ZSU-57-2
| ZSU-57-2 | |
|---|---|
ZSU-57-2 in the Yad la-Shiryon Museum in Israel |
|
| General properties | |
| crew | 6 (commander, driver, radio operator, gunner, two loaders) |
| length | 6.22 m - with cannons at 12 o'clock: 8.48 m |
| width | 3.27 m |
| height | 2.75 m |
| Dimensions | 28.1 t |
| Armor and armament | |
| Armor | 13 mm |
| Main armament | 2 × 57 mm L / 69- automatic cannons S-68 |
| Secondary armament | no |
| agility | |
| drive | V-12 diesel engine W-54 , water-cooled 388 kW (520 PS ) |
| suspension | Torsion bar |
| Top speed | 50 km / h |
| Power / weight | 13.8 kW / t |
| Range | approx. 420 km, 590 km with external tank |
The ZSU-57-2 ( Russian ЗСУ-57-2 , ZSU = Senitnaja Samochodnaja Ustanowka = self-propelled anti-aircraft gun) was an anti-aircraft tank of the Soviet Army . It was developed in the early 1950s and introduced in 1955. The vehicle is based on a modified T-54 . Like many other anti-aircraft guns, it was often and effectively used against ground targets.
development
The Second World War had already shown that the mechanized infantry and tank units needed support weapons that could follow them on the battlefield and offer a minimum of protection. During the war, however, the Soviet Union focused on building battle tanks, assault guns, and tank destroyers. Self-propelled anti-aircraft weapons such as the SU-72 or the ZSU-37 based on the 37 mm M1939 anti-aircraft gun were developed, but were not used in large numbers. A total of only 75 were built. From 1944, the development of the 57-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun S-60 began in the Scientific and Technical Institute No. 58 (NII-58, German NII-58) under the direction of Vasily Grabin (Василий Гаврилович Грабин) . This weapon was tested in 1946 and then adopted into the armament of the Soviet armed forces. The main disadvantage was the lack of tactical agility. The S-60 was unable to follow the motorized rifle and tank regiments to be supported on the battlefield. Therefore, as early as 1947, the development of a new variant in the NII-58 began, again under the direction of Grabin. The plan was to develop a double-barreled anti-aircraft gun on a self-propelled gun . The modified anti-aircraft cannon was named S-68. For experimental purposes, the twin gun was built on a mount S-79A (С-79А) and equipped with electric directional drives ESP-76 (ЭСП-76).
The self-propelled gun was created on the basis of the T-54 main battle tank. The vehicle received the factory designation "Product 500" (изделие 500), the designation in the Soviet armed forces the designation ZSU-57-2 (ЗСУ-57-2). ZSU stands for anti-aircraft self-propelled guns (зенитная самоходная установка), the number 57 for the caliber of the anti-aircraft cannons in millimeters and 2 for the number of anti-aircraft guns.
The tests took place between 1950 and 1954. After the tests were completed in 1955, the system was adopted into the armament of the Soviet Army. Production ended as early as 1960 because the ZSU-57-2 could not convince with its combat characteristics.
construction
The ZSU-57-2 is a lightly armored self-propelled anti-aircraft gun. The construction of the chassis was taken over from the T-54 battle tank, but the chassis was shortened by one roller. The driver found his place in the bow space of the tub. There was a passage to the fighting area behind, which also accommodated the tower that could be pivoted through 360 °. The engine and auxiliary units were located in the rear of the tub. The tub was welded from armor steel with a thickness of 8 to 13 mm. The tower, which is open at the top, was also a welded construction. He took the guns, the crew (except the driver) and some of the ammunition. The rear wall had an opening for ejecting the sleeves. It was also designed to be removable, which made it easier to change the guns. During the march, the tower could be covered with a tarpaulin, which contained a total of 13 observation windows made of Plexiglas. The ejected cases were collected in a basket at the stern of the tower.
The S-68 anti-aircraft guns were structurally the same as the S-60, but the right weapon was a mirror image of the left. The weight of the weapon system was 4500 kg. The S-68, like the S-60, is an automatic weapon in which the energy of the returning tube was used to reload and lock the breech. The weapons could be aimed manually or with the help of the electro-hydraulic drives. The two loading gunners sat on the right and left in the tower next to the weapon system. In the firing direction on the left, the gunner found his place behind the loading gunner. He was responsible for aiming the guns and pulling the trigger. On the right side was the position of the sight gunner, who was responsible for setting distance, speed, course, and angle of inclination. The commander found his place in the back of the tower. If it was judged by hand, in addition to guiding the Fla-Sfl, he also took care of the side angle.
An anti-aircraft visor was used with the weapon, which determined the lead point based on the speed of the air target, the oblique distance and the course angle . The speed was estimated based on the type of air target and the course angle based on the direction of movement of the target. The slant range was also estimated or determined using an external range finder. However, the rangefinder's data had to be transmitted orally and manually set on the visor.
The combat load consisted of a total of 300 rounds, of which 176 found space in the turret, a further 72 rounds in the bow section of the hull. These 248 rounds were on loading strips , with each loading strip holding four grenade cartridges. 52 individual shots were in the middle part of the hull under the turret. The weapon was reloaded manually.
The engine of the type W-54 ( Russian В-54 ) was arranged transversely in the rear part of the hull. This engine is a liquid-cooled, uncharged twelve-cylinder diesel engine with a displacement of 38.88 l and an output of 520 hp. The weight of the engine was 895 kg. The rear drive wheels were driven by the engine via a dry clutch, the manual five-speed gearbox and two planetary gears. The roller drive consisted of four rubber-tyred twin rollers on each side, which were cushioned by torsion bars. The three fuel tanks held a total of 640 liters of fuel. Additional fuel tanks were located on the pan on the right in the direction of travel.
The ZSU-57-2 was equipped with the 10RT-26E (10РТ-26Э) radio. The range was between 7 and 15 km while driving and between 9 and 20 km when stationary. The TPU-47 (ТПУ-47) on-board intercom was used to communicate with the crew members.
commitment
Soviet Army
The ZSU-57-2 was only introduced into the Soviet Army in small numbers. A number of tank regiments received an anti-aircraft battery, each consisting of four self-propelled guns. The lack of target was compensated for by twin anti-aircraft machine guns of the caliber 14.5 mm ZTPU-2 (ЗТПУ-2) on the chassis of the BTR-40 and BTR-152 armored personnel carriers .
In practical use the ZSU-57-2 showed numerous shortcomings. This included the slow rate of fire due to manual reloading. Firing on the move was not possible. The purely visual reconnaissance and the method for determining the target data led to a poor hit accuracy. This accuracy was significantly lower than that of the 57 mm Flak S-60, in which the GRS-9 gun alignment station and the PUAZO-6 command unit , and later the RPK-1 fire control unit , were used to determine the target data and calculate the lead point. The increased tactical agility could not outweigh this disadvantage. Particularly in the fight against high-speed and low-flying jet aircraft, the lack of options for electronic reconnaissance and the inherent inaccuracy in determining the range and target speed were striking. The low aiming speed of the weapons of only a maximum of 20–30 ° / s was also insufficient.
Nevertheless, the ZSU-57-2 embodied the state of the art at the beginning of the 1950s. The American Fla-Sfl M42 Duster had a similar configuration and also comparable performance data. Equipped with two 40 mm cannons , the rate of fire was 2 × 120 rounds per minute, and the range was 2000 m.
National Peoples Army
The ZSU-57-2 was used in the National People's Army from 1957. Originally, it was intended for use in the motorized rifle and tank divisions as well as in the motorized rifle and tank regiments.
At division level, it was planned to set up one flak regiment per division. The regiment consisted of two flak batteries S-60 and ZSU-57-2. One battery had six Fla-Sfl. The restructuring of the air defense at the beginning of the 1960s , however, led to the fact that an anti-aircraft battery was canceled in the anti-aircraft regiments, and the regiments were restructured into anti-aircraft departments. In the divisions of the NVA, the Fla-Sfl was actually introduced in the corresponding flak departments. From 1972, the anti-aircraft departments were restructured again into anti-aircraft regiments, the anti-aircraft batteries were omitted. It was replaced by the 57-mm Flak S-60 with RPK-1 fire control unit. The removal of the ZSU-57-2 from active service was completed in 1974.
In the motorized rifle regiments, the ZSU-57-2 was not introduced contrary to the original plan. The flak batteries at regimental level were instead equipped with the 37-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun M1939 (61-K) as a replacement armament. In the course of the aforementioned restructuring of the air defense, these batteries were deleted without replacement in 1961.
In contrast, there was an introduction to the anti-aircraft batteries of the tank regiments. Originally six Sfl per battery were planned, the number was reduced to four in the course of the restructuring. From the end of the 1960s, it began to be replaced by the ZSU-23-4 , which, however, could not be completed until 1975 in the anti-aircraft units of the 9th Panzer Division . A BTR-50 that had been converted into a battery control station was used to guide the battery . This vehicle also had an optical rangefinder (1 m base).
From 1967 onwards, the Fla-Sfl freed up by the restructuring were used for the close-range protection of military airfields. The evaluation of the Six Day War had shown the high vulnerability of these facilities to air raids. In addition to the construction of splinter protection boxes and changes to the accommodation and layout of the aircraft, increased attention was therefore paid to the air defense. Six Fla-Sfl ZSU-57-2 and two ZPU-4 were deployed at each airfield .
During the mission, the 10RT-26E radios were replaced by the more modern R-113, and the R-120 was equipped as an on-board intercom.
The Fla-Sfls that were not needed were assigned to the mobilization divisions and initially stored, from the mid-1970s also replaced here by the S-60s that were released in the course of the establishment of AA rocket regiments. Due to the disadvantages of the weapon system, it was not possible to continue using the weapon system within the air defense system. 43 Fla-Sfl were converted into driving school tanks 500U in 1981/82 , the rest were scrapped. The National People's Army had a total of 129 Fla-Sfl ZSU-57-2 in its inventory.
Use in other armies
Technical specifications
- Length: 8.48 m
- Width: 3.27 m
- Height: 2.75 m
- Weight: 28.1 t
- Walking speed: max. 50 km / h
- Driving range: 420 km
- Combat set: 300 shell cartridges
- Weight grenade cartridge: 6.61 kg
- Weight bullet: 2.8 kg
- Initial speed: 1000 m / s
- Shooting distance (slope range): 5500 m
- Altitude range: 100-4000 m
- Rate of fire: 240-400 rounds / minute
- Straightening area
- Page: 360 °
- Height: −1–85 °
- Straightening speed (hydraulic straightening):
- Side: 0.2–30 ° / s
- Height: 0.3-20 ° / s
See also
Web links
- Вестник ПВО, ЗЕНИТНАЯ САМОХОДНАЯ УСТАНОВКА ЗСУ-57-2 (Russian)
- FRR-11, 57 mm Fla-SFL ZSU 57-2
- Missile and weapons service in Kdo. MB III, technical catalog, 57-mm-Fla-SFL ZSU-57/2
Individual evidence
- ↑ ZSU-57-2 57mm Self-Propelled Anti-aircraft Gun. Retrieved October 26, 2010 .
- ↑ Table 13. Major Army Equipment, 1989. Retrieved October 31, 2010 .
- ↑ Table 12. Major Army Equipment, 1988. Retrieved October 31, 2010 .
- ↑ Table 22. Major Army Equipment, 1988. Retrieved October 31, 2010 .
- ↑ Table 11. Major Army Equipment, 1987. Retrieved October 31, 2010 .
- ^ Intelligence Report - The Sino Soviet Dispute on Aid to North Vietnam. (PDF) (No longer available online.) P. 67 , archived from the original on May 27, 2010 ; accessed on October 31, 2010 (English).