The 2S25 Sprut-SD self-propelled anti-tank gun was created in the early 90s. on the 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 - at the N9 artillery plant (Ekaterinburg). In contrast to the towed artillery system "Sprut-B", the new self-propelled guns received the name "Sprut-SD" ("self-propelled", "landed").
SAU 2S25 Sprut-SD - video
Initially intended for the Airborne Forces and designed for parachute landing with a crew from an Il-76 military transport aircraft, the gun is currently being offered to the Marine Corps to provide anti-tank and fire support during landing operations.
One of its first performances took place on May 8, 2001 at the Prudboy tank training ground of the North Caucasus Military District for representatives of the Russian security ministries and the foreign military-diplomatic corps from 14 foreign countries in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa and South America.
Purpose
The 125-mm self-propelled anti-tank gun 2S25 "Sprut-SD" is designed to destroy enemy vehicles, including armored ones, and manpower when operating as part of units of ground and airborne forces, as well as marines.
Outwardly, it looks like a regular tank and combines the capabilities of a landing amphibious assault vehicle with a main battle tank. Externally, the Sprut-SD is no different from a conventional tank and has no analogues abroad.
Key Features
According to experts, the new self-propelled gun, in appearance and firepower, is comparable to a tank, is characterized by the maneuverability of the airborne BMD-3 and has no analogues abroad. In addition, the Sprut-SD is equipped with a unique hydropneumatic chassis, which allows the combat vehicle to move smoothly and quickly in off-road conditions at speeds of up to 70 km per hour, which significantly improves the conditions for firing while on the move.
In addition, "Sprut-SD" is capable of overcoming water obstacles at afloat speeds of up to 10 km per hour. This was confirmed by tests in the North Sea, when during a storm of up to 3 points the BM confidently fired at the designated targets. The vehicle can parachute from cargo ships onto the water surface and independently return to the ship. The noted and other qualities, together with the circular rotation of the turret and the stabilization of weapons in two planes, allow the Sprut-SD to be used as a light amphibious tank.
General device
The BM hull is divided into a control compartment (front part), a fighting compartment with a turret (middle part) and an engine and transmission compartment (aft part).
In the stowed position, the vehicle commander is to the right of the driver, and the gunner is to the left. Each crew member has observation devices with day and night channels built into the roof. The commander's combined sight is stabilized in two planes and combined with a laser sight to guide 125 mm projectiles along a laser beam. The gunner's sight with a laser rangefinder is stabilized in the vertical plane.
Armament
The 125-mm 2A75 smoothbore gun is the main armament of the Sprut-SD self-propelled gun. The gun was created on the basis of the 125-mm 2A46 tank gun, which is installed on 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 workstations, which are functionally interchangeable.
As an auxiliary weapon, the Sprut-SD self-propelled gun is equipped with a coaxial 7.62-mm machine gun with an ammunition load of 2,000 rounds loaded into one belt.
The gun without a muzzle brake is equipped with an ejector and a thermal insulating casing. Stabilization in the vertical and horizontal planes makes it possible to fire 125 mm separate-case-loading ammunition. "Sprut-SD" can use all types of 125-mm domestic ammunition, including armor-piercing sub-caliber finned projectiles and tank ATGMs. The gun's ammunition load (40 125-mm rounds, of which 22 are in the automatic loader) can include a laser-guided projectile, which can hit a target located at a range of up to 4000 m. The gun can fire afloat in waves up to 3 points in a sector of ±35 degrees, maximum rate of fire - 7 rounds per minute.
The horizontal autoloader of the carousel-type gun is installed behind the vehicle's turret. It is a set of components and mechanisms - a rotating conveyor with 22 shots ready for immediate use, a chain mechanism for lifting a cartridge with a shot, a mechanism for removing spent pallets with a catcher, a chain rammer for a shot from a cartridge into a gun, a drive for the cartridge ejection hatch cover and a movable tray, electromechanical gun stopper at the loading angle, control unit. Cassettes, with shells and charges placed separately in them, are installed in the automatic loader conveyor at an angle equal to the gun loading angle. When loading, a projectile is first fed into the breech of the gun, then a propellant charge in a semi-combustible cartridge case. If the automatic loader fails, the gun can be loaded manually.
To ensure increased recoil, the automatic loader has an extended cassette lift frame. The mechanism for catching and removing spent pallets makes it possible, when a spent pallet passes through it, to temporarily block the back side of the end part of the gun breech. This allows the cleaning system to blow air through the gun breech area and crew positions using a rotating device during the subsequent movement of the spent pallet. At the bottom of the fighting compartment there is an automatic loader conveyor rotating around a vertical axis, allowing crew members to move inside the vehicle from the fighting compartment to the control compartment and back along the sides of the hull.
Fire control system
Includes a gunner's sighting system (night and day sights with vertical stabilization of the field of view, digital ballistic computer, laser rangefinder); commander's sight combined with the function of a day/night sight with a laser range finder and a stabilized field of view in two planes, as well as a target guidance device for guided missiles of the 9K119M complex; a set of sensors for automatically entering corrections taking into account atmospheric parameters, charge temperature, wear and curvature of the barrel, etc.
A computerized fire control system from the commander’s workplace provides observation of the terrain with a stabilized field of view, target search and target designation using the optical system of the commander’s sight; combining the functions of launching and controlling a missile with targeted firing of artillery shells in the commander’s sight; duplication of the ballistic computing device of the gunner's instrument complex; autonomous activation and control of guidance drives and gun automatic loader; prompt transfer of control of the complex from the gunner to the commander and vice versa.
Powerplant and chassis
It has much in common with the BMD-3, the base of which was used in the development of the 2S25 Sprut-SD self-propelled gun. The 2B06-2S multi-fuel diesel engine installed on it with a maximum power of 510 kW is interlocked with a hydromechanical transmission, a hydrostatic turning mechanism and power take-off for two water-jet propulsors. The automatic transmission has five forward gears and the same number of reverse gears.
Individual, hydropneumatic, with adjustable ground clearance from the driver's seat (in 6-7 seconds from 190 to 590 mm) chassis suspension ensures high cross-country ability and a smooth ride. The chassis on each side includes seven single-pitch rubber-coated road wheels, four support rollers, a rear drive wheel and a front idler wheel. There is a hydraulic mechanism for tensioning steel, double-ridge, lantern-mounted tracks with a rubber-metal hinge, which can be equipped with asphalt shoes.
When making marches of up to 500 km, the vehicle can move on the highway at a maximum speed of up to 68 km/h, and on dry dirt roads at an average speed of 45 km/h.
Two water-jet propulsors allow the 2S25 self-propelled gun to move through water at speeds of up to 10 km/h. To increase buoyancy, the vehicle is equipped with support rollers with closed air chambers and powerful water pumps that pump water out of the hull. The vehicle has good seaworthiness and can operate effectively afloat, including conducting targeted fire in the forward sector of fire at 70 degrees, with seas of 3 points.
In addition to the above, the standard equipment of the vehicle includes a system of protection against weapons of mass destruction and a set of night vision devices.
The Sprut-SD self-propelled gun can be transported by military aviation aircraft and landing ships, parachuted with a crew inside the vehicle, and overcome water obstacles without preparation.
The armies of many countries around the world have recently paid special attention to lightly armored military equipment as the basis of rapid reaction forces. The fight against international terrorism and conducting peacekeeping operations in local conflict zones required the creation of highly mobile and functionally flexible “combat systems of the future.”
In this regard, according to foreign experts, it is Russia that has the greatest capabilities in the field of creating lightly armored landing equipment. The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are already equipped with effective models of light (up to 18 tons), highly cross-country, air transportable armored vehicles, capable of performing tasks autonomously, in isolation from the main forces and rear units, as well as in any conditions (including in hard-to-reach and remote areas, in mountainous terrain, in desert conditions and on the coast).
In addition, according to experts, this class of combat vehicles has significant export potential. It is these vehicles that can be used as the basis for equipping the mobile component of the armed forces and intelligence services of any state.
The validity of this opinion is confirmed by the Sprut-SD self-propelled gun. After its demonstration at the training ground, many military attaches admitted that in terms of combat and operational capabilities it surpasses all existing foreign analogues. Thus, not a single vehicle in the world can be used in the mountains at an altitude of up to 4000 meters, change the ground clearance by 400 mm, sail when the sea state is up to 3 points, go on and off from the water to a landing ship and land with the crew.
Testing and adoption
In 1984, the tactical and technical specifications for the creation of a 125-mm airborne self-propelled anti-tank gun "Sprut-SD" were approved; on October 20, 1985, by the decision of the military-industrial commission of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, the development of a new 125-mm SPTP for the USSR Airborne Forces was officially launched. In February 1986, the development of landing equipment for the 2S25 self-propelled guns began. The landing equipment received the designation P260 and was created on the basis of the P235 parachute-jet equipment, intended for landing the BMP-3. In the period from 1990 to 1991, State tests of the 2S25 self-propelled guns were carried out. However, tests of the P260 system revealed its shortcomings, the main of which were: difficulty in operation, high manufacturing cost, complexity of the cassette unit of the parachute-jet braking engine. On May 30, 1994, by the decision of the Russian Air Force, the Russian Airborne Forces and the developer of landing equipment - the Moscow plant "Universal" - the development of the P260 parachute-jet landing equipment was canceled, and the same decision began the development of the P260M "Sprut-PDS" strapdown landing system. In 2001, additional tests of the 2S25 self-propelled guns were carried out. On January 9, 2006, by order of the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, the 2S25 self-propelled anti-tank gun was adopted by the Russian Army.
Serial production and modifications
In addition to the main version of the self-propelled gun "Sprut-SD" for the Airborne Forces, a version of the 125-mm self-propelled anti-tank gun for the ground forces, called "Sprut-SSV", was also developed. Unlike the Sprut-SD SPTP, the Sprut-SSV self-propelled gun did not have the ability to land, and the base one was the light multi-purpose Glider chassis, developed at the design bureau of the Kharkov Tractor Plant and intended to replace MT tracked tractors in the ground forces -LB and MT-LBu. Work on the creation of the Sprut-SSV SPTP has not progressed beyond the production and testing of prototypes. In addition to the tracked version, for the ground forces under the name “Sprut-K”, the option of placing the combat compartment of the 2S25 self-propelled gun on the wheelbase of the BTR-90 armored personnel carrier was also studied, but this option was not accepted into service with the Russian army.
Machine evaluation
Despite the fact that the 2S25 self-propelled gun belongs to the class of anti-tank self-propelled guns, in terms of its capabilities and range of tasks, the Sprut-SD is a light tank. The reason why the 2S25 self-propelled gun was initially classified as an anti-tank gun was that the ordering department for development work was the GRAU, which did not have the authority to develop tanks. The main representatives of the previous generation of this class of equipment are the PT-76B and Object 934 light tanks. The test results of the Object 934 tank showed that in terms of its main parameters it was superior to the PT-76B tank both in armament and in seaworthiness. In turn, the 2S25 self-propelled gun combines the firepower of a main tank with the high maneuverability and maneuverability characteristics of a light tank, which allows it to be a modern replacement for the PT-76B tank in marine and ground forces units. The use of the Sprut-SD SPTP in airborne units makes it possible to solve the problem of fighting enemy tanks.
Performance characteristics of 2S25 Sprut-SD
Developer: VgTZ OKB-9 TsNIITochmash
- Years of development: from 1983 to 2001
- Years of production: from 1984 to 2010
- Years of operation: since 2005
- Layout scheme: classic
Crew of self-propelled gun 2S25 Sprut-SD
3 persons
Weight of SAU 2S25 Sprut-SD
Overall dimensions of self-propelled gun 2S25 Sprut-SD
Case length, mm: 7085
- Length with gun forward, mm: 9770
- Width, mm: 3152
- Height, mm: 3050
- Base, mm: 4225
- Track, mm: 2744
- Ground clearance, mm: 100…500
Reservation of self-propelled gun 2S25 Sprut-SD
Armor type: bulletproof
Armament of self-propelled gun 2S25 Sprut-SD
Gun caliber and brand: 125 mm 2A75
- Gun type: smoothbore gun
- Barrel length, calibers: 48
- Initial speed of BPS, m/s: 1700
- Armor penetration of BPS at a distance of 2 km, mm: 520
- Combat rate of fire, rds/min: 7
- Gun ammunition: 40
- Angles VN, degrees: -5…+15
- GN angles, degrees: 360
- Sights: 1A40-1M, TO1-KO1R, 1K13-3S
Machine guns: 1 x 7.62 mm PKTM
Engine SAU 2S25 Sprut-SD
Engine type: 2V-06-2S
- Engine power, l. p.: 510
Speed self-propelled gun 2S25 Sprut-SD
Highway speed, km/h: 70
- Speed over rough terrain, km/h: 45-50, 9 afloat
Cruising range on the highway, km: 500
- Cruising range over rough terrain, km: 350
Specific power, l. s./t: 28.3
- Suspension type: individual hydropneumatic
- Specific ground pressure, kg/cm²: 0.36-0.53
Climbability, degrees: 35
- Overcoming wall, m: 0.8
- Overcoming ditch, m: 2.8
- Fordability, m: floats
Photo 2S25 Sprut-SD
Landing of self-propelled guns 2S25 Sprut-SD
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125-MM SELF-PROPELLED ANTI-TANK GUN 2S25 “SPRUT-SD” AND “SPRUT-SDM”
125-MM SELF-PROPELLED ANTITANK GUN 2С25 SPRUT-SD AND “SPRUT-SDM”
15.05.2015
A modernized version of the Sprut-SD self-propelled anti-tank gun, which is in service with the Airborne Forces (VDV), will appear before the end of the year, Albert Bakov, first vice president and co-owner of the Tractor Plants concern, told TASS on Thursday.
“We are in full swing with the modernization of Sprut-SD. I am confident that we will complete this work this year,” he said.
As Bakov clarified, the updated vehicle’s security and mobility will change, and its fire control system will be better than that of the T-90 tank.
Previously, the concern was going to start producing prototypes of the modernized Octopus in the fourth quarter of 2014. The contract for development work was concluded at the end of 2013.
TASS
09.06.2015
The Tractor Plants concern has created the first example of the modernized Sprut-SD self-propelled anti-tank gun - it received a digital fire control system and an engine from the BMP-3, a representative of the concern's press service told TASS on June 9.
Earlier, Albert Bakov, first vice president and co-owner of Tractor Plants, told TASS about plans by the end of the year to create an updated version of the Octopus, which is in service with the Airborne Forces.
“Currently, the Volgograd Machine-Building Company has manufactured the first prototype of the modernized SPTP 2S25 Sprut-SDM-1,” said a representative of the press service.
According to him, as part of the modernization of the vehicle, its firepower was increased through the installation of a modern digital fire control system. “It includes a commander’s panoramic sight with optical, thermal imaging and rangefinder channels, a combined gunner-operator sight with optical, thermal imaging, rangefinder channels and a laser missile control channel, as well as an automatic target tracking system,” explained the representative of the press service.
TASS
18.06.2015
There is already an order from the military for the modernized Sprut-SDM-1 self-propelled anti-tank guns, Albert Bakov, first vice-president of the Tractor Plants concern, told TASS on June 16.
"Yes. I think that the quantity needs to be clarified with the Airborne Forces. They determine the amount of equipment purchased,” Bakov said on the sidelines of the Army 2015 forum, answering a corresponding question.
He noted that the modernized Octopus at the exhibition taking place in the Moscow region will both swim and shoot.
TASS
The final preparations for the upcoming Russian Arms Expo-2013 exhibition, which starts in Nizhny Tagil on September 25, are being completed. The list of participating companies is already known and information is being received about what types of weapons and equipment will be demonstrated at the exhibition. According to Rosinformburo, the Tractor Plants concern will show the 2S25 Sprut-SD self-propelled artillery mount at RAE-2013. The latest information about this project suggests that a modernized version of the self-propelled gun may appear at the exhibition.
The Sprut-SD self-propelled gun is not a new product. Development of the project began shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Volgograd Tractor Plant and Plant No. 9 (Ekaterinburg) in the early nineties began creating a promising self-propelled anti-tank gun intended for arming airborne troops. It was assumed that the new vehicle would help paratroopers fight potential enemy tanks and other targets that require a powerful 125 mm caliber gun to destroy.
The chassis of the BMD-3 infantry fighting vehicle was chosen as the basis for the new self-propelled gun. To install a gun turret and all the necessary systems, Volgograd designers modified it. Placing a large number of relatively large units required lengthening the armored hull. In connection with this, the chassis received two additional road wheels per side. In addition, the project used some developments created as part of the Object 934 light tank project of the late seventies.
The armored body of the Sprut-SD self-propelled anti-tank gun is generally similar to that of the BMD-3. It is made of aluminum alloys. The body provides all-aspect protection from small arms bullets, and the frontal projection can withstand a 23-mm projectile from a distance of 500 meters. The turret of the Sprut-SD combat vehicle is also made of aluminum, but its frontal part is additionally reinforced with steel sheets.
In the front part of the self-propelled gun hull there is a control compartment with a driver's workplace. Next to the driver there are seats for the commander and gunner, on which they are located during the march. When the vehicle is brought into combat position, the commander and driver move to their workplaces in the turret. The fighting compartment is located in the middle part of the hull. Engine and transmission - in the stern.
The engine and transmission compartment of the Sprut-SD is equipped with a multi-fuel diesel engine 2V-06-2 with a power of 510 horsepower. It provides the 18-ton machine with a fairly high specific power of 28 hp. per ton of weight. The engine is coupled to a hydromechanical transmission with a hydrostatic turning mechanism. The transmission includes an automatic transmission with five forward and reverse gears. Torque is transmitted to the drive wheels located at the rear of the sides of the machine.
The chassis of the Sprut-SD self-propelled anti-tank gun is similar to the corresponding units of the BMD-3, but at the same time it has a number of differences, primarily associated with the lengthening of the vehicle body. Seven road wheels on each side of the vehicle have individual hydropneumatic suspension. Suspension mechanisms allow you to adjust the vehicle's ground clearance in the range from 190 to 590 millimeters. The operation of the chassis is controlled by the driver. The chassis units used provide high cross-country ability and a smooth ride, regardless of the type of surface.
The power plant and chassis allow the combat vehicle to accelerate on the highway to a speed of 70 km/h. When driving over rough terrain, the maximum speed is reduced to 45-50 km/h. Cruising range on the highway is 500 kilometers. To cross water obstacles, the self-propelled anti-tank gun is equipped with two water cannons in the rear of the hull. With the help of water cannons, the combat vehicle can swim at speeds of up to 10 km/h. The parameters of the sealed armored hull allow the self-propelled gun to float in seas up to force three and fire until reaching the shore. In this case, however, shelling of targets is possible only in the front sector with a width of 70°.
The “main caliber” of the Sprut-SD self-propelled gun is the 125-mm smoothbore gun-launcher 2A75. This gun is a further development of the 2A46 tank gun used on modern Russian tanks. As part of the adaptation of a tank gun for use on a light self-propelled gun, several interesting technical solutions were applied. First of all, it is necessary to note the new recoil devices, which effectively dampen the recoil impulse and provide a recoil of no more than 700 mm. The high-ballistic weapon is capable of using the entire range of available ammunition for 125 mm smoothbore guns, including guided missiles. Since the Sprut-SD is a self-propelled anti-tank gun, the weapon, stabilized in two planes, can be aimed in a vertical plane only in a limited range of angles: from -5° to +17°. Horizontal aiming is circular, produced by rotating the turret.
Like modern Russian tanks, the 2S25 Sprut-SD anti-tank self-propelled gun has an automatic loader. It consists of a rotating carousel-type conveyor for 22 separate cartridge shots, lifting and dispensing mechanisms. At the command of the gunner or commander, the conveyor rotates to the desired angle and delivers the required type of ammunition to the lifting mechanism. Next, the chain lifting mechanism brings the ammunition to the loading line, where the dispensing mechanism directs it into the breech of the gun. First, a shell is fed into the cannon, then a partially burned cartridge case. After the shot is fired and the bolt is opened, a special mechanism catches the spent cartridge case tray and throws it out of the fighting compartment through a hatch in the rear plate of the turret. The automatic loading mechanisms are designed in such a way as not to interfere with the work of the crew. The transition of the commander and gunner from the control compartment to the combat compartment and vice versa is carried out without leaving the vehicle.
The automatic loader conveyor can accommodate up to 22 shots of various types. Another 18 shots are in storage. After the ammunition in the automatic loader is used up, the crew can use shells from other stowages by loading the gun manually. At the same time, the rate of fire drops significantly.
As an additional weapon, the Sprut-SD self-propelled artillery mount carries a 7.62-mm PKT machine gun coaxial with a cannon. One belt with 2000 rounds is placed in the machine gun's cartridge box.
The combat compartment of the 2S25 Sprut-SD self-propelled gun contains the commander's and gunner's workstations. The fighting compartment systems are designed in such a way that both the commander and the gunner can aim and fire the gun independently and independently of each other. The commander has a sight with a thermal imaging channel and a field of view stabilized in two planes. The commander's sighting devices also have a laser rangefinder built into them, which can be used to guide guided anti-tank missiles launched from the launcher gun. The commander and gunner can independently observe the terrain, search for targets and aim weapons at them. Both crew members can attack targets with a 125 mm gun, coaxial machine gun or guided anti-tank missiles.
In the middle of the last decade, 2S25 Sprut-SD self-propelled anti-tank guns were put into service. Due to their size and weight, they can be transported and dropped by Il-76 military transport aircraft. Each aircraft can take on board two combat vehicles. Unfortunately, the total number of Sprut-SD self-propelled guns in the Russian armed forces does not exceed several dozen. Moreover, in 2010, reports appeared according to which this type of equipment was planned to be excluded from the list of purchased combat vehicles. As it turned out a little later, the Airborne Forces still plans to purchase and use self-propelled guns, and in the future they intend to receive its modernized version.
In mid-August, new photographs became publicly available, showing the Sprut-SD combat vehicle with some large-sized on-board screens. As it turns out, the Tractor Plants concern is currently modernizing a self-propelled anti-tank gun. The result of this work should be an increase in the level of protection of the combat vehicle, as well as the unification of a number of units with the latest BMD-4M airborne combat vehicle. There is also information about a significant update of electronic equipment, including the fire control system.
It is quite possible that a prototype of a new version of the Sprut-SD self-propelled gun with enhanced armor protection will be shown at the upcoming Russian Arms Expo-2013 exhibition. However, even in its original, non-modernized version, this combat vehicle is of great interest to both specialists and the general public.
Based on materials from sites:
http://rosinform.ru/
http://arms-expo.ru/
http://btvt.narod.ru/
http://otvaga2004.ru/
The history of the Sprut-SD self-propelled anti-tank gun is quite complex, so we will limit ourselves to mentioning only its main stages. In the 1970s Research and development work was carried out to create a new generation self-propelled anti-tank gun (SPTG). The airborne troops, in particular, showed interest in a self-propelled armored vehicle with a powerful anti-tank gun.
An analysis of trends in the development of foreign armored vehicles, carried out at the 3rd Central Research Institute of the USSR Ministry of Defense, showed that the effectiveness of the anti-tank weapons available in the Airborne Forces is no longer sufficient to combat enemy tanks, which he will inevitably use to combat airborne assaults. While the Ground Forces can use main battle tanks to combat enemy armored vehicles, this is impossible in parachute landings. The capabilities of military transport aviation and landing equipment allow the use of vehicles with a maximum weight of about 18 tons as part of a parachute landing.
By that time, R&D had already been completed to create a light tank (code “Judge”), armed with a 100-mm rifled cannon and adapted for airborne landings; work was underway at VgTZ on a light tank on the “Yacht” theme. But the project of a light amphibious tank, as is known, was stopped at the same time when R&D for the Bakhcha BMD was set.
Meanwhile, research conducted by TsNIITOCHMASH specialists showed the fundamental possibility of moving from a 100 mm anti-tank gun caliber (based on the ballistics and ammunition of the serial T-12 smoothbore gun) to a 125 mm caliber. Experiments with a prototype on the BMP-2 chassis confirmed that a gun with the ballistics of the 125-mm D-81 smoothbore tank gun can be installed on a light carrier, subject to certain modifications to the artillery unit.
Since 1982, TsNIITOCHMASH has conducted research into the possibility of creating an airborne self-propelled anti-tank gun, maximally unified in terms of artillery with an easel gun. Based on these results, the protocol of the Commission of the Presidium of the Council of Ministers of the USSR dated July 29, 1983 ordered preliminary studies to determine the possibility of creating a 125-mm SPTP for the Airborne Forces on standardized chassis components of a promising airborne combat vehicle.
Initially, it was assumed that the SPTP would not only solve the tasks of combating enemy tanks and armored vehicles, but also fire at its manpower and firepower, support airborne units with direct fire during an attack on a captured target, and act directly in the combat formations of airborne combat vehicles during attack and when repelling an enemy attack on the march. This required the SPTP to have the qualities of a light tank and appropriate ammunition, but the term “light tank” was no longer used. The work was carried out under the auspices of the GRAU, which, unlike the GBTU, could not deal with “tanks”. Of course, specialists from VgTZ and OKB-9 of Uralmashzavod (plant No. 9, Sverdlovsk, now Yekaterinburg), the manufacturer of the 125-mm tank gun, also participated in the research.
The experience of creating a light tank nevertheless provided the basis for starting work on the SPTP. Through GBTU and GRAU, a prototype of the “Object 934” (“Judge”) tank was transferred to TsNIITOCHMASH. On this chassis in 1983-1984. and produced an experimental model of an airborne 125-mm self-propelled anti-tank gun. The installation of a gun in a fixed wheelhouse (as in previous Soviet anti-tank self-propelled guns, including the airborne ASU-57 and SU-85) was abandoned, as was the remote installation of weapons.
The new SPTP was developed with the installation of a gun in a manned rotating armored turret. In the turret version, the gun was initially equipped with a muzzle brake and a two-plane stabilizer. However, the muzzle brake had to be eliminated - not so much because of shells with a detachable tray and deployable tail (this problem was solved by the corresponding profile of the muzzle brake), but because of the presence of an ATGM round in the ammunition: the release of hot powder gases from the side windows of the brake could lead to loss of missile control.
The muzzle brake also created a muzzle wave directed to the sides and back, but the gun was supposed to operate in combat formations of paratroopers, possibly with troops on the armor. In addition, during this research work, the composition of the instrument complex and the circuits of stabilized guidance drives in the fire control system were substantiated.
Experimental firing carried out in 1984 at the training ground of the 38th Research Institute in Kubinka showed that the maximum overloads acting on the crew (crew members) during the shot, angular movements of the hull and excess pressure in the area of the trunnions did not exceed permissible standards, residual waste and there was no penetration of the suspension, while the accuracy of fire was at the level of standard tank systems.
By decision of the Military-Industrial Commission of the Council of Ministers of the USSR on June 20, 1985, the design and development work was set to create a 125-mm self-propelled anti-tank gun, which was assigned the code “Sprut-SD”. VgTZ was appointed as the lead contractor; TsNIITOCHMASH (Klimovsk, Moscow region) and VNIITRANSMASH (Leningrad) were entrusted with scientific and technical coordination of work and participation in the technical and economic assessment. The new car received the index “Object 952”.
OKB-9 of Uralmashzavod, Central Design Bureau of the Krasnogorsk Plant named after. S.A. Zverev", Central Design Bureau "Peleng" (Minsk), VNII "Signal" (Kovrov), Instrument Engineering Design Bureau (Tula), Volgograd Shipyard, NIMI (Moscow). In February 1986, the Moscow aggregate plant "Universal" was given a tactical and technical specification for the creation of landing equipment to ensure the landing of the Sprut-SD SPTP with a crew of three people inside. Research institutes of the Ministry of Defense also participated in the work.
OKB-9 of Uralmashzavod was simultaneously working on a towed, self-propelled version of the 125-mm Sprut-B anti-tank gun; it entered service in 1989 under the designation 2A-45M. The installation of a 125-mm cannon on the wheeled chassis of the GAZ-5923 - the future - was also considered.
From the opening of the R&D on the topic “Octopus-SD” to the adoption of the SPTP into service, no more or less than twenty years have passed. Among the main reasons for this temporary gap are the more than once mentioned collapse of the USSR and the collapse of the country's economy. In addition to the withdrawal of government orders and a sharp drop in funding for the defense industry, the collapse of previous production ties also had a very negative impact. Thus, the Bug sight-guidance device was developed in Belarus, where separatist sentiments prevailed for some time.
And yet, by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated September 26, 2005 No. 1502-r and by order of the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation dated January 9, 2006, the 125-mm self-propelled anti-tank gun 2S25 "Sprut-SD" was put into service. The order for SPTP 2S25 was received by VgTZ.
Of course, vehicles like the 2S25 Sprut-SD are not capable of replacing main battle tanks. However, light-weight vehicles, similar to tanks in their firepower, but with high air mobility and the ability to land from the air or sea, are necessary for quick reaction forces in modern conflicts. Work on them has been going on for a long time in different countries, but Sprut-SD is practically the first in world practice to implement an airborne weapon system with the firepower of a main battle tank (most foreign developments in this category use guns, albeit of “tank” calibers, but of reduced ballistics).
The 2S25 combat vehicle is configured according to the classical design with a front control compartment, a middle combat compartment with weapons and crew located in a rotating turret, and a rear MTO. The commander and gunner are placed in the turret in a combat position; during landing and in the stowed position, they are located on universal seats in the control compartment - respectively, to the right and left of the driver.
The 125 mm 2A75 smoothbore gun installed in the turret provides firepower at the level of tanks of the ,. The gun barrel length is 6000 mm, the gun weight is 2350 kg. The entire range of separate-case-loading rounds for 125-mm tank guns can be used for firing, including rounds with armor-piercing sabot shells with a detachable tray and with the 9M119 ATGM (3UBK14 round), launched through the gun barrel. ATGM control is semi-automatic, using a laser beam. Armor penetration - 700-770 mm with overcoming dynamic protection. Rate of fire - 7 rounds/min.
Installing a 125-mm high-ballistic gun, intended for a combat vehicle weighing about 40 tons, on a product weighing 18 tons, and even in a turret version, required a number of special design solutions. In addition to increasing the length of the rollback by more than double - up to 740 mm (compared to 310-340 mm for the 125-mm main battle tank gun), the hull of the carrier vehicle itself was also rolled back due to the operation of the hydropneumatic suspension of the chassis.
Before the recoil impulse affects the crew and mechanisms, the gun rolls back relative to the turret and the hull rolls back relative to the lower branches of the tracks resting on the ground. The result is a kind of double recoil, absorbing the recoil energy of a powerful weapon - similar to what was done previously, for example, in railway artillery transporters. The nonlinear characteristics and high energy consumption of the air suspension of the chassis, as well as the inherently large dynamic stroke of the rollers, played a role here. When the body rolls back, it “squats” somewhat, while the length of the supporting surface of the tracks increases, which contributes to the stability of the SPTP when fired.
Coaxed with the cannon is a 7.62-mm PKT (PKTM) machine gun with 2,000 rounds of ammunition loaded into belts. Vertical guidance angles - from -5 to +15°, when turning aft - from -3 to +17°. The weapon installation is stabilized in two planes. The fire control system includes a laser rangefinder and a digital ballistic computer.
SPTP 2S25 "Sprut-SD" with P260M landing equipment
The gunner's workplace is equipped with a 1A40-1M instrument complex, a TO1-KO1R "Buran-PA" night sight (complex) and TNPO-170 surveillance devices. The commander's seat is equipped with a combined sight-guidance device 1K13-ZS with a field of view stabilized in two planes, a night branch, a laser rangefinder, an ATGM control information channel, a backup ballistic device with communication channels with the ballistic computer of the gunner's sight, a system for entering aiming angles and lateral lead in position of the gun relative to the line of sight, an autonomous control panel for the automatic loader and guidance drives with the ability to quickly transfer control of the complex at the command of the commander from the gunner to the commander and vice versa.
This ensures the interchangeability of commander and gunner. The magnification factor for the day channel of the 1K13-3S commander's sight is 1x, 4x and 8x, and for the night channel - 5.5x. For all-round visibility, the commander uses periscope observation devices TNPO-170, TNPT-1.
The gun's automatic loader includes: a rotating conveyor with 22 shots (shells and charges are placed in cassettes), a chain mechanism for lifting the cassette with shot elements, a mechanism for catching and removing spent pallets, a chain (two-way) rammer for shot elements from the cassette into the gun, a cover drive pallet ejection hatch and movable tray, electromechanical gun stopper at the loading angle and control unit. To obtain increased recoil, the automatic loader has a widened cassette lift frame, which includes parts of a mechanism for catching and removing spent pallets during recoil.
The mechanism for catching and removing the pan is located on the end part of the gun breech with the possibility of delaying the pan. The mechanism is designed in such a way that it is possible to temporarily block the back side of the end part of the gun breech and, during the subsequent movement of the fired pan, to blow through the breech area with air from the cleaning system. The latter has an air duct from the filter-ventilation device to the gun breech area and to the crew workstations using a rotating air device. The shape and dimensions of the automatic loader conveyor allow crew members to move inside the vehicle from the fighting compartment to the control compartment along the sides of the hull.
SPTP 2S25 "Sprut-SD" after landing
The SPTP 2S25 hull and turret are made of aluminum armor alloy, the frontal part of the turret is reinforced with steel plates. An 81-mm installation of the 902V “Tucha” system is mounted on the tower. SPTP is equipped with a system of protection against weapons of mass destruction.
The MTO is equipped with a four-stroke multi-fuel diesel engine 2V-06-2S, developing a power of 510 hp., and a hydromechanical transmission interlocked with it. The transmission includes a hydrostatic steering mechanism and provides five forward speeds and the same number of reverse speeds.
The chassis includes seven road wheels on one side, four support rollers, and a rear-mounted drive wheel. High (28.3 hp/t) specific engine power in combination with hydropneumatic suspension and low specific ground pressure provided the vehicle with good driving characteristics.
The Sprut-SD overcomes water obstacles without additional equipment; afloat movement is ensured by two water cannons. The vehicle has good seaworthiness: in seas up to 3 points, it can not only overcome water obstacles on the move, but also conduct targeted fire in the forward sector of fire equal to ±35°.
SPTP 2S25 "Sprut-SD" is transported by military transport aircraft. Airdropping is carried out by parachute.
Main characteristics of 2S25 "Sprut-SD":
Total weight, t……………. 18
Crew, people……………….. 3
Height at working ground clearance, mm..... 2720
Length with gun forward, mm………. 9771
Body length, mm…………… 7070
Width, mm………………………. 3152
Ground clearance, mm…………………100-500 (working - 420)
Weapon cannon:
— brand……………………….2A75
— caliber (mm), type…………..125, smoothbore
— loading………separate, automatic
— rate of fire………….7 rds/min
machine gun:
— brand……………………….. PKT(PKTM)
— caliber, mm………………… 7.62
Weapon pointing angles:
— along the horizon…………………. 360
— vertically forward…………… from -5 to +15
— vertically back (to the stern)……from -3 to +17
Ammunition:
— shots to the gun……40 (of which 22 are in the automatic loader)
— types of shots: high-explosive fragmentation, cumulative, armor-piercing sub-caliber
— cartridges…………… 2000
Armor protection:
— frontal: from 12.7 mm machine gun fire (in sector ±40)
- circular: from fire of 7.62 mm weapons
Engine:
— type: four-stroke 6-cylinder diesel with gas-turbine turbocharging, direct fuel injection, liquid cooling
— brand………………… 2В-06-2С
— power, hp (kW) ….. 510(375)
Transmission: hydromechanical, with hydrostatic rotation mechanism
Track roller suspension: individual pneumatic
Caterpillar: steel, double-ridged, pinion gear, with sequential rubber-metal hinges
Main track track width, mm….380
Water propulsion, type: hydrojet
Maximum speed, km/h:
— along the highway…………………. 70-71
— afloat……………………….. 10
Average speed on a dirt road, km/h…..47-49
Power reserve:
— on the highway, km………………… 500
— on a dirt road, km………. 350
— afloat, h………………….. 10
Specific pressure on the ground, kg/cm 2 ..0.53.
Initially, it was planned to land using parachute-jet means. The development, designated P260, was carried out by the Universal plant (Moscow) together with the Research Institute of Parachute Engineering (Moscow, parachute system) and NPO Iskra (Perm, powder rocket engines). The basis was taken from the P235 parachute-jet systems, developed for landing the BMP-3; The base rocket unit was considered to be a braking rocket engine produced by NPO Iskra, borrowed from the soft landing system of a Soyuz-type descent spacecraft. The technical design of the PRS P260 for Sprut-SD was reviewed and defended in 1986.
Although several prototypes of the PRS were manufactured and a full cycle of preliminary ground tests were carried out, an analysis of the performance of the PRS revealed a large number of shortcomings, consisting, first of all, in the complexity and bulkiness of the design of the cassette unit of the PRS, the high cost of manufacturing and difficulty in operation. During preliminary flight tests, problems were identified in the operation of the selected parachute system. In addition, PRS required higher qualifications of maintenance personnel. And the difficult economic situation in the country that developed during the “market reforms” did not allow even testing of P260 vehicles to be provided with braking propulsion systems.
As a result, by a joint decision of the Air Force, Airborne Forces and MKPK "Universal" on May 30, 1994, the PRS version was canceled and the development of the "Sprut-PDS" equipment was approved in the version of a multi-dome parachute strapdown system with air shock absorption, maximally unified in operating principles, components and components with serial landing equipment PBS-950 for BMD-3. The parachute version of the Sprut-PDS landing equipment received the designation P260M. The differences in the design of the P260M from the PBS-950 are due to the increase in the mass and dimensions of the landing object itself.
The basis of the P-260M was the 14-dome parachute system MKS-350-14M (based on a unified block with a parachute with an area of 350 m2) with the VPS-14 exhaust parachute system and forced air shock absorption with a mechanical pressurization unit (unified with PBS-950) . The minimum landing altitude had to be increased from three hundred to four hundred meters specified in the technical specifications.
Here again the collapse of the complex system for developing airborne weapons, their landing equipment and military transport aircraft was revealed: by the time the SPTP 2S25 “Sprut-SD” was adopted into service, the P260M aircraft were only undergoing flight design tests, and the modernized Il-76MD-90 aircraft - flight tests.
Refinement of the 2S25 Sprut-SD design, which affected the external contours of the vehicle, required changes to the landing equipment. At the moment, the P260M landing equipment in the versions for landing the “Object 952” and “Object 952A” has been brought to the stage of state testing.
Features of the P260M include the absence of a central unit (the carriages for securing the cargo to the monorail are fixed directly to the vehicle body) and the introduction of a hydraulic system for orienting the landing object in the direction of the wind. In this case, the role of the guiderop is played by the front carriage, which is detached after the object exits the aircraft during landing. The suspension system includes an automatic release with a 12-second pyro-retardant. The weight of the landing equipment is in the range of 1802-1902 kg, which ensures the flight weight of the monocargo is about 20,000 kg.
It is possible to land one object from an Il-76 aircraft, and two from an Il-76M (MD). The landing altitude above the landing site is from 400 to 1500 m at an instrument flight speed of 300-380 km/h. Maximum vertical overload during landing is 15 g. To quickly bring the vehicle into combat readiness after landing, an accelerated unmooring system is used. Without its use, the time to free the vehicle from the landing equipment manually during testing did not exceed 3 minutes.
On March 25, 2010, as part of the exercises of the 76th Air Assault Division, SPTP 2S25 “Sprut-SD” and BMD-4M were successfully landed at the Kislovo landing site near Pskov as part of a parachute landing, including 14 units of military equipment. On August 25 of the same year, similar drops of Sprut-SD and BMD-4M were carried out on the Budikhino landing site near the city of Kostroma.
The development of a light tracked self-propelled gun with a 125-mm tank gun was ordered by Russian paratroopers from Kurganmashzavod OJSC. As reported by Izvestia with reference to a representative of the Airborne Forces participating in the work, the new vehicle should be airdropped and will replace the Sprut-SD artillery mounts, which the Airborne Forces abandoned in 2010, when after the May 9 parade one burned out due to a fuel leak such a self-propelled artillery installation with an anti-tank gun. Having received a new vehicle, the Airborne Forces will acquire weapons to fight American Abrams tanks and Israeli Merkava MBTs, the publication writes.
It was previously reported that on May 9, 2010, after passing through Red Square, the engine of one of the Sprut-SDs caught fire. Later, the car was recognized as hazardous and a decision was made to stop further purchases of Octopuses.
The decision to develop a new gun mount was made in February 2013 by Russian Deputy Minister of Defense Yuri Borisov.
According to the publication, the new self-propelled guns will be created on the basis of the BMD-4 airborne combat vehicle. Instead of a 100-mm cannon, a 125-mm 2A46M-5 tank artillery system, which, in particular, is armed with T-90 tanks. The gun will be able to fire armor-piercing shells, including Svinets, and anti-tank missiles. The guidance system will include a thermal imager and an automatic target tracking system, which is capable of independently measuring the range and calculating the trajectory.
The length of the new vehicle will be just over seven meters, and the weight will be about 18 tons, that is, the self-propelled unit can be easily transported by Il-76 military transport aircraft and Mi-26 helicopters. The new gun mount must move through water and can also overcome elevations of up to 35 degrees.
Light tanks, which the new self-propelled guns will include, are becoming increasingly popular in the armies of the world. Such machines are created in Sweden, Poland, and China. A light tank is required in mountainous areas, in swamps, where heavy equipment cannot pass. It can be delivered by air, and the infantry immediately has a combat vehicle capable of delivering powerful fire. The new self-propelled gun in the Airborne Forces will be needed not only to fight tanks, but also to destroy enemy shelters and fortified buildings. When long-range artillery fails to hit the target, the new self-propelled gun will destroy it with direct fire.
Self-propelled artillery mount 2S25 "Sprut-SD"(SD - self-propelled landing) was developed in the early 1990s. The 125-mm self-propelled anti-tank gun 2S25 "Sprut-SD" is designed to destroy enemy vehicles, including armored ones, and manpower when operating as part of units of ground and airborne forces, as well as marines. Externally, the vehicle is similar to a regular tank and combines the capabilities of a landing amphibious infantry fighting vehicle with a main battle tank. The Sprut-SD self-propelled gun can be transported by military aviation aircraft and landing ships, parachuted with a crew inside the vehicle, and overcome water obstacles without preparation.
The 125-mm 2A75 smoothbore gun is the main armament of the Sprut-SD self-propelled gun, 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 vehicle, with a length of about 7 m, a width of 3.2 m and a height of 2.9 m, has a mass of 18 tons, can reach speeds of up to 70 km/h, and has a cruising range of 500 km. Deliveries of 2S25 to the troops began in 2008; In total, the Airborne Forces received 24 vehicles.
| Crew, people |
3 |
| Booking |
Bulletproof |
| Combat weight, t |
18 |
| length / with gun | 7,07 / 9,771 |
| width |
3,152 |
| height / with wind sensor | 2,72 / 2,98 |
| Maximum speed, km/h: | |
| along the highway |
up to 70 |
| on the ground |
up to 49 |
| afloat |
to 10 |
| Cruising range, km |
500 |
| Sighting range, m |
4000 |
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