inferior to him in security. This predetermines the tactics of action against tanks - mainly from ambushes.

The power plant and chassis have much in common with the BMD-3, the base of which was used in the development of the 2S25 Sprut-SD self-propelled guns. The multi-fuel horizontally opposed six-cylinder diesel engine 2V06-2S installed on it with a maximum power of 510 hp. interlocked with hydromechanical transmission, hydrostatic turning mechanism and power take-off for two jet propulsion. The automatic transmission has five forward gears and the same number of reverse gears.

Individual, hydropneumatic, with a clearance changeable from the driver's seat (in 6-7 s from 190 to 590 mm) chassis suspension provides high cross-country ability and smooth running.

When making marches up to 500 km, the car can move along the highway with a maximum speed of up to 68 km / h, on dirt roads - at an average speed of 45 km / h.

Sprut-SD self-propelled guns can be transported by BTA aircraft and landing ships, parachute with a crew inside the vehicle and overcome water obstacles without training.

Unfortunately, the number of these very popular vehicles in the army is not yet large, in total about 40 units have been delivered.

According to materials:
http://dic.academic.ru/dic.nsf/enc_tech/4200/SU
http://www.tankovedia.ru/catalog/sssr/su
http://voencomrus.ru/index.php?id=120