Su-76 Self-Propelled Gun

The Su-76 self-propelled gun was a mobile artillery piece used by the Red Army during World War II. It was the Zis-3 76-mm field gun which was mounted on the chassis of the T-70 tank. Introduced in 1943, it had been produced by the thousands by 1945. However, by the end of the war, it would be retired from service as it was replaced by heavier and more lethal mobile artillery weapons. Most of them would be sent over to North Korea and China to supply their local armies.

Aside from being a field artillery weapon, the 76-mm gun of the Su-76 was a useful anti-tank gun. This is how it started off; as a mobile anti-tank weapon, but it would also be used to provide fire support to front line troops as the Su-76M version. The gun fired 6.21-kg (13.7-lb) shells to the maximum distance of 13.2 km (14.450 yards), with a muzzle velocity of 700 m/s (2,265 ft per second). However, the top of the tracked vehicle that propelled the gun was open to the elements; thus the crew suffered the cold weather conditions of winter and they were exposed to incoming enemy rounds and shrapnels.

Specifications

Type: self-propelled gun

Weight: 10,800 kg (23,810 lb)

Caliber of Gun: 76.2-mm

Chassis: T-70 tank

Length: 4.88 m (16 ft)

Width: 2.73 m (8 ft, 11 inch)

Height: 2.17 m (7 ft, 1.4 inch)

Powerplant: two GAZ, 6-cylinder, gasoline engines, each delivering 70 horsepower.

Maximum Speed: 45 km/h (28 mph)

Range: 450 km (280 miles)

Crew: 4

Below, the Su-76 self-propelled gun in an open Great Patriotic War museum in Belgorod.

The first factory model prototype of the Su-76, the Su-12.

Below, the renowned Soviet Su-76M supplying close-range artillery support to the Red Army infantry in January 1944.

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AGM-158 JASSM

The AGM-158 JASSM is an air-to-surface cruise missile developed and manufactured by Lockheed Martin. It has been in service with the US Air Force since 2003, with a total of 4,800 missiles in store. The AGM-158A and AGM-158B are close range weapons, with a reach of 230 and 575 miles respectively. The AGM-158D version, however, is a medium-range missile, being able to reach the maximum distance of 1,200 miles (1,900 km). It is also in the arsenal of the Australian, Finnish, and Polish Air Force.

The acronym 'JASSM' stands for 'Joint Air-to-Surface Stand-off Missile. It is powered by a Williams F107 turbojet engine, with one-stage HP turbine and 2-stage LP turbine, and annular combustor chamber, which burns aviation fuel. Its launching platforms are the F-15E Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-35 Lightning II, B-2 Spirit, and B-52 bomber. It is guided by inertial navigation system, GPS, and imaging infrared. The missile is fitted with folding arrow wings, which swing out as soon as it is launched. It has a low signature in the radar as it is characterized by stealth.

Specifications

Type: Stand-Off Cruise Missile

Weight: 1,200 kg (2,600 pounds)

Length: 4.29 m (14 ft, 1 inch)

Width: 63.5 cm (25 inch)

Wing Span: 2.7 m (8 ft, 10 inch)

Warhead: 454-kg WDU-42 penetrator

Gidance: GPS, INS

Below, the AGM-158A JASSM, showing the wing positions.

The AGM-158D is black and it is launched from an F-16 aircraft.

The AGM-158 in action (video)

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Wespe Self-Propelled Artillery

The SdKfz 124 Wespe self-propelled artillery was a 105-mm field howitzer mounted on the chassis of the Panzer II light tank. In the Summer of 1942, the German 105mm leFH 18 field howitzer was set up behind an open-topped armored shield on the rear portion of the tank hull. Maximum armor thickness of the steel shield was 18-mm. The next year, in 1943, it was assigned to front line units of the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front.

The Wespe self-propelled howitzer was so successful in its artillery fire support role that Adolf Hitler himself ordered that all available Panzer II chassis should be allocated to the Wespe alone. The main factory of the mobile artillery piece was located in Famo, Poland. There, production of this weapon was fast, and by mid 1944 more than 600 Wespe self-propelled howitzers had been built.

A typical Wespe went into action carrying its crew of five, which included the driver, and 32 rounds of ammunition. A battery of this artillery piece was completely mobile, with the forward observer being carried in light-armored vehicles. The fire orders were relayed back to the battery by radio from the advanced observation point.

Specifications

Type: self-propelled howitzer

Artillery Piece Caliber: 105mm

Weight: 11,000 kg

Length: 4.81 m

Width: 2.28 m

Height: 2.3 m

Powerplant: one Maybach, 6-cylinder, gasoline engine, developing 140 HP.

Maximum Speed: 40 km/h (24.85 mph)

Range: 220 km (137 miles)

Armament: one 105mm howitzer and one 7.92mm machine gun.

Crew: 5

Below, the Wespe self-propelled artillery on the Eastern Front in 1944.

The mobile leFH 18 providing fire support to the German Infantry.

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M7 Priest

The M7 Priest was a WW2 self-propelled howitzer which entered service with the US Army in April 1942. It was based on the standard M3 Lee medium tank chassis. It had a large open topped structure that replaced the original turret. It first saw combat action in North Africa, and later in Italy in 1943, and Normandy in 1944. It was also fielded by the British Army.

The M7 Priest featured a 105-mm M2A1 howitzer, which was mounted slightly to the right of the tracked vehicle. The artillery piece had a 45 degrees traverse and a -5 to +35 degrees elevation. The first production batch of the Priest could carry 57 rounds, but later production variants could carry 69 shells. The increase was possible because they reduced the number of folding crew seats.

The M7 105-mm howitzer could fire a full range of ammunition types, such as high explosive (HE), high explosive anti-tank (HEAT), white phosphorous (WP), and smoke. It had a maximum range of 10,424 m (11,400 yards), with a sustained rate of fire of 8 rounds per minute. The Priest was also fitted with a 12.7mm (.050-cal.) M2 Browning machine gun, which was mounted on ring located on forward right side of vehicle.

The M7 self-propelled howitzer was powered by a Continental R975 air-cooled radial engine. It moved at the maximum speed of 38.6 km/h (24 mph), with a range of 193 km (120 miles), using 175 gallons of gasoline. It weighed 23 tons. It featured a three-piece transmission housing and a vertical volute suspension, with the return roller centered around the bogie assembly.

Below, the M7 Priest Howitzer Motor Carriage, as it was officially called, in 1942.

Top view of the M7

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AGM-86 ALCM

The AGM-86 ALCM is a medium-range cruise missile in the arsenal of the US Air Force. It flies at the average subsonic speed of 900 km/h and it uses the Boeing B-52H Stratofortress bomber as a launching platform. It has been in service since 1980 and it has been produced by the thousands by Boeing Aerospace Company in the AGM-86B/86C/86D versions. 'ALCM' stands for 'Air Launched Cruise Missile'.

Guided by inertial navigation system and TERCOM, it is powered by a turbofan jet engine at a constant subsonic speed. It can be launched from either a low or a high altitude. It is fitted with stabilizing folding wings, which spread out as soon as it is dropped from the aircraft. It also has horizontal tail fins. The AGM-86B variant is equipped with a nuclear warhead, while the AGM-86C/D versions are armed with either high explosive or fragmentation warhead. The AGM-86A was the prototype and, as such, it was not mass-produced.

Specifications

Type: medium-range cruise missile

Launching Platform: aircraft (Boeing B-52H)

Weight: 1,430 kg (3,150 pounds)

Length: 6.3 m (20 ft, 9 inch)

Diameter: 62 cm (24.5 inch)

Propulsion: one William International F107 WR-101 turbofan jet engine.

Maximum Speed: 900 km/h

Range: 2,400+ km (1,500 miles)

Warhead: HE, fragmentation, and nuclear

The missile employs a terrain contour mapping and inertial navigation system.

The AGM-86 ALCM historical Boeing Aerospace video

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122 mm Howitzer M1938

The 122 mm howitzer M1938 was a field artillery piece used by the Soviet Union during World War II. It was also employed by the North Korean Army during the Korean armed conflict and by the North Vietnamese Army in the Vietnam War. It was massively produced by the Soviet Union State-run Motovilikha factories between 1939 and 1955, with over 19,000 pieces built. It was used to develop the Su-122 self-propelled artillery.

The 122 mm howitzer M1938 was designed by Fyodor Petrov as a replacement for the 122-mm M1909 gun, which had been fielded during World War I. It is a reliable and practical design, easy to carry around as it was towed to the front line by truck. Fitted with a small, steel-plate shield, the howitzer was mounted on a two-wheeled split-trail carriage and employed a hydro-pneumatic recoil system. It fired either high explosive or fragmentation shells. The howitzer barrel liner was made of high-quality steel made to withstand wear.

Specifications

Type: field howitzer

Caliber: 121.92 mm

Weight: 3,100 kg

Barrel Length: 2.8 m; L/23

Breech Type: interrupted thread

Recoil System: hydro-pneumatic

Elevation: -3 to +63 degrees

Traverse: 49 degrees

Maximum Range: 11.8 km

Crew: 8

Below, the 122 mm howitzer M1938 in 1944 in Operation Bagration, during WW2.

The Russian artillery piece in an open museum.

Below, the rear part of the howitzer. You can see the breech.

 

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240 mm Howitzer M1

The 240 mm howitzer M1 was a 9.45-inch heavy artillery piece in service with the US Army during World War II and the Korean War. It had been designed in 1940, based on the 240mm M1918 model, which in turn had been developed from the French 28-cm Schneider fielded by both the French and Russian Army. Introduced in 1943, it was used in combat for the first time in January 1944, during the Allied invasion of Italy, also in France and Germany after the landing on Normandy.

The 240 mm M1918 howitzer was too heavy and cumbersome to tow around as it traveled in several pieces and then it had to be painstakingly assembled by means of hoists and ropes at the firing point. Thus, the US Army dropped it, scrapping the 330 pieces that had been built, as it saw the urgent need of a new heavy artillery piece that was easier to set up and carry around. This is how they decided to develop a new one from scratch but based on the M1918 design and caliber. After several field tests and improvement, the new weapon was finally standardized in May 1943 as the 240-mm Howitzer M1. After a long service in the US Army, it would finally be phased out in 1959.

The 240 mm howitzer M1 was a very accurate and powerful weapon. It was fitted with an interrupted screw breech, with dropping block balanced by springs. It fired 163.6-kg (360-pound) shells to a maximum range of 23.14 km (25,225 yards), using a separate load charge. The howitzer was mounted on a split trail carriage. Towing was done by a 38-ton, tracked M6 vehicle or by heavy trucks on a semi-trailer. Upon arrival at the firing point, it was unloaded by means of winches on the tracked vehicle.

Specifications

Type: heavy howitzer

Caliber: 240mm (9.45 inch)

Total Weight: 29.348 tons (64,700-pound)

Shell: high explosive/separate load

Barrel Length: 8.41 m (331-inch)

Rifling: 68 grooves (right-hand twist)

Recoil System: hydro-pneumatic

Breech Type: interrupted screw

Elevation: +15 to +65 degrees

Traverse: 22.5 degrees

Muzzle Velocity: 701 m/s (2,300 ft/s)

Maximum Range: 23.14 km (25,225 yards)

Below, the 240-mm Howitzer M1 in 1943, when it entered service. No spades are fitted here as it is set up on a concrete gunpark

The 240 mm M1 in Korea, as part of the 213th FA Battalion, 45th Infantry Div., north of Yang-gu in 1953.

The first design of the heavy artillery piece, showing how the gun could be carried on a truck semi-trailer.

The 240 mm Howitzer M1 in Action in WW2 (video)

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