SAU "Acacia". Self-propelled howitzer 2S3 "Acacia": specifications and photos

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

"Acacia" - 152-mm self-propelled howitzer (GABTU index - object 303). Developed by a team of designers of the Ural Transport Engineering Plant under the leadership of F. F. Petrov and G. S. Efimov. SAU 2S3 "Acacia" is designed to destroy and suppress mortar and artillery batteries, enemy manpower, fire weapons, tanks, rocket launchers, tactical nuclear weapons, command posts and other things.

Generation change

Until the mid-sixties of the last century, self-propelled artillery installations (ACS) of the Second World War, such as the SU-100, ISU-152 and ISU-122, continued to serve in the USSR army. These vehicles combined the qualities of cannon-howitzer systems with anti-tank capabilities. It was for this versatility that they were liked by the military of the old school, who had experience in combat operations during the Great Patriotic War. However, with the change of generations of officers andgenerals gradually formed new views on the tactics of using self-propelled artillery in modern warfare.

So, in particular, the main enemy of tanks and other armored vehicles is not an ordinary projectile, but an anti-tank guided missile (ATGM). In this regard, military experts came to the conclusion that, on the one hand, self-propelled artillery installations should not specialize in the destruction of heavy vehicles, and on the other hand, the new self-propelled guns should not be "dressed" in thick armor, because ATGMs can penetrate even the strongest of them. In addition, according to the new requirements, self-propelled artillery installations must have maximum mobility, air transportability and increased buoyancy. In order for the technique to meet these requirements, it was necessary to abandon heavy armor and give preference to bulletproof protection. As for the placement of the gun, in order to increase the fire maneuver, it should be placed not in an armored tube, but in a freely rotating turret, which will allow the complex to conduct circular fire. In addition, one of the main requirements of the military was to create the possibility of using nuclear weapons with updated self-propelled guns.

Backstory

The start of work on the Acacia self-propelled guns was preceded by a huge search research work, during which a comparative analysis of artillery systems created during the Second World War (such as SU-100, SU-152 and others) was made, and also of the post-war period - both domestic gunsmiths and foreign ones. Thus, in the process of research work, organizationsand enterprises of the defense complex of the USSR proposed a number of different variations of the chassis, which would house a 152-mm gun. According to one of them, a self-propelled howitzer was worked out on the basis of the tank undercarriage of objects "118", "123" and "124" by engineers of the Sverdlovsk Machine-Building Plant. In this project, it was planned to place an artillery gun of the D-20 towed gun in the turret.

In another variation, it was proposed to create the Acacia self-propelled guns based on the components and mechanisms of the medium tank T-64 ("object 432"). Engineers proposed to place a 152-mm gun in an armored turret together with a coaxial machine gun. This decision was very popular, since the T-64 was the first post-war tank of the second generation. It implemented many new progressive solutions, it was distinguished by the original chassis and automatic loader. At that time, this machine was very popular for the study of promising projects of armored vehicles. However, as a result of research into the experience of using self-propelled artillery, as well as studies of the appearance of the installation, preference was given to the concept of the prospective development of self-propelled guns. And for further work on the creation of the Acacia self-propelled guns, the undercarriage of the Sverdlovsk Machine-Building Plant was recommended.

History of Creation

Together with 152 mmAs a complex, the plant's designers developed a number of other self-propelled artillery systems: the 122-mm Gvozdika and Violet howitzers, as well as the 240-mm Tyulpan mortar. Fundamentally new models of self-propelled guns were designed to eliminate the backlog of the USSR from the countries of the NATO bloc in this aspect. "Acacia" was designed to arm the regiments of motorized rifle and tank divisions. This self-propelled howitzer was designed to destroy the enemy's covered and open manpower, military equipment and weapons, as well as other objects to the depth of the division's interests. The artillery complex was created on the basis of the chassis of the experimental self-propelled guns "object 105" and "object 120", as well as the Krug air defense system.

The first two prototypes were created by the end of 1968, however, during the tests, serious flaws were revealed, in particular, a very strong gas contamination of the conning tower. Due to this shortcoming, four more samples, created by the summer of next year, were rejected. After the improvement of the ventilation system, this problem was solved, as a result, the first series of Acacia self-propelled guns (the photos in this article clearly demonstrate these machines) was released in 1970. And in 1971 it was put into service. This model was produced without changes until 1975, after which the troops received a modernized version of the Acacia self-propelled guns under the symbol 2S3M. The updated machine had an updated drum-type ammunition rack for twelve charges, which made it possible to increase the rate of fire of the complex and increase the ammunition carried. Two years later, the self-propelled gun underwent another modernization(2S3M1). Now the 152-mm self-propelled howitzer was equipped with equipment for input, reception, processing, as well as reflection of command data and a new SP-538 sight. In addition, 3OF38 "Sentimeter" guided projectiles and 3OF39 "Krasnopol" guided projectiles were introduced into the ammunition load. The latest upgraded version of the 2S3M2 differed from its predecessors with a more powerful artillery system. Also, this version of the installation was equipped with the Mekhanizator-M (1V514-1) receiving and indicating equipment, which allows data exchange between the battery senior officer’s car and the gun, thereby reducing the time for preparing the complex for opening fire. In general, the Akatsiya self-propelled howitzer was produced until 1993.

Description of the machine

The artillery installation is made according to the classical scheme with a turret cabin. The complex has an armored welded hull, which is divided into three compartments: control, combat and power (motor-transmission). The first compartment is located between the engine bulkhead and the left side in the bow of the body. Here is the workplace of the driver. The power compartment is located on the right front. The transmission, engine, and power plant systems are located here. In the aft part of the hull is the fighting compartment. A rotating platform is located on the bottom of the body, which is mounted on a ball chase, it rests on five rolls. The gunner's workplace is located to the left of the gun, and the loader's - to the right. The commander's seat is behind the gunner.

Chassis implementationThe self-propelled gun differs from its predecessors in the use of small-link caterpillars with rubber-metal joints and front-mounted drive rollers.

Acacia 152mm self-propelled howitzer: artillery unit

The gun (2A33) for this self-propelled unit was developed in OKB-9. The D-20 towed gun-howitzer was taken as the basis. The prototype was assembled at the Perm Machine-Building Plant No. 172, and serial production was carried out at the Barrikady software. An artillery gun with a vertical wedge gate, an ejector and a two-chamber muzzle brake is placed in a rotary armored closed turret mounted on a reinforced ball bearing. In order to facilitate the loading procedure, the howitzer is equipped with an electromechanical device for sending shells and cartridge cases of the original design, as well as a spent cartridge case catcher. On the roof of the ACS conning tower (photo above), there is a commander's cupola on the left, where a remote-controlled heavy machine gun is installed, on the starboard side there is a loader's hatch. Fire can be fired from a place, both under normal conditions and in contaminated areas. The ammunition rack of a self-propelled artillery mount (non-modernized model) is placed in two mechanized belts. During firing, they can also be fed through a special hatch in the hull from the ground.

Power plants and auxiliary equipment

At the Akatsiya self-propelled howitzer, the developers installed a twelve-cylinder V-shaped four-stroke turbochargedliquid-cooled engine (B-59). Together with it, a mechanical two-line transmission with planetary rotary mechanisms is used. The artillery mount has an individual torsion bar suspension with hydraulic telescopic shock absorbers. On the self-propelled guns, the designers installed special self-digging equipment, which makes it possible to dig a trench in the ground for shelter in twenty minutes. In order to heat the crew, a heating unit (OV-65G) was installed in the self-propelled gun, the productivity of which is 6500 kcal / h. This self-propelled artillery system has collective protection, equipped with PPO and PAZ systems, against weapons of mass destruction. 2S3 is equipped with an automatic fire system, a filter-ventilation system, a compartment sealing system, which made it possible to protect the crew from the effects of bacteriological, nuclear and chemical weapons. The tightness of the self-propelled howitzer is maintained both in the process of firing and during movement.

Ammunition

For firing from the Akatsiya self-propelled howitzer, shells from the D-20 and ML-20 cannons, as well as from the D-1 howitzer, are used. For these systems, NIMI developed a whole line of 152-mm ammunition. For example: a high-explosive fragmentation projectile 3VOF33 with a full variable and reduced variable charge, 3VOF33 with a long-range charge, a shot 3VOF96, 3VOF97, 3VOF98, as well as 3V013 and 3V014 with a fragmentation-cluster projectile with a full and reduced variable charge. Reduced charges allow you to send projectiles at a short range along a steeper trajectory. This allows you to hit targets that are hidden behindvarious obstacles such as houses, hills, etc.

For the destruction of heavy armored vehicles using cumulative ammunition BP-540. These projectiles with an initial velocity of 676 m/s have an effective range of up to five kilometers. Normally, they penetrate tank armor up to 250 mm thick, at an angle of 60 degrees up to 220 mm, and at an angle of 30 degrees - up to 120 mm. In addition to the listed ammunition, the self-propelled gun ammunition includes special ammunition that serves to disrupt enemy control systems at the tactical level by jamming ultrashort and short wave radio communications. For example, 3VRB37 and 3VBR36 with full and reduced variable charge.

Currently, Akatsiya self-propelled howitzers use guided projectiles of the Centimeter type and guided projectiles of the Krasnopol type, developed by the STC Automation and Mechanization of Technologies. Thus, the Centimeter complex is used to destroy armored vehicles in places where artillery systems and launchers are concentrated in firing positions, long-term defensive complexes, communication and control points, bridges and crossings. "Krasnopol" is used to destroy small-sized ground targets in conditions of firing from closed firing positions with target illumination by a laser beam of a target designator-rangefinder.

SAU "Acacia": characteristics

The combat weight of the installation is 27.5 tons (the relatively low weight of the Akatsiya allows it to be transported on transport aircraft), the length with the gun directed forward is 7765 mm, the height is3050 mm, width - 3250 mm. The clearance of the self-propelled guns is 450 mm, the average ground pressure is 0.6 kg/cm2. The engine power is 520 hp, the speed is 2000 rpm. Undercarriage characteristics: individual suspension, caterpillar type of propulsion, the 1st and 6th rollers are equipped with hydraulic telescopic shock absorbers, the width of the rubber-metal caterpillar is 485 mm, the number of tracks is 115. The fuel supply is 850 liters. Maximum speed - 63 km / h. Power reserve - 500 km. The car is able to overcome obstacles: rise - 30 degrees, roll - 25 degrees, moat - 3 meters, wall - 0.7 meters, ford - 1 meter. The frontal armor of the body and turret is 30 mm. The crew of the self-propelled howitzer consists of four people.

Artillery weapons: characteristics

As mentioned earlier, the developers of the 2A33 howitzer are OKB-9 and KB2 of the Perm Machine-Building Plant, and it was manufactured at the Barrikady Production Association. At Ur altransmash, the final assembly of the self-propelled guns was carried out. This gun has the following characteristics: caliber - 152.4 mm, barrel recoil length - 510-750 mm, pointing angles - vertical from -4 to +60 degrees, horizontal - 360 degrees, weight of the swinging part - 2450 kg, rate of fire - 1, 9-3, 5 shots per minute. The slide is a semi-automatic vertical wedge copier type. Rollback brake - hydraulic spindle. The type of knurler is pneumatic. Loading - separate-sleeve. Firing range: 3OF25 shells up to 17.3 km, 3OF22 up to 20.5 km, Krasnopol - up to 20 km.

As an additional armament, a 7.62 mm PKT machine gun is used, the ammunition load of which is 250 rounds.

Military companies

Self-propelled howitzers 2S3 "Acacia" have been quite successfully used in many military conflicts that have arisen in different parts of the globe over the past four decades. Western intelligence found out about the presence of these installations in service with the Soviet army only in 1973, so it received the code name "Model 1973". Officially, the government of the USSR “lit up” the Acacia self-propelled guns only in 1977 at the Karpaty exercises. In the same year, these machines first participated in the parade on Red Square. In 1979, about a hundred 2S3 self-propelled howitzers were delivered to the GDR, and Iraq became the next country to receive these combat vehicles. During the period of the Iraqi campaign, Akatsiya took part in all military operations, however, the military remained dissatisfied with the insufficient, in their opinion, firing range.

From the very beginning of hostilities in Afghanistan, these artillery installations were involved in artillery subdivisions of a limited contingent of Soviet troops. Military experts noted the high reliability of the complex, but it was also not without flaws. The main disadvantages of self-propelled guns are recognized as insufficient firing range and rate of fire. An interesting fact is that in Afghanistan these combat vehicles were used mainly for direct fire, which had a great demoralizing effect on the Mujahideen. The same technique is now used by the Syrian military against militants. Islamists.

SAU "Acacia" participated in all armed conflicts in the former USSR. For example, in companies in the North Caucasus, as well as during the so-called "War of 888".

Today, these live artillery mounts are used in the conflict in Ukraine, both by regular troops and militias.

Conclusion

Currently, our army is armed with both modern self-propelled artillery mounts and production from the times of the USSR. The Akatsiya howitzer, despite its considerable age, continues to regularly carry out combat duty not only in the Russian army, but also abroad. These artillery mounts were supplied to Europe: Warsaw Pact countries; to the African continent: Algeria, Iraq, Libya, Syria. In addition, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, these machines remained in all the former Soviet republics without exception. The demand for this type of weapon is not weakening even today, orders are being received both for artillery installations from the times of the USSR, and for new Russian self-propelled guns. Indeed, in modern warfare, such systems, in combination with high-precision guided munitions, can play a key role. In action, "Acacia" showed itself from the best side, military experts note the simplicity and reliability of this artillery system. And after her participation in the Afghan company, she became very popular. Perhaps that is why it remains in service not only in our country, but also in many other countries of the world.