Heavy howitzers m 30. Military Observer. Where can you see
The monument to the M-30 howitzer is installed at the northern entrance to Tula on Oktyabrskaya Street, inside the trolleybus reversal ring (the former terminus of route No. 4).
You can get to the monument by city and suburban public transport, more than ten routes of which pass in the immediate vicinity (stop "Northern Station").
The reversal ring is practically not used and is an excellent parking lot in the immediate vicinity of the monument.
Access is free, you can touch, climb. There is no security.
The pedestal of the monument (height is about 130 centimeters) is in a state of active repair. Armature sticks out.
all photos are clickable up to 3648x2736
"In this area in November-December 1941, artillery units were stationed, which fought to defeat the Nazi troops.
Installed in November 1966."
This is the fourth monument erected in November 1966.
(the first is a cannon, the second is an anti-aircraft gun, the third is a tank)
02.
122-mm howitzer of the 1938 model (M-30, GAU index - 52-G-463) - Soviet howitzer of the Second World War period.
This weapon was mass-produced from 1939 to 1955, was or still is in service with the armies of many countries of the world, was used in almost all significant wars and armed conflicts of the middle and end of the 20th century.
The first Soviet large-scale self-propelled artillery mounts of the Great Patriotic War SU-122 were armed with this gun.
According to some artillery experts, the M-30 is one of the best designs of Soviet cannon artillery in the mid-20th century.
Equipping the artillery of the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army (RKKA) with M-30 howitzers played a big role in the defeat of Nazi Germany in the Great Patriotic War.
(hereinafter: wikipedia)
03.
The project of the M-30 howitzer entered the GAU on December 20, 1937.
The gun borrowed a lot from other types of artillery weapons; in particular, the bore arrangement was close to that of the Lubok howitzer, and the recoil brake and limber were also taken from it.
Despite the requirement of the GAU to equip the new howitzer with a wedge breech, the M-30 was equipped with a piston breech borrowed unchanged from the 122-mm howitzer mod. 1910/30
The wheels were taken from the F-22 gun.
The prototype M-30 was completed on March 31, 1938, but factory tests were delayed due to the need to refine the howitzer.
Field tests of the howitzer took place from September 11 to November 1, 1938.
Although, according to the conclusion of the commission, the gun did not pass the field tests (during the tests, the beds broke twice), it was nevertheless recommended to send the gun for military tests.
04.
The development of the gun was difficult.
On December 22, 1938, three modified samples were submitted for military trials,
again revealed a number of shortcomings.
It was recommended to modify the gun and conduct repeated ground tests,
and do not conduct new military tests.
However, in the summer of 1939, military tests had to be repeated.
Only on September 29, 1939, the M-30 was put into service under the official name “122-mm divisional howitzer mod. 1938"
05.
The M-30 was used for firing from closed positions at dug-in and openly located enemy manpower.
It was also successfully used to destroy enemy field fortifications (trenches, dugouts, bunkers) and make passages in barbed wire when it was impossible to use mortars.
The barrage fire of the M-30 battery with high-explosive fragmentation shells posed a certain threat to enemy armored vehicles.
The fragments formed during the break were capable of penetrating armor up to 20 mm thick, which was quite enough to destroy armored personnel carriers and the sides of light tanks.
For vehicles with thicker armor, fragments could disable the elements of the undercarriage, guns, and sights.
06.
To destroy enemy tanks and self-propelled guns in self-defense, a cumulative projectile, introduced in 1943, was used.
In his absence, the artillerymen were instructed to fire at the tanks with high-explosive fragmentation shells.
with the installation of a fuse for high-explosive action.
For light and medium tanks, a direct hit by a 122-mm high-explosive projectile was fatal in many cases,
up to the failure of the tower from the shoulder strap.
Heavy "Tigers" were a much more stable target, but in 1943 the Germans recorded a case of heavy damage to tanks of the PzKpfw VI Ausf H "Tiger" type during a combat collision with Soviet SU-122 self-propelled guns armed with M-30 howitzers.
07.
The M-30 howitzer had a fairly modern design for its time with a carriage with sliding beds and sprung wheels.
The barrel was a prefabricated structure of a pipe, a casing and a screw-on breech with a bolt.
The M-30 was equipped with a piston single-stroke breech, a hydraulic recoil brake, a hydropneumatic knurler, and had a separate-sleeve loading.
08.
The younger takes pictures of the beds.
09.
The shutter has a mechanism for the forced extraction of the spent cartridge case when it is opened after the shot.
The descent is made by pressing the trigger with the help of a trigger cord connected to it.
10.
The gun was equipped with a Hertz artillery panorama for firing from closed positions, the same sight was also used for direct fire.
11.
The breech of the gun on the right side.
12.
Anti-recoil devices - otkatnik and knurler.
14.
Muzzle cut of the barrel. You can see the rifling strips.
15.
Flywheel for vertical aiming of the gun. The wooden handle has survived.
16.
Toothed sector of the vertical aiming mechanism of the gun.
The famous 122-mm howitzer D-30 was withdrawn from service with the Ground Forces of the Russian Army by order of Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. Talks about the removal of this gun from service have been going on since the early 2000s, but the decision was made only now, when these serviceable guns are practically gone in the troops.
Since the 1960s, the D-30 howitzer has been in service with many countries of the world and has taken part in most modern conflicts. This gun is used for the ceremonial noon shot in St. Petersburg.
The Main Missile and Artillery Directorate (GRAU) of the Ministry of Defense reported that the head of the military department ordered that all D-30 howitzers in the brigades of the Ground Forces be transferred to storage bases by the end of 2013. In return, the troops will receive a towed version of the Msta self-propelled howitzer or Akatsiya self-propelled gun mounts of 152-mm caliber. D-30 howitzers will remain only in units of the Airborne Forces and in one of the air assault brigades of the Southern Military District, the Izvestia newspaper reports.
Production of the D-30 was discontinued in the early 1990s. The guns in the troops are badly worn out and require major repairs and restoration. It is easier to write them off and switch to a single artillery caliber of 152 mm, - said the representative of the GRAU.
He explained that the 122-mm projectile is weaker than the 152-mm one, and this factor cannot be compensated for by the higher accuracy of the D-30 fire than that of the Msta and 2S3 Akatsiya. In modern conditions, there are many armored and well-protected targets on the battlefield, against which a large caliber is required.
Most foreign armies switched to 155 mm caliber. The United States recently adopted the M-777 towed as well as helicopter-transported howitzer. Israel, France, Great Britain and others have new guns of this caliber.
However, the troops believe that it is too early to write off the D-30, since it has a number of undeniable advantages - high transportability, including on the external load of the Mi-8 helicopter. The howitzer is easy to parachute, but the Mstu is impossible. D-30 weighs 3.2 tons, "Msta-B" - more than seven. The carrying capacity of the Mi-8 on an external sling is up to 3.5 tons. I picked up a howitzer, and forward, - an airborne officer explained to Izvestia. This primarily explains the preservation of the D-30 in the landing units.
An expert on modern armed conflicts, Vyacheslav Tseluiko, explained to the publication that the D-30’s combat accuracy is one of the highest in the history of the Armed Forces. “122 mm shells are, of course, weaker than 152 mm shells, but there are adequate tasks for them too. In many situations, it is more profitable from the point of view of supply to use 122-mm guns. For example, if one task requires three trucks of 122-mm shells or four 152-mm shells. It is better, of course, to choose the first one,” Tsuluiko explained.
According to the expert, the D-30 is a gun of light forces - the Airborne Forces and separate air assault brigades, and motorized rifle brigades do not need them.
DATA FOR 2012 (standard replenishment)M-30 - M1938
122 mm howitzer. Developed in 1938 by the Motovilikha Plants Design Bureau (Perm) under the leadership of Fedor Fedorovich Petrov. Serial production of howitzers began in 1939 at three factories at once - incl. at the Motovilikhinskiye Zavody (Perm) and at the artillery production of the Uralmash plant (Sverdlovsk, since 1942 - Artillery Plant No. 9 with OKB-9). The howitzer was produced until 1955. A total of 16887 guns / 19266 guns were produced ( according to other data - http://www.ugmk.com). In the post-war period, the howitzer was in service for a long time in parts of the Siberian and Ural military districts.
Design- classic with a two-bed carriage and a rigidly fixed shield with a raised central sheet. Rifle barrel without muzzle brake. The carriage is identical to that of the 152 mm howitzer. Large diameter wheels are equipped with one-piece ramps filled with sponge rubber. Coulters on the beds of two types - for hard and soft soil.
TTX guns:
Calculation - 8 people
Caliber - 121.9 mm
The length of the gun in the stowed position - 5900 mm
Barrel length - 2800 mm (22.7 caliber)
The width of the gun in the stowed position - 1975 mm
Height - 1820 mm
Vertical pointing angles - from -3 to + 63.5 degrees
Horizontal pointing angles - sector 49 degrees
Traveling maximum weight - 2900 kg
Maximum combat weight - 2360 / 2450 kg
Projectile weight:
- 21.76 kg (OS)
Maximum firing range:
- 11800 m (OS)
Direct shot range - 630 m (BCS BP-463)
Initial projectile speed - 508 / 515 m / s
Rate of fire - 5-6 rds / min
Highway towing speed - 50 km / h
Gun resource - 18000 rds. (according to the experience of one of the serial samples)
Ammunition:
- fragmentation projectile (OS) - the main type of howitzer ammunition.
Armor-piercing cumulative projectile (BCS) BP-463 can be used from a howitzer. Practically used very rarely.
Armor penetration - 200 mm at a distance of 630 m
Modifications:
- M-30 - the basic model of a 12-mm howitzer.
SU-122 - self-propelled unit on the T-34 chassis with the M-30 howitzer as a gun. It was mass-produced during the Great Patriotic War.
Status: USSR / Russia
- 2012 - possibly still used for training purposes and definitely in reserve.
Export:
- Bulgaria - a modification of the M-30 howitzer with wheels of a different design was mass-produced.
Hungary - was in service.
GDR - was in service.
China: the howitzer is mass-produced under the names Type 54 and Type 54-1 - the first model is an exact copy of the M-30 howitzer, the second has a number of design differences. Also in the first half of the 1990s, self-propelled guns with the Type 54-1 howitzer were mass-produced on the chassis of the Type 531 armored personnel carrier.
Lebanon:
- 1992 - is in service with 90 guns of all cannon field artillery; it is also part of the Army of South Lebanon (pro-Israeli formations).
Poland - was in service.
Romania - was in service.
Czechoslovakia - was in service.
Yugoslavia - was in service.
Sources:
122-mm howitzer M-30 model 1938. Website http://www.ugmk.com, 2005
Zheltonozhko O. Under the index "D". To the opening of the Museum of the 9th Artillery Plant. Website http://www.otvaga2004.narod.ru, 2012
O "Mally T.J. Modern artillery: guns, MLRS, mortars. M., EKSMO-Press, 2000
Yurchin V. Armed Forces of Lebanon. // Foreign Military Review. No. 5 / 1993
M-30 in the museum on Sapun Mountain
TTX M-30 Weight in combat position The greatest firing range Maximum elevation angle The greatest angle of declination Horizontal firing angle Number of variable charges Rate of fire practical 5-6 shots per minute Highway speed
In order to speed up the design, it was decided to borrow advanced foreign experience. KB-2, which was led by German specialists, began designing. In 1932, tests began on the first experimental sample of the new howitzer, and in 1934 this gun was put into service as the “122-mm howitzer mod. 1934". It was also known under the name "Lubok", from the name of the theme that combines two projects to create a 122-mm divisional howitzer and a 107-mm light howitzer. Barrel of 122 mm howitzer mod. 1934 had a length of 23 calibers, the maximum elevation angle was + 50 °, the horizontal pickup angle was 7 °, the mass in the stowed and combat position was 2800 and 2250 kg, respectively. Like the guns of the First World War period, the new howitzer was mounted on a single-beam carriage (although at that time carriages of a more modern design with sliding beds had already appeared). Another significant drawback of the gun was its wheel drive - metal wheels without tires, but with suspension - which limited the towing speed to twelve kilometers per hour. The gun was produced in 1934-1935 in a small series of 11 units, of which 8 went into trial operation (two four-gun batteries), and the remaining three went to the training platoon of red commanders.
However, in 1936, a serious change in views on the divisional howitzer took place in the GAU - the Lubok project in its original form was no longer considered promising. In particular, gunners were no longer satisfied with a single-beam carriage, and they demanded sliding beds. In addition, there was talk of switching from 122 mm to 107 mm caliber on the grounds that everyone abroad had switched from 120 mm to 105 mm guns. Due to all this, the Lubok was never accepted into service, and the 122-mm howitzer mod. 1910/30
By 1937, it became clear that in the event of a transition to 107-mm caliber, artillery would begin to experience shell hunger - the production capacity for the production of 107-mm ammunition was too small. For the same reason, the project to replace the divisional three-inch guns with 95 mm guns was rejected.
In March 1937, at a Moscow meeting of representatives of the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army (RKKA), it was decided to accept Marshal Yegorov's proposal to develop a more powerful 122-mm howitzer. In September 1937, a separate design team of the Motovilikha Plant, led by F.F. Petrov, was given the task of developing such a weapon.
The project of the M-30 howitzer entered the GAU on December 20, 1937. The gun borrowed a lot from other types of artillery weapons; in particular, the bore arrangement was close to that of the Lubok howitzer, and the recoil brake and limber were also taken from it. Despite the requirement of the GAU to equip the new howitzer with a wedge breech, the M-30 was equipped with a piston breech borrowed unchanged from the 122-mm howitzer mod. 1910/30 The wheels were taken from the F-22 gun. The prototype M-30 was completed on March 31, 1938, but factory tests were delayed due to the need to refine the howitzer. Field tests of the howitzer took place from September 11 to November 1, 1938. Although, according to the conclusion of the commission, the gun did not pass the field tests (during the tests, the beds broke twice), it was nevertheless recommended to send the gun for military tests.
On September 29, 1939, the M-30 was put into service under the official name "122-mm divisional howitzer mod. 1938"
The production of M-30 howitzers began in 1940. Initially, it was carried out by two plants - No. 92 (Gorky) and No. 9 (UZTM). Plant No. 92 produced the M-30 only in 1940, in total this enterprise produced 500 howitzers.
In addition to the production of towed guns, M-30S barrels were produced for mounting on self-propelled artillery mounts (ACS) SU-122.
Serial production of the gun continued until 1955. The successor to the M-30 was the 122-mm D-30 howitzer, which was put into service in 1960.
The M-30 had a fairly modern design for its time with a carriage with sliding beds and sprung wheels. The barrel was a prefabricated structure of a pipe, a casing and a screw-on breech with a bolt. The M-30 was equipped with a piston single-stroke breech, a hydraulic recoil brake, a hydropneumatic knurler, and had a separate-sleeve loading. The shutter has a mechanism for the forced extraction of the spent cartridge case when it is opened after the shot. The descent is made by pressing the trigger on the trigger cord. The gun was equipped with a Hertz artillery panorama for firing from closed positions, the same sight was also used for direct fire. The carriage with sliding beds is equipped with a balancing mechanism and a shield cover. Metal wheels with rubber tires, leaf springs. Carriage of tools by mechanical traction was usually carried out without a limber directly behind the tractor, the maximum allowable transportation speed was 50 km / h on the highway and 35 km / h on cobbled bridges and country roads. The horse-drawn howitzer was transported behind the limber by six horses. When breeding beds, suspension is turned off automatically, in the absence of space or time for breeding beds, shooting is allowed with the beds flattened in the stowed position. The angle of horizontal fire is reduced to 1°30′.
The M-30 fired a full range of 122mm howitzer shells, including a variety of old Russian and imported grenades. After the Great Patriotic War, new types of ammunition were added to the range of shells indicated below, for example, the cumulative 3BP1 shell. The 53-OF-462 steel high-explosive fragmentation grenade, when the fuse was set to fragmentation action, created about 1000 lethal fragments when it exploded, the effective radius of destruction of manpower was about 30 meters.
The M-30 was a divisional weapon. According to the state of 1939, the rifle division had two artillery regiments - a light one (a division of 76-mm guns and two mixed divisions of two batteries of 122-mm howitzers and one battery of 76-mm guns each) and a howitzer (a division of 122-mm howitzers and a division 152 mm howitzers), a total of 28 pieces of 122 mm howitzers. In June 1940, another division of 122-mm howitzers was added to the howitzer regiment, in total there were 32 of them in the division. In July 1941, the howitzer regiment was expelled, the number of howitzers was reduced to 16. In this state, Soviet rifle divisions went through the entire war. Since December 1942, the guards rifle divisions had 3 divisions with 2 batteries of 76-mm guns and one battery of 122-mm howitzers each, 12 howitzers in total. Since December 1944, these divisions had a howitzer artillery regiment (5 batteries), 20 122-mm howitzers. From June 1945, rifle divisions were also transferred to this state. In the mountain rifle divisions in 1939-1940 there was one division of 122-mm howitzers (3 batteries of 3 guns), a total of 9 howitzers. Since 1941, a howitzer artillery regiment (2 divisions of 3 four-gun batteries each) has been introduced in its place, 24 howitzers have become. From the beginning of 1942, only one two-battery division remains, only eight howitzers. Since 1944, howitzers have been excluded from the state of mountain rifle divisions. The motorized division had 2 mixed divisions (a battery of 76-mm guns and 2 batteries of 122-mm howitzers in each), a total of 12 howitzers. The tank division had one battalion of 122-mm howitzers, 12 in total. Until August 1941, cavalry divisions had 2 batteries of 122-mm howitzers, a total of 8 guns. Since August 1941, divisional artillery was excluded from the cavalry divisions. Until the end of 1941, 122-mm howitzers were in rifle brigades - one battery, 4 guns. 122-mm howitzers were also part of the howitzer artillery brigades of the reserve of the Supreme High Command.
The M-30 was used for firing from closed positions at dug-in and openly located enemy manpower. It was also successfully used to destroy enemy field fortifications (trenches, dugouts, bunkers) and make passages in barbed wire when it was impossible to use mortars. The barrage fire of the M-30 battery with high-explosive fragmentation shells posed a certain threat to enemy armored vehicles. The fragments formed during the break were capable of penetrating armor up to 20 mm thick, which was quite enough to destroy armored personnel carriers and the sides of light tanks. For vehicles with thicker armor, fragments could disable the elements of the undercarriage, guns, and sights. To destroy enemy tanks and self-propelled guns in self-defense, a cumulative projectile, introduced in 1943, was used. In his absence, the gunners were ordered to fire high-explosive fragmentation shells at tanks with the fuse set to high-explosive action. For light and medium tanks, a direct hit by a 122-mm high-explosive projectile in many cases was fatal, up to the turret being blown off the shoulder strap.
At the beginning of World War II, a significant number (several hundred) of M-30s were captured by the Wehrmacht. The gun was adopted by the Wehrmacht as a heavy howitzer 12.2 cm s.F.H.396(r) and was actively used in battles against the Red Army. Since 1943, for this gun (as well as a number of earlier captured Soviet howitzers of the same caliber), the Germans even launched mass production of shells. In 1943, 424 thousand shots were fired, in 1944 and 1945. - 696.7 thousand and 133 thousand shots, respectively. Captured M-30s were used not only on the Eastern Front, but also in the fortifications of the Atlantic Wall on the northwestern coast of France.
The most difficult thing is to talk about tools that have been around for a long time. In the pre-war period, according to this indicator, the first place should be given, without hesitation, to the 122-mm divisional howitzer of the 1910/30 model.
Probably, there is no military conflict of that time, where these howitzers would not light up. Yes, and on the footage of the chronicle of the Great Patriotic War, these guns are constant heroes of battles. And you can see them from both sides of the front. The command "fire" sounds in Russian, German, Finnish, Romanian. Opponents did not disdain to use trophies. Agree, this is a fairly important indicator of the reliability, quality and good combat characteristics of the gun.
First of all, it is necessary to explain the historical necessity of the appearance of this particular weapon. We have already talked about the problems of the Red Army of that time. As well as about the problems of the entire USSR. Deterioration of guns, lack of opportunities for the production of high-quality spare parts, moral and technical obsolescence of weapons.
Add to this the lack of engineering and design personnel in the industry, the obsolescence of production technologies, the absence of much of what was already used in the defense industry of Western countries.
And all this against the backdrop of an openly hostile encirclement of the country. Against the background of the West's frank preparations for war with the Soviet Union.
Naturally, the leadership of the Red Army and the USSR were well aware that without taking urgent measures to rearm the Red Army, the country in the fairly near future would not only be an outsider of the world's artillery powers, but would also be forced to spend huge amounts of money on the purchase of obviously outdated Western artillery systems. Modern artillery was needed here and now.
In the 20s, the Red Army was armed with two 48-line (1 line \u003d 0.1 inches \u003d 2.54 mm) field howitzers at once: samples of 1909 and 1910. Developments of firms "Krupp" (Germany) and "Schneider" (France). In the mid-20s, after the final transition to the metric system, it was these guns that became 122-mm howitzers.
Comparison of these howitzers is beyond the scope of the authors of this article. Therefore, the answer to the question of why the howitzer of the 1910 model was chosen for modernization will be voiced with only one comment. This howitzer was more promising and had more potential for further modernization in terms of range.
With equal, and sometimes better (for example, in terms of the mass of a heavy high-explosive grenade - 23 kg versus 15-17 for Western samples) indicators, the howitzer decently lost in firing range to Western models (the German 10.5 cm Feldhaubitze 98/09 system or the British Royal Ordnance Quick Firing 4.5 inch howitzer): 7.7 km vs. 9.7 km.
In the mid-20s, the understanding of the imminent possible backlog of Soviet howitzer artillery was transformed into a direct instruction to start work in this direction. In 1928, the Design Bureau of the Perm Ordnance Plant (Motovilikhinsky) was given the task of modernizing the howitzer and increasing its range to the level of the best examples. At the same time, the weight advantage of grenades must be maintained.
Vladimir Nikolaevich Sidorenko became the head of the design team.
What is the difference between a 1930 howitzer and a 1910 howitzer?
First of all, the new howitzer is distinguished by a chamber, which was lengthened by boring the rifled part of the barrel by one caliber. This was done in order to ensure the safety of firing new grenades. The required initial speed of a heavy grenade could only be obtained by increasing the charge. And this, in turn, increased the length of the ammunition by 0.64 calibers.
And then simple physics. There was either no room left in the standard case for all the beams, or there was not enough volume to expand the gases formed during the combustion of gunpowder if an increased charge was used. In the latter case, an attempt to shoot led to a rupture of the gun, because due to the lack of volume for the expansion of gases in the chamber, their pressure and temperature greatly increased, and this led to a sharp increase in the rate of the chemical reaction of gunpowder combustion.
The next change in design is caused by a decent increase in recoil when firing a new grenade. Strengthened the recoil devices, the lifting mechanism and the carriage itself. The old mechanisms could not withstand firing long-range ammunition.
From here came the next upgrade. The increase in range required the creation of new sights. Here, the designers did not reinvent the wheel. The so-called normalized sight was installed on the modernized howitzer.
The same sights were installed at that time on all modernized guns. The differences were only in cutting the distance scale and fastenings. In the modern version, the sight would be called single or unified.
As a result of all the upgrades, the total mass of the gun in combat position increased slightly - 1466 kilograms.
Modernized howitzers, which are today in various museums around the world, can be recognized by markings. Embossed inscriptions are obligatory on the trunks: "Elongated chamber". On the carriage - "reinforced" and "Mod. 1910/30" on the spindle, adjusting ring and back cover of the rollback.
It was in this form that the howitzer was adopted in 1930 by the Red Army. Produced at the same plant in Perm.
Structurally, the 122-mm howitzer mod. 1910/30 (the main series according to the drawings "letter B") consisted of:
- a barrel from a pipe fastened with a casing and a muzzle or a monoblock barrel without a muzzle;
- a piston valve that opens to the right. Closing and opening the shutter was carried out by turning the handle in one step;
- a single-bar carriage, which included a cradle, recoil devices assembled in a skid, a machine tool, guidance mechanisms, a running gear, sights and a shield cover.
The towing of the gun was carried out by horse (six horses) or mechanical traction. Be sure to use the front and charging box. The transport speed was only 6 km/h on wooden wheels. Springs and metal wheels appeared after being put into service, respectively, the towing speed increased.
There is another merit of the upgraded 122-mm howitzer. She became the "mother" of the Soviet self-propelled howitzer SU-5-2. The machine was created as part of the design of the divisional artillery triplex. Based on the chassis of the T-26 tank, the SU-5 installations were created.
SU-5-1 - self-propelled gun with 76 mm gun.
SU-5-2 - self-propelled gun with 122 mm howitzer.
SU-5-3 - self-propelled gun with 152mm mortar.
The machine was created at the experimental engineering plant named after S. M. Kirov (factory No. 185). Passed factory and state tests. It was recommended for adoption. 30 self-propelled guns were built. However, they were used to solve problems that were completely unusual for them.
Light tanks were intended for offensive operations. This means that tank units do not need howitzers, but assault guns. The SU-5-2 was used as an artillery support weapon. And in this case, the need for quick movements disappeared. Portable howitzers were preferable.
Nevertheless, these machines, even with such a small number, are combat. In 1938, five self-propelled howitzers fought with the Japanese at Lake Khasan as part of the 2nd mechanized brigade, the reviews of the brigade command were positive.
The SU-5-2 also took part in the campaign against Poland in 1939. But information about the hostilities has not been preserved. Most likely (considering that the vehicles were part of the 32nd Tank Brigade), things did not come to battle.
But in the first period of the Patriotic War, the SU-5-2 fought, but did not make much weather. In total, there were 17 cars in the western districts, 9 in the Kiev district and 8 in the Western Special. It is clear that by the autumn of 1941 most of them were destroyed or taken as trophies by the Wehrmacht.
And how did the "classic" howitzers fight? It is clear that any weapon is best tested in combat.
In 1939, modernized 122-mm howitzers were used during the events at Khalkhin Gol. Moreover, the number of guns was constantly increasing. This is largely due to the excellent results of the work of Soviet artillerymen. According to Japanese officers, Soviet howitzers were superior to anything they had encountered before.
Naturally, the new Soviet systems became the subject of the "hunt" of the Japanese. The barrage of Soviet howitzers completely discouraged the Japanese soldiers from attacking. The result of such a "hunt" was quite tangible losses of the Red Army. 31 guns were damaged or irretrievably lost. Moreover, the Japanese managed to capture a fairly large number of trophies.
So, during a night attack on the positions of the 149th Infantry Regiment, on the night of July 7-8, the Japanese captured the battery of Lieutenant Aleshkin (6th Battery of the 175th Artillery Regiment). When trying to recapture the battery, the battery commander died, and the personnel suffered significant losses. Subsequently, the Japanese used this battery in their own army.
The finest hour of the 122-mm howitzers of the 1910/30 model was the Soviet-Finnish war. For various reasons, the howitzer artillery of the Red Army was represented by these guns. According to some reports, the number of howitzers only in the 7th Army (first echelon) then reached almost 700 (according to others 624) units.
In the same way as it happened at Khalkhin Gol, howitzers became a "tidbit" for the Finnish army. The losses of the Red Army in Karelia, according to various estimates, ranged from 44 to 56 guns. Some of these howitzers also became part of the Finnish army and were subsequently used by the Finns quite effectively.
By the beginning of World War II, the guns we are describing were the most common howitzers in the Red Army. According to various estimates, the total number of such systems reached 5900 (5578) guns. And the staffing of parts and connections was from 90 to 100%!
At the beginning of the war, only in the western districts there were 2752 122-mm howitzers of the 1910/30 model. But at the beginning of 1942, there were less than 2000 of them left (according to some estimates, 1900; there are no exact data).
Such monstrous losses played a negative role in the fate of these honored veterans. Naturally, the new production was created for more advanced guns. Such systems were the M-30. They became the main howitzers already in 1942.
But still, at the beginning of 1943, howitzers of the 1910/30 model accounted for more than 20% (1400 pieces) of the total number of such weapons and continued their combat path. And we made it to Berlin! Outdated, shattered by fragments, repeatedly repaired, but reached! Although it is difficult to see them on the victory chronicle. And then they also lit up on the Soviet-Japanese front.
Many authors claim that 122-mm howitzers of the 1910/30 model were outdated by 1941. And they were used by the Red Army "for poverty". But a simple, but logical, question arises: what criteria are used to determine old age?
Yes, these howitzers could not compete with the same M-30, which will be our next story. But the gun performed its tasks with sufficient quality. There is such a term - necessary sufficiency.
So, these howitzers had exactly the necessary efficiency. And in many ways, the possibility of increasing the M-30 fleet in the Red Army was facilitated by the heroic work of these old but powerful howitzers.
TTX 122-mm howitzer model 1910/30:
Caliber, mm: 122 (121.92)
Maximum range of fire with OF-462 grenade, m: 8,875
Gun weight
in the stowed position, kg: 2510 (with front end)
in combat position, kg: 1466
Transfer time to combat position, sec: 30-40
Angles of fire, deg.
- elevation (max): 45
- reduction (min): -3
- horizontal: 4.74
Calculation, people: 8
Rate of fire, rds / min: 5-6
We express our gratitude to the Museum of the Russian Military in Padikovo for the information provided.