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. The ASU-76 had a crew of three, 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 SGM machine gun or RPD light machine gun transported on the left side of the fighting compartment.
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 upgraded 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. She took part in the initial period of the 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 was decommissioned by the 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 self-propelled anti-tank gun 2S25 "Sprut-SD" was created in the early 90s, on an elongated (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 (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.
The Sprut-SD self-propelled guns are indistinguishable from a tank in appearance and firepower, but inferior to it in terms of 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
As for tactical approaches or anti-tank defense doctrines, there are two main ways to deal with tanks: the first is to set up an ambush and wait for the tank to appear, the second is to go in search of it yourself. In a word, two concepts of anti-tank business - passive and active. There are quite strong arguments among adherents of both one and the other school, however, everything basically boils down to the fact that it is far from always known where to look for enemy tanks, therefore the hunt may be unsuccessful, while it is easier to establish the routes of possible approach of enemy armored vehicles, therefore , betting on an ambush, you are unlikely to lose. However, one more important circumstance should be remembered here: when preparing an unexpected meeting with the enemy, be ready to quickly arrange another ambush in order to have some kind of trump card in your hands after the first one is discovered. It was for this kind of intermediate task that an anti-tank self-propelled gun, or tank destroyer, was created.
A tank destroyer is nothing more than an anti-tank self-propelled artillery mount. For the first time, such mechanized anti-tank guns appeared in the United States, although it must be admitted that the idea crystallized in many countries almost simultaneously and was put into practice as the need arose. In addition, in the case of Germany and the USSR, there was also an economic factor: self-propelled guns, regardless of the purpose of their use - as a means of fighting tanks or for other tasks - were cheaper and could be produced faster than tanks, while it was possible to use them in many cases where the use of tanks would be an excessive luxury.
It is difficult to argue with the fact that assault guns served as the progenitor of anti-tank self-propelled guns, just as there is little doubt that the success of this weapon prompted people to start installing anti-tank rather than field guns on tracked chassis. Assault guns appeared in Germany as an attempt to provide close artillery support to the advancing infantry, so that the former would sweep away everything in their path that could delay the latter. And what could be better suited for such purposes than an ordinary field gun on a tank chassis? Connect several armor plates together to protect the crew from bullets and shrapnel, and let your self-propelled gun roll behind the formations of the attacking infantrymen. What is easier? The idea worked and brought to life different models. For the guns, they developed cumulative ammunition, at first only in order to provide self-propelled guns with means of countering enemy tanks, in case they had to face them, and then, as combat experience grew, it was established that self-propelled guns could be hidden in an ambush and prepare a good meeting enemy armored vehicles. This is how anti-tank self-propelled guns began to appear.
The Americans have taken a different approach. In 1940, when they looked more closely at events in Europe and were engaged in the rearmament of troops, American industry was not yet mass-produced in the production of weapons, but it turned out to be very, very adapted to the production of motor equipment, and therefore someone came to head that it might be better to limit ourselves to a smaller number of anti-tank guns, but to make them mobile, so that it would be easier to transfer them from one threatened sector to another. As a result of the lessons learned in the Louisiana maneuvers of 1940, the War Department concluded that the anti-tank gun under pull was good as a last resort when it was necessary to hold the line, while at the same time swarms of mobile guns could do the work of "search and destruction" of enemy armored vehicles. In 1941, the first divisions of anti-tank self-propelled guns arose, which began training and training at Fort Meade in Maryland, and then moved to Fort Hood in Texas.
The products obtained by the designers are sometimes striking in their strangeness and make it only stronger to assert themselves in the idea that the developers did not have any clear understanding of what kind of war would be waged in the near future. Take, for example, the "mechanized artillery platform", or gun motor keridzh T8. Before World War II, the Ford Engineering Company spent some time developing the so-called "Swamp Buggy", a motorized, four-wheeled product designed for use in Florida and wetlands in general. As a result of installing a 37-mm anti-tank gun on this platform, the T8 turned out. The T27 was created on the same principle, but it was larger - instead of the Swamp Buggy, in this case, a Studebaker truck with a 75-mm field gun mounted on it was used. The "Mechanized Artillery Platform", or Gun Motor Carrier T1, had a 3-inch. (76.2 mm) anti-tank gun mounted on an agricultural tractor. At least she had tracks, which made it possible to expect higher cross-country ability on rough terrain than the Swamp Buggy, but in the T1 there was only enough space for the driver and the gunner with the loader. There was almost no room left for anyone or anything else - including ammunition. As there was no device for stabilizing the product when fired. Therefore, as it is easy to assume, the whole ingenious device behaved like a bucking colt with each volley.
The T55 was a kind of horror man - a four-axle chassis with an armored hull and a 3-inch. (76.2 mm) anti-aircraft guns. The T2E1, which seemed to be in the opposite weight category, was a jeep with a 37-mm cannon firing backwards, while the T2 was armed with a forward cannon, the shots of which thundered just above the driver's ear.
Some ideas still had some kind of rationality, which made it possible to put products into production and assign the appropriate index. Unfortunately, while the equipment was undergoing a refinement process, while it was put into service and entered into units, the war dictated its own. In short, all these products had time to become obsolete before they reached the front line.
The “mechanized artillery platform” T48, which appeared as a result of the “crossing” of the MZ half-track armored vehicle (an excellent technical tool widely used by the US Army) and a 57-mm anti-tank gun, became such a weapon. Perhaps the idea was inspired by the British, anyway, they liked it and they approved it, because they needed similar weapons in North Africa, namely: something reliable, equipped with tracks, able to move quickly and carrying a gun powerful enough to destroy German tanks in 1942. The British already had something similar - the Deacon, which was the usual 6-pound. a cannon with an armored shield mounted on a 3-ton truck. Such equipment was used as a divisional anti-tank reserve in order to be able to quickly transfer it and use it at the required point, however, it was cumbersome and difficult to disguise, in general, the units were looking forward to something more "elegant". It was already 1943, when the production of 1000 T48s was completed, which arrived in the United Kingdom. By that time the desert war was over, the German tanks managed to increase their armor, the British did not see any special prospects for the use of this weapon in Italy, as well as anywhere else in the foreseeable future.
In a word, self-propelled guns were again loaded onto ships and sent to the USSR. What they did with them there, we will hardly know, since the communist leadership closely monitored that the newspapers did not mention foreign weapons and did not print photographs with their image. Probably the only surviving copy is in the Museum of the Polish Army in Warsaw.
It is quite obvious that such relatively light self-propelled guns could, as they say, show agility, however, the crews needed more substantial protection, and more powerful guns to defeat enemy armored vehicles. Several false starts were noted: T20, in the design of which a 3-inch. (76.2 mm) anti-aircraft guns were mounted on the chassis of the MZ light tank, the T53 is a 90 mm anti-aircraft gun firing backwards from a significantly redesigned chassis of the M4 Sherman tank, and the T72 is a 3-inch. (76.2 mm) anti-aircraft gun in an open armored wheelhouse on the MZ Grant tank. However, quite soon reasonable combinations appeared, which were quickly adopted and launched into gross production. Among the best, if not the best, is the M10 "mechanized artillery platform", which was obtained by installing a 3-inch. (76.2 mm) guns in an open top turret on a redesigned Sherman tank chassis. (The question has always arisen why self-propelled anti-tank guns have roofless turrets, to which there was at least one answer from gunners: if the turret “had a roof”, then the self-propelled guns would have turned into a tank and the armored forces would have demanded it for themselves, until the turret remained open, the vehicle was a self-propelled gun and therefore, with every right to do so, belonged to the artillery.There is another point of view, which we will discuss below.)
The only drawback of the M10 was the cannon, and, as we said in the previous chapter, the only drawback was the 3-inch. (76.2 mm) guns were ammunition that was not very suitable for their task. However, in the period from June 1942 to December 1943, the industry managed to produce 6,500 M10 units. By that time, problems with the 3-inch were already screaming at the top of their voices, and in November 1943, experts began to study the issue of replacing these guns with 90-mm anti-aircraft guns converted into anti-tank guns. It took some time, and therefore the improved product, known as the M36 index, began to roll off the assembly lines no earlier than the summer of 1944, which did not prevent, however, from building 2324 such self-propelled guns by May 1945; 187 were brand new and the rest were converted M10s.
With the advent of their army, the US finally found something suitable for battles with any enemy tanks. The 90 mm cannon with its 11 kg AP round could hit 122 mm armor at 915 m (1,000 yd), and by the end of 1944, with the advent of the tungsten-core sub-caliber shot, the penetration rate had nearly doubled. The 702nd AT Battalion, which was part of the US 2nd Armored Division and participated in the offensive against Germany at the end of 1944, was armed with the M36 and destroyed one PzKpfw III, eight PzKpfw IVs, 15 Panthers and one "Tiger" II, as well as two assault guns, two self-propelled anti-tank guns, two pillboxes and two half-tracked armored vehicles.
When the Ml0 entered service with units in mid-1942, the concept of anti-tank self-propelled guns in the US Army was gaining momentum, and therefore tank destroyer divisions needed something faster and less cumbersome in order to more actively implement the slogan "search and destroy". The first novelty was the "mechanized artillery platform" T49, in which the designers combined a 57-mm cannon and a lightweight chassis with a Christie suspension, which was distinguished by large road wheels. Tests showed that the “platform” was too large for such a small gun, and therefore the military sent it for revision with the task of installing a 75-mm gun, which was already armed with M4 Sherman tanks. After the tests, the leadership of the Artillery and Technical Supply Administration again returned the designers to the drawing boards so that they quickly figured out how to arm the self-propelled gun with a 76.2-mm (3-inch) anti-tank gun. This time the decision was really optimal. The result was a 17690-kg car with a torsion bar suspension, capable of accelerating to 90 km / h, with an open tower, where a 3-inch was installed. (76.2 mm) gun, which was born as a result of the need for a more powerful gun capable of adequately replacing 75 mm tank weapons. The existing 3-inch guns themselves were too bulky to fit in existing turrets, the new gun fired the same ammunition and had the same performance, but the bolt mechanism was smaller and balanced so that it took up less space. In any case, the combination of a high speed purpose-built chassis and a 76.2 mm (3-inch) gun proved successful, and about 2,500 Ml8 Hellcat units managed to leave the assembly shops before production was completed at the end of 1944. stopped.
In practical application, it turned out that the Ml8 is one of the best pieces of equipment that came into being as a result of the American concept of anti-tank self-propelled guns. It had almost half the weight of the M10, and was distinguished by much more modest dimensions, while it had more powerful weapons and a noticeable superiority in speed - it was the fastest combat tracked vehicle of all that took part in the war. Ml8 was very much like a tank, to the point that its turret rotated 360° like a regular tank turret. Meanwhile, its armor protection was significantly inferior to the usual for tanks of that period, so Ml8 had to rely on its mobility and striking power. A rather strong engine was located in the aft part of the hull and provided the Ml8 with a good ratio of mass and power, which allowed the self-propelled gun to quickly pick up speed and maneuver rapidly. Despite successful performance in battles, the Ml8 began to be gradually withdrawn from the tank destroyer divisions as enthusiasm for the concept of exclusive anti-tank self-propelled guns began to fade. By 1945, many Ml8s were serving in conventional US Army armored formations, where they were used more and more as conventional self-propelled guns.
After World War II, many Ml8s were given to the armies of various friendly countries. Self-propelled guns remained in service until the sixties.
The British, who also received a batch of M10s, decided not to expect the appearance of upgraded and equipped with 90-mm gun modifications. Shortly after D-Day in 1944, they slowly withdrew the M10s, rearmed them with their 17-pounders. (76.2 mm) guns and, having crossed them into Achilles, sent them back to the front line. Perhaps this option turned out even better than the M36, since by that time the British were using APDS ammunition, which allowed the Achilles to hit 230-mm armor from a distance of 915 m (1000 yards) at a contact angle of 30 °, while the maximum that could be 90 -mm, pierce the same armor plate at an angle of 90 °. In real combat conditions, however, such a difference seems insignificant.
The British already had some experience with the 17-pound setting. on a tracked chassis. In 1944, they took the obsolete Valentine tank, removed the turret from it, welded an armored cabin to the hull and installed a 17-pounder in it above the engine compartment. cannon. The product was called the Archer, and although it may not have been such an impressive machine as the M10 or M36, it still had a lot of and useful work to do. Whatever and whoever said about the Valentine tank, it could not be denied reliability and maneuverability. Being somewhat lighter than the "basic" "Valentine", "Archer" inherited the above-mentioned advantages from him and used them to good use. The result was a nimble and low-slung vehicle, which is easy to hide in an ambush - and these are the main advantages for an anti-tank self-propelled gun. The only drawback is that the interior is too cramped. It was so inconvenient inside the self-propelled gun that after bringing it into position and turning stern to the enemy for fire work, the driver had to leave his place, because otherwise, when fired, due to recoil, he would have blown his head off with a bolt.
Combat experience has shown that the American concept of anti-tank self-propelled guns that move in mass and mow down German armor did not work in the same way as the British idea of fleets of cruiser tanks filling the battlefield and fighting with the enemy, like squadrons of ships at sea. The only exception in the latter case is North Africa, where there were certain specific conditions. No fleets of enemy armor were ever seen, and the fighting was mostly one-on-one, with individual tank destroyers taking up defensive positions and meeting enemy armor - any that appeared in sight. Pre-war theorists expected tanks to support the infantry, while anti-tank guns would take over the destruction of the tanks. The war showed that tanks fired at each other much more often than they provided support for the infantry, and therefore the role of targeted anti-tank self-propelled guns remained, in fact, not played.
Tactical changes caused incorrect conclusions on the part of the commanders of anti-tank self-propelled guns. They decided that they could go into action hand in hand with the tanks as if they were sitting in tanks. This, by the way, is the root of the second theory, which answers the question of why the towers remained open. In this way, the commanders of anti-tank self-propelled guns were given to understand that their vehicles were not tanks, since they were much more vulnerable than real tanks. A good counterbalance to the delusions of such self-propelled gun commanders can be General Patton's instruction to the 3rd US Army: “Tractive anti-tank guns should be installed closer to the front line so that they are in the alleged tank-dangerous directions. At the same time, position them so that the enemy does not see the guns until they are within the range of actual anti-tank fire. Self-propelled anti-tank weapons should be kept in reserve in case of attacks by enemy armored vehicles. They must determine in advance the intended firing positions and the route of advance to the places of the forthcoming action. All anti-tank gun crews must be trained to fire as field artillery, and they must be supplied with a significant number of high-explosive fragmentation grenades. As a result, many divisions of anti-tank self-propelled guns in the last months of World War II increasingly served as support artillery, rather than actually chasing enemy tanks.
The British point of view on this issue was somewhat different from the American one, as we can see from the story of the mechanized anti-tank defense officer:
“We received the Archers on the eve of D-Day to have one battery of self-propelled 17-pounders and one on traction. Self-propelled guns would allow us to move quickly from the coast and support the tankers. Later, when we advanced through France and Belgium and gained combat experience, we were given another 6-pound battery. guns. Six-pounders and Archers were planned to form the front line of anti-tank defense, and 17-pounders, which needed half a day to dig in positions, would take over the enemy if he managed to break through the first line. Gradually, we formed a mixed fleet of anti-tank defense equipment - "Archers" and M10. Ml0 were good cars, spacious and reliable, but too big, while the "Archers" - albeit not so comfortable - were squat and easily camouflaged. It was only necessary to find a suitable position for an ambush, set up there and wait. Some objects on the ground were used as landmarks. Let's say that tree is 500 yards, and that gate is 750 yards, and so on. In a word, when a tank appeared, we did not have to guess - we accurately determined the distance. However, the 17-pounder has a very gentle trajectory, especially if the distance is a thousand yards, no more, so that special accuracy in determining the distance did not play such a critical role. When a tank rolled out, you only had to let it get closer - as far as courage was enough - and then beat it. One shot was usually enough, two at most, and there was still time to get out of the ambush, because there was no doubt that while you were starting the engine, some forward observer at jerry * spotted you, so someone was already aiming their gun and putting in projectile into it.
For the Soviets, this problem was not so acute - all their artillery was multi-purpose, and therefore any gun whose crew saw an enemy tank automatically turned into an anti-tank one, provided, of course, that it was possible to lower the barrel low enough to fire at such a target. In the same way, self-propelled artillery was used, if necessary, either as anti-tank or as field artillery.
Soviet self-propelled guns initially served as assault guns, but for the most part not to support infantry (as, say, the Germans did). They served as a means to compensate for the qualitative imbalance in Soviet armored vehicles in 1942, since the industry was not yet able to establish the production of the T-34 in the quantity required by the front, as a result of which it was necessary to fight on weak and outdated vehicles. One of these tanks, a light T-70 with a crew of two, was produced at one of the largest engineering plants in Russia, and therefore, the transition of this production to the production of new products did not affect the process of building tanks at other plants. Therefore, the designers quickly converted production facilities to the production of new chassis, extended by one track roller on each side, on which, instead of a turret, a primitive armored cabin with a 76.2-mm field gun of the 1942 model was installed closer to the stern. This is how the SU-76 appeared with a crew of four and with 60 rounds of ammunition. The first experience was not always successful. The machine broke down too often, and the open cabin did not arouse admiration among the crews, who, like the same Americans in 1944, considered their task equal to that which was set for the tankers. The improvement of the engine and transmission helped to increase the reliability of the product, as for the lack of a roof, the crews were ordered to wear helmets. Nevertheless, the SU-76 served until the end of World War II and remained in service even after it in the armed forces of the satellite countries of the USSR.
Only in 1943, a sufficient number of SU-76s began to arrive in the unit, meanwhile, this year the Germans put into operation the PzKpfw V Panther tank, armed with a long-barreled 75-mm cannon, which, in a number of indicators, significantly exceeded the 76.2-mm guns SU-76 and T-34. It was necessary to do something, and to do it urgently, and therefore the designers began to hastily work on new products on the T-34 chassis. By that time, enough T-34s for the front were leaving the conveyors, which made it possible to reserve part of the capacity for mounting a closed armored wheelhouse with a powerful 85-mm anti-aircraft gun on the chassis of this tank in the bow of the hull. To the left of her was the driver, behind him in the wheelhouse were the remaining three crew members with an ammunition rack for 48 shots. Even before the winter of 1943, the product under the index SU-85 began to enter the operating units. By that time, the designers had redesigned the T-34 to install the same 85-mm gun in it, made some more changes, and when the new T-34/85 went into production, the production of the SU-85 was discontinued as unnecessary. Nevertheless, the car served until 1945 and, like the SU-76, entered service with many communist states.
Now that the T-34 has acquired an 85mm cannon, it became obvious that the support armament should be even more powerful, and - quite logically - the developers began to look for ways to rearm the same self-propelled guns with a more effective weapon. The most accessible was the 100 mm naval gun, which was mounted on the SU-85 chassis. Thus, it was not necessary to stop the production of the chassis, it was only necessary to equip them with a new gun. Which they did, having received the SU-100. This machine proved to be quite combat-ready against any German tanks that only fell into the view of the crew, and therefore it is not surprising that it served in the Soviet troops almost until the end of the fifties, and even longer in the armies of the satellite countries.
The question may arise why anti-aircraft guns were so often converted into anti-tank ones? First of all, due to two very similar properties: high speed and a unitary cartridge of their ammunition. Anti-aircraft guns require high speed to send the projectile as far into the sky as possible and shorten the time between shot and projectile burst, which reduces the lead angle and improves the accuracy of fire. An anti-tank gun is also unthinkable without speed, partly for the same reason as an anti-aircraft gun - due to aiming at a moving target - partly to get as much armor penetration as possible, and also because high speed meant that the projectile would fly along a shallow trajectory, and this will reduce the chance of a miss, even if the shooter misjudges the distance. A unitary cartridge is an ammunition in which the warhead is inserted into the sleeve, which speeds up the loading process, since the loader does not have to first insert the projectile, then push it into place, then insert the cartridge with the propellant charge, and only then lock the bolt. The unitary cartridge is sent in one movement, after which the shutter is fixed automatically. All this means a higher rate of fire - it makes it possible to send more shells into the sky or quickly fire a second shot if the first one was unsuccessful or did not bring proper results. In general, the anti-aircraft gun was a completely suitable weapon, it only remained to put the appropriate warheads on stream, re-equip the machine and the sight.
If we talk about German anti-tank self-propelled guns, then it should be noted that there is reason to consider Hitler himself responsible for an important step - the transition from assault guns (sturmgeshütz) to self-propelled anti-tank guns (jagdpanzer). The German army announced the need for assault guns back in 1936. The solution was found by removing the turret from the PzKpfw III and replacing it with a low armored superstructure with a low-velocity 75-mm gun installed in it. The first assault guns, or StuG IIIs, appeared in the military in February 1940, so a number of them took part in the campaign in France, Belgium and the Netherlands that summer and performed well. As a result, after the improvement, mass production began. In September 1941, Hitler ordered to strengthen the armor and armament of future models. However, the armor, as they say, is not as conspicuous as the gun, and therefore the StuG III was re-equipped with a new 75-mm PaK 40 anti-tank gun, which provided the self-propelled guns with higher anti-tank performance, while the armor protection remained unchanged. This is how the StuG III Ausf F appeared (lit., assault gun 3, execution/modification F). 359 units of this product were produced. Other modifications followed, which improved armor, while the gun remained the same until the end of the war, and the total production of different versions of the StuG III reached 7893 units. The success of the StuG III suggested trying something similar on the chassis of the PzKpfw IV, an idea that came to fruition when a devastating air raid on the Alkett plant in Berlin in December 1943 brought the StuG III to a temporary halt. The PzKpfw IV lost its turret, but instead acquired a superstructure with a long-barreled 75 mm StuG III cannon, resulting in the StuG IV. The product was introduced into production at the Krupp factories in Essen and achieved such success that the Krupp company abandoned the production of tanks, concentrating efforts on the manufacture of StuG IV assault guns, 1139 units of which managed to get off the assembly line before it stopped in March 1945.
At that stage of the war, the role of assault guns, acting as anti-tank guns, becomes clearly justified. At the same time, the production of assault guns intended for use as such proceeded rather smoothly, which made it possible to make up for losses at the front, in a word, the military leadership of the Nazi Reich decided to convert the StuG IV into a purely anti-tank self-propelled guns, or "Jagdpanzer" (i.e. .tank hunter). Toward the end of 1943, a prototype appeared, and in January 1944, the Fomag company in Plauen began serial production of products. The chassis and other elements of the PzKpfw IV chassis were preserved, but the hull was rebuilt into a squat superstructure with sloping armor and a 7.5 cm PaK 40 mounted in the bow next to the driver's seat. With 80-mm frontal armor, a height of 1.85 m and a maximum speed of 40 km / h, the Jagdpanzer IV was a successful and formidable weapon. However, in 1944, the 75 mm gun, which seemed so powerful in 1939, already began to lose ground, and in the middle of 1944 the designers developed a third version - basically the same JPz IV with a new, longer and, accordingly, more effective 75 mm gun. Called the Panzerjager IV*, the product was launched in parallel with the JPz IV and in December 1944 replaced it as a full-time self-propelled anti-tank weapon. In December, 137 PzJ IV units were built, and they performed well in the battle in the Ardennes in the so-called "battle of wedging" - Hitler's last attempt to launch a counteroffensive on the Western Front in the desperate hope of capturing Antwerp and again breaking through to the English Channel coast. Production continued until March 1945. 900 units left the Fomag conveyors, while the Nibelungenwerk enterprise in Linz, Austria, produced 280 of these machines of a slightly different modification. No matter how successful these self-propelled guns were, experts had the opinion that adherence to the original tank chassis negatively affects the capabilities of self-propelled guns, a fresh approach was required. In a word, what if you take ready-made nodes and arrange them differently? Maybe something more suitable will come out and as a result it will be possible to install an even more powerful weapon? So, in the middle of 1942, work began on the creation of a heavier self-propelled gun "Nashorn" ("rhinoceros"). An elongated version of the PzKpfw IV hull served as the chassis, in which the engine moved slightly forward from the stern and took its place in the middle, which made it possible to free up space for the gun in the back with the calculation. They built an open armored conning tower from inclined sheets of steel, installing an 88-mm anti-tank gun PaK 43. This is how a self-propelled gun, formidable in its anti-tank characteristics, quickly won recognition on the Eastern Front. Before the end of the war, manufacturers managed to produce about 500 of these self-propelled guns.
The appearance in 1943 of the medium tank PzKpfw V "Panther" with a long-barreled 75-mm gun led to a proposal to launch the production of anti-tank self-propelled guns on its basis, as soon as the mass production of the "base" tank was established. By October, an experimental model appeared, and in mid-December a prototype was shown to Hitler, after which in January 1944 they began to introduce the Panzerjager “Panther” product (otherwise called Jagdpanther - “Jagdpanther”) into production. As in other cases, only the chassis and the lower part of the hull of the Panther tank were taken as a basis, they were equipped with an armored superstructure and 88-millimeter paper. The first such self-propelled guns appeared in units in June 1944 (the total output was 392 units). With a mass of 46,750 kg, a solid height and width, the Jagdpanther was much larger than other anti-tank self-propelled guns of that time, but it inspired fear in enemies. There was no such tank that the Jagdpanther could not destroy from a distance of 2500 m, that is, even before enemy tanks had time to hit its 100-mm frontal armor.
At the dawn of 1942, when the PzKpfw VI "Tiger" was being developed, the designers were required to equip it with the most powerful anti-tank gun available, the 88 mm L / 71. It was a tank gun, but the anti-tank performance was almost equal to that of the RaK 43. The 88 mm L/71 had the ability to hit 159 mm armor at a distance of 2000 m at an angle of 30 ° when using an armor-piercing projectile and 184 mm armor when using an armor-piercing projectile. other equal - in the case of using a shot with a tungsten core. However, the dimensions of the tower did not allow the installation of an 88 mm L / 71, and for the first time the Tiger had to go to war with a 75 mm barrel, which was later replaced by an 88 mm, although of less power. In the absence of a properly armed "Tiger", in September 1942, a proposal was made to create an assault gun and an order for the production of 90 units of such a product. This is how the Panzerjager "Tiger" (P) "Ferdinand" appeared, named after Ferdinand Porsche, who developed the design of the Tiger (P) tank, on the basis of which an assault gun was created.
The conversion was pretty easy. The body of the "Tiger" had a flat top, on which they installed an armored cabin, which occupied two-thirds of the surface area, with a powerful 88-mm cannon in the front sheet. As a result of screwing on additional armor, its thickness in the frontal part reached 200 mm. Fifty such monsters entered the troops at the end of the spring of 1943 in order to have time to take part in the turning point Battle of Kursk (July 1943), which, in fact, decided the fate of the confrontation on the Eastern Front. There is no doubt that any vehicle that hit the sights of the Ferdinand's cannon was doomed to destruction, but it soon became clear that there was no need to doubt that the Ferdinand itself - unless it was covered by a good platoon of infantry - also very vulnerable. The horizontal aiming angle of the gun reached no more than 14 ° in each direction, and the only auxiliary armament was a forward machine gun, while the six crew members were doing their job - destroying enemy tanks - some desperate Soviet fighter could sneak up on the giant with a subversive charge and, damaging the engine or caterpillar, immobilize the self-propelled gun. German soldiers christened "Ferdinand" in "Elephant" ("elephant"). The surviving monsters-losers were withdrawn from the Kursk Bulge and sent to Italy. There, these self-propelled guns were not in such a strong danger from dashing to suicidal infantrymen, but, on the other hand, Italy could not serve as the best place for the use of huge machines with a limited horizontal aiming angle.
In January 1943, however, an improved Tiger went into production - this time the designers managed to install a long-barreled 88-mm cannon in its turret, having received a tank with the same firepower as the Ferdinand, or Elefant ”, but more mobile and without “dead zones” around it. In the process of creating the Tiger II tank, which entered service in February 1944, a proposal arose to develop such an assault gun on its chassis that would become the most powerful and most formidable of all assault self-propelled guns. In accordance with the decision made, at the beginning of 1943, the production workers received the relevant technical requirements and in April 1944 presented a prototype to the customer, however, technical difficulties with the suspension made it necessary to postpone the introduction of the product into production until July.
The resulting result - Panzerjager "Tiger" (also known as Jagdtiger - "Jagdtiger") - became a kind of triumph of engineering and the crown of tank building capabilities. The hull had 150 mm frontal armor, the wheelhouse - 250 mm, the vehicle was armed with a 128 mm cannon capable of hitting 173 mm armor from a distance of 3000 m with an armor-piercing projectile weighing 28 kg. The Jagdtiger became the real sovereign of the battlefields, but it turned out to be “blind” from the stern, which allowed the decisive tank commander to sneak up on the monster from behind and try his luck by stabbing him in the back. The order provided for the delivery of 150 vehicles, but no more than 77 were completed, and only two combat units received them to be used in the Ardennes and during the defense of Germany itself in the west in 1945.
The Jagdtiger served as an illustration of the problem that designers faced in 1944 - to make a mobile weapon capable of crushing everything in its path, while remaining significantly less vulnerable than the enemy, an extremely large platform was required. This lesson was learned by the Allies as well. As mentioned above, the United Kingdom and the United States developed heavy anti-tank guns: the British - 32-pound. (caliber 94 mm), and the Americans - 105 mm. Both of them came up with the idea to turn the guns into self-propelled guns.
The British product received the name "heavy assault tank" (heavy esalt tank) A3 9, nicknamed "Turtle", because, probably, the car had a thick "shell" and moved slowly - more precisely, crawled. The thickness of the cast armor of the hull and cabin reached 225 mm, which made it possible to withstand the attack of almost any anti-tank gun, the 32-pound served as weapons. the gun, which was a converted 94-mm anti-aircraft gun with a traditionally limited horizontal aiming angle. The monumental bulky creature moved at a speed of only 19 km / h. The development process began in 1944, but the first car was completed only in 1947. Six units of this type of product were manufactured, after which it was decided, in the words of officials of the War Ministry, that "the design will not be given a go." After a series of tests that confirmed the opinion that the self-propelled guns would be practically useless, four self-propelled guns were scrapped, and the other two were sent to museums.
The American offspring was also called a tank, and not just a heavy one, but a “super heavy tank”, or a “super heavy tank” T28, although in reality it was a close relative - almost a twin - of the Jagdtiger and the Turtle: it had thick armor hulls and cabins and a huge 105-mm cannon, looking out from the front sheet of the superstructure. The thickness of the frontal armor reached 305 mm, the car turned out to be unusually bulky and developed a speed of only 13 km / h. Taking into account that the gun had only 20 ° horizontal guidance, in 1945 the product was renamed the “mechanized artillery platform” T95 (i.e., a self-propelled gun, not a tank, as it was originally). Two were completed towards the end of 1945. One caught fire during testing, and the crew abandoned it. If you believe the rumors, this self-propelled guns still stands forgotten by everyone somewhere on one of the training grounds. The second was put under the knife in the fifties.
You should not think that all the efforts of the developers and considerable funds were in vain. In the process of creating the T95, it was possible to make finds that would later come in handy in the construction of the next generation of heavy tanks. However, the three monsters listed above crowned the path of evolution of heavy self-propelled anti-tank guns. On their own or under traction, heavy anti-tank guns were simply too bulky and massive to be used in real combat. At the same time, even without this, anti-tank self-propelled guns would have fallen into disuse, since the experience of the war showed that the concept of anti-tank self-propelled guns - in the form in which it was originally built - simply outlived itself. Meanwhile, there are still two areas of application of light anti-tank self-propelled guns, where they could usefully prove themselves, namely, airborne operations and amphibious landings.
The history of the development of American self-propelled guns after World War II can be divided into three main periods. The very first post-war years witnessed a flurry of activity in the field of creating heavily armored vehicles capable of withstanding the shock wave of a nuclear explosion. Then other winds blew. Everyone was obsessed with "air mobility" - they sort of ripped off all their armor from self-propelled guns, put the guns on the lightest chassis that could withstand the recoil when fired. And finally, the time has come for self-propelled guns with adequate protection, some of them are quite suitable for transportation on large transport aircraft.
Prior to the advent of airborne weapons, airborne troops were sorely lacking in heavy weapons. If we talk about artillery, then in fact there was nothing but a “gray-covered” 75-mm pack howitzer. Despite even the ability to shoot with a cumulative projectile, it did not shine as an anti-tank gun. In the meantime, aviation was developing, and soon there were machines capable of taking on board quite impressive loads. Already during the Second World War, there were tanks for airborne assault, however, their use was greatly complicated by the fact that they had to be delivered to a given area on gliders. When the industry introduced high-capacity aircraft, it began to seem that airborne armored vehicles could become a reality. And since everyone knew that self-propelled guns usually weigh less than tanks, the idea arose to develop airborne anti-tank self-propelled guns.
The result of this trend was the M56 "Scorpion", which debuted at the dawn of the sixties of the XX century. Perhaps it was the "economical" design of its design at the dawn of the era of airmobile armored vehicles that brought to life a revision of the entire program for the construction of self-propelled guns. The car can be called completely devoid of frills: a light tracked chassis, a driver's seat next to the engine in the hull, and on top of it a 90-mm cannon on a simple rotary machine with a small shield and two seats for the gunner and loader. Above the tracks there was still a place for boxes of ammunition, that's all. The curb weight was only 7020 kg, the car developed a speed of 45 km / h and could operate within a radius of 225 km with a full tank. Provided that the M56 managed to fire first, she could deal with almost any tank of that time. However, if the enemy had a weapon more powerful than a couple of revolvers, the calculation was very risky, because, apart from a modest shield, nothing protected him.
A little earlier, in the late fifties, the command of the US Marine Corps became especially worried about the possibility of delivering anti-tank weapons to the shore already at the initial stage of an amphibious landing. At that time, the 106-mm recoilless rifle served as standard anti-tank weapons for the Marines, and someone came up with the idea of installing it on an armored platform. The main disadvantage of a recoilless gun is, of course, a jet of hot gas flying in the opposite direction, which complicated the installation of such weapons in the tower. In short, the US Marines saw some kind of armored vehicle the like of which did not exist in the arsenals of the US military, and the result was the installation of six 106-mm recoilless rifles on brackets - three on each side of the rotating turret. The product was equipped with sighting rifles, which helped in determining the distance and lead value - corrections for the wind and target speed. The machine received the name "106-mm tracked multi-barreled self-propelled gun" M50 and the nickname "Onto". As far as is known, it was used in a real battle only once, in the Dominican Republic in 1964, when it was used to destroy buildings with snipers entrenched in them. It must be added here that the US Marines experimented with an amphibious version of the Ml8 Hellcat, but nothing good came of it and the product was never put into service.
The Soviets could not fail to notice such a fuss on the other side of the Atlantic. One way or another, they came to a similar conclusion about the need to develop their own airborne anti-tank self-propelled guns for the airborne troops. This is how the ASU-57 appeared, a kind of armored box on caterpillars with an open top and a 57-mm anti-tank gun. Meanwhile, already in the fifties of the XX century, it became quite obvious that the 57-mm gun was actually ineffective in a real battle, but the ASU-57 continued to travel through the mountains and valleys until the end of the seventies, however, their main task was rather to suppress pillboxes and other field fortifications than serious anti-tank work.
The anti-tank business dates back to the debut appearance of the British tank on the Western Front in 1916. At first amazed and frightened by the sight of the monster, the Germans quickly figured out how to take advantage of the vehicle's shortcomings - a bulky hull and a snail's speed (6.5 km / h) - and began to use direct-fire artillery against its 12-mm armor. (The photo shows the Mk IV with a pitched "falypkryshey", which protected the tank from hand grenades thrown from above by enemy infantrymen. 1917.)
The revolution in tank combat, especially in the battle of tank against tank, took place at the dawn of the 30s of the XX century with the advent of the radiotelephone, which allows even one commander to direct the actions of large tank units on the battlefield. In countries such as Germany, the United States and Britain, it was quickly realized that the best means of countering such forces would be their own tank formations, and therefore, in the thirties, such maneuvers aimed at practicing tank combat tactics became commonplace.
A column of German PzKpfw II during a breakthrough through the Ardennes to the English Channel coast. This throw was the key to the success of the Germans during their invasion of France in 1940. Compared to later brands of German tanks, such as the Tiger, the small 10-ton PzKpfw II had very weak armor - the steel sheets from which it was made the turret and hull were only 13 mm thick. As a result, this tank turned out to be a very vulnerable target even for light anti-tank guns of the initial period of the war.
November 1941 Muscovites burn wood to warm up the frozen ground and prepare anti-tank barriers. Only five months had passed since the German invasion of Russia, and the tanks of the Wehrmacht were already 50 km from the Soviet capital, and with the onset of the first frosts that bound the autumn mud, they were ready to reach the city in the last throw.
The British PIAT grenade launcher can be called one of the most inconvenient examples of anti-tank weapons from the Second World War. In a simple metal pipe there was a powerful spring that pushed the striker into the bottom of a 2.5-kg grenade. There was a detonation of the charge in the tail of the grenade, and the warhead flew to the target. Although the PIAT had a range of only 90 meters, the grenade was surprisingly very effective.
Soldiers loading 2.36-in. rocket-propelled grenade launcher, or bazooka. The weapon depicted in the picture is a bazooka of the first modification, M1A1, which entered the US Army in 1942. The rocket-propelled grenade that we see here is only a training version, it can be identified by a blunt nose - a real projectile has a pointed warhead.
Soviet 76-mm gun in battle on the banks of the Volga in the winter of 1942. Distinguished by the simplicity and reliability inherent in many types of Soviet weapons, this gun, like most artillery systems of the then Red Army, was intended to perform tasks not only for field, but also for anti-tank guns.
In July 1943, the greatest tank battle in history broke out near Kursk. About 5,000 German and Soviet tanks were thrown into the gigantic cauldron of the battle, which lasted eight days. Soviet soldiers used on the Kursk ledge all the means at their disposal to fight tanks, including the anti-tank rifle Degtyarev, which was outdated by that time.
These German Tiger tanks are pictured at the Brenner Pass in December 1943 on their way across the Alps to the Italian front. The equipment was heading to southern Italy to meet the allied invasion forces there. Since the debut of the "Tiger" in September 1942 near Leningrad, 100 mm frontal armor and a formidable 88 mm gun made it the most powerful tank - none of the combat vehicles in service with the Allies could compare with it.
On the opposite page: Sturm Gewehr (StuG) III anti-tank self-propelled guns, shot down near the German city of Bourheim in December 1944. The release of the StuG as a self-propelled assault gun for infantry support began in 1940, but in 1941 the vehicle was re-equipped with 7.5-cm "assault gun" StuK 40, after which she proved to be a very successful tank destroyer. In the period 1942 to March 1945, the military factories of the Third Reich produced over 7500 StuGs.
Produced in the second half of the 1930s as an anti-aircraft gun, the German 88 mm gun was rarely used as an anti-tank gun until the Afrika Korps had to use it in this capacity in 1942. The range of fire, the accuracy of the battle and the powerful projectile allowed it to effectively hit any tanks allies. This copy was captured during combat work in Russia in 1943.
Members of the British Royal Engineers operating on the Italian front in late 1943 create an obstacle by laying anti-tank mines Mk V. A bunch of such mines in itself did not have the ability to destroy tanks. However, mines could well break the track, force the tank to stop and give the anti-tank guns the opportunity to finish off the car.
The wire-guided Dragon anti-tank missile was developed in the mid-1960s as a replacement for the US Army's 90mm recoilless rifle. The range of fire was 1000 m, while the 2.5-kg warhead was not large enough to confidently defeat the most powerful tanks of the latest modifications.
A disposable German World War II grenade launcher, or Panzerfaust, that fired a 3-kg HEAT warhead. From a distance of 30 m, he could destroy almost any of the existing Allied tanks, provided, of course, that the target allowed the shooter to reach this distance and he had time to fire a shot.
The Soviet RPG-7 is one of the most widely used light anti-tank defenses in the world. RPG-7 launches a grenade on the principle of a recoilless gun. The grenade manages to fly off a few meters from the shooter when its motor is activated, which carries a rocket at a distance of up to 400 meters, allowing it to penetrate a 320-mm armor plate.
American anti-tank guided missile "TOW". Since the US Army adopted it in 1970, this ATGM system has undergone several improvements, resulting in a constantly increasing warhead mass and lethality (armor plate from 600 to 800 mm).
The American rocket-propelled grenade launcher M 72, like its distant ancestor, the German Panzerfaust of World War II, provides the modern infantryman with a disposable anti-tank weapon. Despite the primitive sight and the fact that the rocket is unguided, the M 72 warhead is capable of penetrating a steel plate almost 200 mm (7 inches) thick from a distance of 100 meters.
French Foreign Legion troops use the MILAN anti-tank missile system during the 1991 campaign in the Persian Gulf. Pay attention to the huge jet of burning gas that the launcher throws when fired. This property makes the use of the device in enclosed spaces like pillboxes and buildings extremely dangerous for the shooter himself.
Above: Over the past ten years, infantry anti-tank weapons have made great progress from wire control to laser control. One of the samples of the new laser-guided weapon is TRIGAT.
Opening: Iraqi T-72. which became another victim of anti-tank weapons of the coalition forces in February 1991, at the final stage of operation *Desert Storm. An in-flight stabilized sub-caliber projectile (APFSDS) with a tungsten or depleted uranium core, which reached a speed of 1400 m / s at the exit from the barrel, had the ability to break even the most powerful tanks at the disposal of the Iraqi army.
The fact that the 57-mm was hopelessly outdated was quite obvious to Soviet paratroopers, and as soon as the aircraft builders increased the carrying capacity of their equipment, the military hurried to order something more powerful. So in 1960, the ASU-85 appeared, which entered service. As is the case with many other self-propelled guns, the chassis for the ASU-85 was borrowed from an existing tank, in this case the light amphibian PT-76. An 85-mm D-70 was installed in the armored cabin.
The car was lifted on board by the An-12 transport aircraft, and it became the standard armament of the assault landing divisions, serving in this capacity until the end of the eighties of the XX century.
At the Victory Parade in Berlin in 1945, the Soviets showed off their heavy tank, the Joseph Stalin, which made many in the West, as they say, gape in surprise. The powerful machine, like most Soviet armored vehicles, had a body of armor plates located at a good angle, a rounded turret that could easily reflect projectiles, and a huge 122-mm cannon. From that moment on, the biggest bogey for the West was the Soviet armored forces, which, obeying the first command, could rush further into the depths of Europe, sweeping away everything in its path. A similar perspective led to a revision of the concepts of anti-tank defense in the mid-fifties, when the West German army was re-created and included in the NATO forces. The Germans, who had gained considerable experience in dealing with Soviet armored vehicles, did not doubt the need to have something like their military yagdpanzer in service and very quickly created an installation based on a Swiss chassis and 90-graph paper. The combination turned out to be unsuccessful, but in the meantime, the designers began to develop a chassis that could be adapted for various needs - to create an armored personnel carrier, a self-propelled rocket launcher, or a conventional self-propelled gun based on it. In the first half of the sixties of the 20th century, prototypes were produced and tested, and in 1965, mass production of the “anti-tank gun”, or the Jagdpanzerkanone 4-5, started. The total output was 750 units.
The JPZ 4-5 was a short tracked vehicle with a 90 mm gun pointing forward from the frontal armor plate. Served by a crew of four, the self-propelled gun had the ability to reach speeds of up to 70 km / h. The gun was an American 90 mm M41, which fired high explosives, shaped charges and sub-caliber rounds with a detachable pallet, i.e. APFSDS German or American made. The JPZ 4-5 continues to be in service with the German and Belgian armies at the time of this writing, although it has been re-armed with various guided missile launchers over the past twenty years. In the early nineties, there were proposals to replace the remaining self-propelled guns with 105-mm or even 120-mm tank barrels, but, as you can safely assume, no progress in this direction has occurred.
There are two more countries whose anti-tank self-propelled guns have healed in the service and are quite worthy of mention, although what is considered an anti-tank self-propelled guns and what is not is a very difficult question in itself. Austria, for example, has the SK 105 jagdpanzer in its arsenal and calls it an anti-tank self-propelled gun or a light tank, depending on the tactical tasks that can be set at one time or another. Also known as the Cuirassier, the SK 105 was produced by Sauer based on a redesigned armored personnel carrier chassis. The hull and suspension are no different from those of other light tanks, while the turret is a variation of the French design, in which the gun is fixed, the 105-mm gun is raised and lowered along with the entire turret. What does it give? The advantage is that the cannon, standing rigidly in the turret, is automatically loaded from the double magazine. One person is enough to service the automatic gun, which frees up space in the tower, in addition, in the presence of a 105-mm cannon with heavy ammunition, automatic loading facilitates combat work. Another vote for the 105mm is that it has tremendous firepower, although it is mounted on a vehicle that is considered a light tank. In fact, the same gun is on the main French battle tank AMX-30, its cumulative projectile is capable of hitting 360-mm armor from a distance of 1000 m, and the APFSDS sub-caliber shot at the same distance can even hit 400-mm. If we talk about anti-tank self-propelled guns, then this self-propelled gun is probably the best for today.
The Japanese chose a completely different path. In the fifties of the XX century, when the Japanese self-defense forces were taking shape, the Japanese military was impressed by the capabilities of American recoilless rifles, demonstrated during the Korean War of 1950-1953. Since the Japanese wanted a light vehicle, they decided that a recoilless rifle on a tank chassis could be the solution. Moreover, what is especially interesting, everything happened even before the US Marine Corps began to acquire their Ontos.
The result was a unique product, introduced in 1960 as the Type 60 self-propelled gun. It was a lightly armored tracked vehicle with two 106 mm recoilless rifles mounted side by side to the right of the centerline. To the right of them is the elevation of the hull, in which the commander's seat is located, as well as the hatch and periscopes necessary for it. To the left is another elevation - the place of the loader. The car moved rather slowly, but it allowed firing from two barrels, which, using a hydraulic lift, rose to a height of about 0.6 m, thus ending up above the elevations in the hull. The horizontal aiming angle was 30 ° on either side of the axial one. The commander, who acted as a gunner, had a rangefinder and night vision devices, and also a targeting rifle, while the driver and loader were responsible for preparing the gun for combat work.
There is still a huge variety of all kinds of weapons, which their owners call anti-tank, or tank destroyers, but which in fact are one or another means of motor equipment equipped with guided anti-tank missiles. Since we will talk about missiles and rockets in another chapter, especially since, according to the author, the installation of a launcher for a tou anti-tank missile (controlled by wire using optical tracking equipment) on a jeep does not make this jeep an anti-tank self-propelled gun.
Before the war in the USSR, numerous attempts were made to create various self-propelled artillery installations (ACS). Dozens of projects were considered, and prototypes were built for many of them. But the matter never came to mass adoption. The exceptions were: 76-mm anti-aircraft gun 29K on the chassis of the YAG-10 truck (60 pcs.), Self-propelled guns SU-12 - 76.2-mm regimental gun of the 1927 model on the chassis of the Morland truck or GAZ-AAA (99 pcs. ), self-propelled guns SU-5-2 - 122-mm howitzer installation on the T-26 chassis (30 pcs.).
SU-12 (based on the Morland truck)
Of greatest interest in anti-tank terms was the SU-6 self-propelled guns, which were not adopted for service, on the chassis of the T-26 tank, armed with a 76-mm 3-K anti-aircraft gun. Installation tests took place in 1936. The military was not satisfied that the crew of the SU-6 in the stowed position did not fit completely on the self-propelled guns and the installers of remote tubes had to go by escort vehicle. This led to the fact that the SU-6 was recognized as unsuitable for escorting motorized columns as a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun.
Although the possibility of using it to fight tanks was not considered, self-propelled guns armed with such guns could be an excellent anti-tank weapon. The BR-361 armor-piercing projectile fired from the 3-K gun, at a distance of 1000 meters, pierced 82 mm armor normally. Tanks with such armor became massively used by the Germans only from 1943.
In fairness, it should be said that in Germany at the time of the invasion of the USSR there were also no serial anti-tank self-propelled guns (PT self-propelled guns). The first versions of the Artshturm StuG III self-propelled guns were armed with short-barreled 75-mm guns and did not have significant anti-tank capabilities.
German SAU StuG III Ausf. G
However, the availability of a very successful vehicle in production made it possible to turn it into an anti-tank one in a short time by increasing the frontal armor and installing a 75-mm gun with a barrel length of 43 caliber.
In the course of the very first battles of the Great Patriotic War, the question arose of the need to develop an anti-tank self-propelled artillery installation as soon as possible, capable of quickly changing positions and fighting German tank units, which were significantly superior in mobility to units of the Red Army.
As a matter of urgency, a 57-mm anti-tank gun model 1941 was installed on the chassis of the Komsomolets light tractor, which had excellent armor penetration. At that time, this gun confidently hit any German tank at real combat distances.
The ZIS-30 tank destroyer was a light open-type anti-tank gun.
The combat crew of the installation consisted of five people. The upper machine tool was mounted in the middle part on the machine body. The vertical aiming angles ranged from -5 to +25 °, along the horizon - in the 30 ° sector. Shooting was carried out only from a place. The stability of the self-propelled unit during firing was ensured with the help of folding openers located in the aft part of the vehicle hull. For self-defense of the self-propelled unit, a regular 7.62-mm DT machine gun was used, which was installed in a ball joint on the right in the frontal sheet of the cab. To protect the calculation from bullets and shrapnel, an armored shield cover for the gun was used, which had a folding top. In the left half of the shield for observation there was a special window, which was closed by a movable shield.
Tank destroyer ZIS-30
Production of the ZIS-30 continued from 21 September to 15 October 1941. During this period, the plant produced 101 vehicles with a ZIS-2 cannon (including an experimental vehicle) and one installation with a 45-mm cannon. Further production of installations was stopped due to the lack of discontinued "Komsomol" and the cessation of production of 57-mm guns.
Self-propelled guns ZIS-30 began to enter the troops at the end of September 1941. They were equipped with anti-tank batteries of 20 tank brigades of the Western and Southwestern fronts.
In the course of intensive use, the self-propelled gun revealed a number of shortcomings, such as poor stability, congestion of the undercarriage, a small cruising range, and a small ammunition load.
By the summer of 1942, there were practically no tank destroyers ZIS-30 left in the troops. Some of the vehicles were lost in battles, and some were out of order for technical reasons.
Since January 1943, mass production of the created by N.A. Astrov based on the T-70 light tank, self-propelled 76-mm SU-76 (later Su-76M) mounts. Although this light self-propelled gun was very often used to fight enemy tanks, it cannot be considered anti-tank. Armor protection SU-76 (forehead: 26-35 mm, side and stern: 10-16 mm) protected the crew (4 people) from small arms fire and heavy fragments.
SAU SU-76M
When used correctly, and this did not come immediately (self-propelled guns are not a tank), the SU-76M showed itself well both in defense - in repelling infantry attacks and as mobile, well-protected anti-tank reserves, and in the offensive - in suppressing machine-gun nests, destroying pillboxes and bunkers, as well as in the fight against counterattacking tanks. The ZIS-3 divisional gun was mounted on an armored vehicle. Her sub-caliber projectile from a distance of 500 meters pierced armor up to 91 mm, that is, any place in the hull of German medium tanks and the side of the "Panther" and "Tiger".
According to the characteristics of weapons, the SU-76I self-propelled guns, created on the basis of captured German tanks Pz Kpfw III and StuG III self-propelled guns, were very close to the SU-76M. It was originally planned to install a 76.2-mm ZIS-3Sh (Sh - assault) gun in the fighting compartment of the self-propelled guns, it was this modification of the gun that was installed on the serial self-propelled guns SU-76 and SU-76M on a machine fixed to the floor, but such an installation did not provide reliable protection of the gun embrasure from bullets and fragments, since when lifting and turning the gun, gaps invariably formed in the shield. This problem was solved by installing a special self-propelled 76.2-mm S-1 gun instead of the 76-mm divisional gun. This gun was designed on the basis of the design of the F-34 tank gun, which was equipped with T-34 tanks.
SAU SU-76I
With the same firepower as the SU-76M, the SU-76I was much more suitable for use as an anti-tank due to better security. The forehead of the hull had anti-shell armor with a thickness of 50 mm.
The production of the SU-76I was finally stopped at the end of November 1943 in favor of the SU-76M, which had already got rid of "childhood diseases" by that time. The decision to stop production of the SU-76I was due to a reduction in the number of Pz Kpfw III tanks used on the Eastern Front. In this regard, the number of captured tanks of this type decreased. A total of 201 SU-76I self-propelled guns were produced (including 1 experimental and 20 commanders), which took part in the battles of 1943-44, but due to the small number and difficulties with spare parts, they quickly disappeared from the Red Army.
The first specialized, domestic tank destroyer capable of operating in combat formations on a par with tanks was the SU-85. This vehicle became especially in demand after the appearance of the German tank PzKpfw VI "Tiger" on the battlefield. The Tiger's armor was so thick that with great difficulty and only at suicidally close distances, the F-34 and ZIS-5 guns mounted on the T-34 and KV-1 could penetrate it.
Special firing on a captured German tank showed that the M-30 howitzer mounted on the SU-122 had an insufficient rate of fire and low flatness. In general, it turned out to be poorly suited for firing at fast-moving targets, although it had good armor penetration after the introduction of cumulative ammunition.
By order of the GKO dated May 5, 1943, the design bureau under the leadership of F.F. Petrov launched work on installing an 85-mm anti-aircraft gun on the SU-122 chassis.
Tank destroyer SU-85 with D-5S gun
The D-5S gun had a barrel length of 48.8 calibers, the direct fire range reached 3.8 km, the maximum possible - 13.6 km. The range of elevation angles was from −5° to +25°, the horizontal firing sector was limited to ±10° from the longitudinal axis of the vehicle. The ammunition load of the gun was 48 rounds of unitary loading.
According to Soviet data, the 85-mm armor-piercing projectile BR-365 normally pierced an armor plate 111 mm thick at a distance of 500 m, at twice the distance under the same conditions - 102 mm. The BR-365P sub-caliber projectile at a distance of 500 m normally pierced an armor plate 140 mm thick.
The control compartment, engine and transmission compartments remained the same as those of the T-34 tank, which made it possible to recruit crews for new vehicles with virtually no retraining. For the commander, an armored cap with prismatic and periscopic devices was welded in the roof of the cabin. On later-produced self-propelled guns, the armor cap was replaced by a commander's cupola, like the T-34 tank.
The general layout of the vehicle was similar to the layout of the SU-122, the only difference was in armament. The security of the SU-85 was similar to that of the T-34.
Cars of this brand were produced at Uralmash from August 1943 to July 1944, in total 2337 self-propelled guns were built. After the development of a more powerful self-propelled gun SU-100 due to the delay in the release of 100-mm armor-piercing shells and the cessation of the production of armored hulls for the SU-85 from September to December 1944, a transitional version of the SU-85M was produced. In fact, it was a SU-100 with an 85-mm D-5S gun. The upgraded SU-85M differed from the original SU-85 in more powerful frontal armor and increased ammunition capacity. A total of 315 of these machines were built.
Thanks to the use of the SU-122 hull, it was possible to very quickly establish mass production of the SU-85 tank destroyer. Acting in battle formations of tanks, they effectively supported our troops with fire, hitting German armored vehicles from a distance of 800-1000 m. The crews of these self-propelled guns were especially distinguished during the crossing of the Dnieper, in the Kyiv operation and during the autumn-winter battles in Right-Bank Ukraine. Except for the few KV-85s and IS-1s, before the advent of the T-34-85 tanks, only the SU-85s could effectively deal with enemy medium tanks at distances of more than a kilometer. And at shorter distances, and pierce the frontal armor of heavy tanks. At the same time, already the first months of the use of the SU-85 showed that the power of its guns was not enough to effectively deal with heavy enemy tanks, such as the Panther and Tiger, which, having an advantage in firepower and protection, as well as effective aiming systems, imposed a fight from long distances.
Built in the middle of 1943, the SU-152 and the later ISU-122 and ISU-152 hit any German tank in the event of a hit. But due to the high cost, bulkiness and low rate of fire, they were not very suitable for fighting tanks.
The main purpose of these machines was the destruction of fortifications and engineering structures and the function of fire support for advancing units.
In the middle of 1944, under the leadership of F.F. Petrov, using shots from the B-34 naval anti-aircraft gun, an even more powerful 100-mm D-10S gun was designed. Gun D-10S arr. 1944 (index "C" - self-propelled version), had a barrel length of 56 calibers. The armor-piercing projectile of the cannon from a distance of 2000 meters hit armor 124 mm thick. A high-explosive fragmentation projectile weighing 16 kg made it possible to effectively hit manpower and destroy enemy fortifications.
Using this gun and the base of the T-34-85 tank, the designers of Uralmash quickly developed the SU-100 tank destroyer - the best anti-tank self-propelled gun of the Second World War. Compared to the T-34, the frontal armor was increased to 75 mm.
The gun was installed in the front plate of the cabin in a cast frame on double trunnions, which allowed it to be aimed in the vertical plane in the range from -3 to + 20 ° and in the horizontal ± 8 °. The aiming was carried out using a sector-type manual lifting mechanism and a screw-type rotary mechanism. The ammunition load of the gun consisted of 33 unitary shots, placed in five stacks in the wheelhouse.
The SU-100 possessed exceptional firepower for its time and was capable of fighting enemy tanks of all types at all ranges of aimed fire.
Serial production of the SU-100 began at Uralmash in September 1944. Until May 1945, the plant managed to produce more than 2,000 of these machines. The production of the SU-100 at Uralmash was carried out at least until March 1946. Omsk Plant No. 174 produced 198 SU-100s in 1947, and 6 more at the beginning of 1948, producing a total of 204 vehicles. The release of the SU-100 in the post-war period was also established in Czechoslovakia, where in 1951-1956 another 1420 self-propelled guns of this type were produced under license.
In the post-war years, a significant part of the SU-100 was modernized. They received night observation devices and sights, new fire-fighting and radio equipment. A shot was introduced into the ammunition load with a more effective armor-piercing projectile UBR-41D with protective and ballistic tips, and later with sub-caliber and non-rotating cumulative projectiles. The standard ammunition load of self-propelled guns in the 1960s consisted of 16 high-explosive fragmentation, 10 armor-piercing and 7 cumulative shells.
Having the same base with the T-34 tank, the SU-100 has spread widely around the world, being officially in service in more than 20 countries, they were actively used in numerous conflicts. In a number of countries they are still in service.
In Russia, the SU-100 could be found "in storage" until the end of the 90s.
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
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 a narrow sense, only those vehicles that are armed with guns or howitzers, but are not tanks or armored vehicles, belong to self-propelled guns.
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.
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 the First World War and the Civil War, 72-mm Lender guns built on the basis of the Russo-Balt truck were actively used. 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.
The 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. The history included such German models: StuG III, and StuG IV, Hummel and Wespe, the Ferdinand self-propelled artillery mount (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 anti-tank missile 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, together with high mobility and modern positioning systems, 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, the German Wespe and Hummel vehicles, the American M7 (Priest) and M12 howitzers, as well as the British Sexton and Bishop self-propelled guns became famous. 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. In the 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 it is necessary to resist a large mass of 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 combat vehicle ZiS-30, built on the basis of the Komsomolets tracked artillery tractor, has become widespread. 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 the firing position and, without zeroing in, 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.
In recent years, self-propelled artillery has been used to destroy snipers who hide in places that are 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 targets hit by artillery ammunition is less than that of 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.
The control compartment, which is also the workplace of the driver, is 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.
, 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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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 a 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 - manually turning a gun weighing more than three 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.
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 small arms fire, shock waves of 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
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