Military review and politics. Military Review and Politics What to put on Su 152

5 years and 2 months ago Comments: 7

The SU-152 is a Tier 7 Soviet tank destroyer with a choice of two guns. Moreover, this choice will have a serious impact on the gameplay and preferred tactics, so it should be taken seriously. So, you will have to choose between the stock ML-20 high-explosive gun with a caliber of 152 mm and the top-end D-25S gun with a caliber of 122 mm. The guns are really very different, so the same tactics will not work for them.

Introduction and characteristics

ML-20 is a standard “high explosive”.

They are available on it, but their penetration is only 135 mm, which is very little at the seventh level. The one-time damage, of course, is simply huge: as much as 700 units. HEAT shells with the same damage and penetration of 250 mm are also available. The main ones for ML-20 are with damage of 910 units and penetration of 86 mm. Since the ML-20 is a high-explosive weapon, this gun takes a long time to bring down (3.4 seconds), and a hit from a long distance due to the accuracy of 0.5 is a real success. The rate of fire is 3.39 rounds per minute, which is not so bad for such a weapon.

The D-25S with a caliber of 122 mm is a worthy weapon for its level.

One-time damage of 390 units with a rate of fire of 3.39 rounds per minute forms a simply magnificent: 3162 units! Naturally, with a rammer this value will increase by another 10%. The damage per minute of the ML-20 when using high-explosive fragmentation shells is 3084, but do not forget about low penetration. If penetration is incomplete, land mines cause significantly less damage. If you fire armor-piercing or cumulative bullets from the ML-20, the damage per minute will drop to 2373.

The D-25S can hardly be called an accurate weapon (0.41), and, to put it mildly, it does not fire very quickly (2.9 seconds). Although compared to the ML-20, it, of course, wins in these indicators. The penetration rate of an armor-piercing projectile for the D-25S is 175 mm (217 mm for a sub-caliber), which is not much for a level seven tank destroyer. Serious problems can arise with opponents of a higher level.

So, the D-25S is better in almost all respects, does this mean that it is necessary to install this particular weapon? You can't say that. As mentioned above, the gameplay changes greatly when choosing one weapon or another. The D-25S involves shooting from medium and sometimes long range. allows you to remain unnoticed. But the ML-20 is effective only at close range, so stealth can only be maintained until the first shot. But simply huge damage will allow you to often send opponents to the hangar even with one hit.

Conclusion.

So here There is no clear answer, it all depends on your preferred tactics. If you prefer to play the role of a classic ambush tank destroyer, then you should install the D-25S. In general, with the ML-20 you can also stand in the bushes and shoot from afar, but due to the terrible accuracy you will rarely hit. ML-20 suggests more aggressive play and close combat. Try driving with both guns and choose the one with which you will show the best results.

Classification:	Assault gun
Combat weight, t:
Layout diagram:	Engine and transmission compartments at the rear, combat and control compartments at the front
Crew, persons:
Years of production:
Years of operation:
Number of issued, pcs.:
Main operators:
Length with gun forward, mm:
Case width, mm:
Height, mm:
Ground clearance, mm:
Booking
Armor type:	Homogeneous rolled surface hardened
Hull rear (bottom), mm/deg.:
Feed cutting, mm/deg.:
Cabin roof, mm/deg.:
Armament
Caliber and brand of gun:	152.4 mm ML-20/S. sample 43g.
Gun type:	Rifled howitzer gun
Barrel length, calibers:
Gun ammunition:
Angles VN, degrees:
Angles GN, degrees:
Firing range, km:	3800 m (direct fire) maximum 6200 m
	Telescopic ST-10, Hertz panorama
Other weapons:	The fighting compartment contained two 7.62-mm PPSh submachine guns with 1,278 rounds of ammunition (18 discs) and 25 F-1 grenades; later the ammunition for the PPSh was increased to 1,562 rounds of ammunition (22 discs).
Mobility
Engine's type:	V-shaped 12-cylinder diesel liquid cooled
Highway speed, km/h:
Speed ​​over rough terrain, km/h:
Cruising range on the highway, km:
Cruising range over rough terrain, km:
Specific power, l. s./t:
Suspension type:	Individual torsion bar
Climbability, degrees:
Wall to be overcome, m:
Ditch to be overcome, m:
Fordability, m:

Prerequisites

Creation

Mass production

Deep modernization.

The myth of the SU-152

Description of design

Armored hull and deckhouse

Armament

Engine

Transmission

Chassis

Fire-fighting equipment

Surveillance equipment and sights

Electrical equipment

Means of communication

Modifications

Combat use

In service

Project evaluation

Surviving copies

SU-152- a heavy Soviet self-propelled artillery mount (SPG) from the times of the Great Patriotic War, built on the basis of the KV-1S heavy tank and armed with a powerful 152-mm ML-20S howitzer gun. In terms of its combat mission, the SU-152 was equally a heavy tank destroyer and a heavy assault gun; could perform the functions of a self-propelled howitzer to a limited extent. Construction of the first SU-152 prototype called Object 236(Also KV-14 or SU-14) was completed at the Chelyabinsk Kirov Plant (ChKZ) on January 24, 1943, and its serial production began the following month. Due to the discontinuation of the KV-1S base tank in December 1943, the SU-152 was replaced in production by the equally armed and better armored ISU-152; a total of 671 self-propelled artillery units of this type were built.

The SU-152 made its combat debut in the summer of 1943 at the Battle of Kursk, where it proved itself to be an effective destroyer of the new heavy German tanks and self-propelled guns. Because the new technology the enemy often had its own “animal” names, for example “Tiger” or “Panther”, a consequence of the success of the SU-152 in the fight against it was its unofficial nickname "St. John's wort" in the Red Army. The SU-152 was used most actively in the second half of 1943 and the beginning of 1944, later their number in the troops steadily decreased due to combat losses and wear and tear of the chassis and engine-transmission group. Replacing failed SU-152 in Soviet units self-propelled artillery became more advanced ISU-152. A small number of vehicles fought until the end of the war and were in service with the Soviet Army in post-war years. After being removed from service, the remaining SU-152s were almost all scrapped for metal, and to this day only four self-propelled guns of this type have survived.

Story

Prerequisites

At the very end of 1941, the Red Army successfully carried out several large-scale offensive operations. Based on the results of the analysis of these military operations, Soviet commanders repeatedly expressed their desire to have in their hands a powerful and mobile means of fire support for advancing tanks and infantry. It turned out that the high-explosive effect of a 76-mm tank gun projectile on medium T-34 tanks and heavy KV-1 tanks is not sufficient against powerful wooden-earth fortifications, not to mention long-term reinforced concrete ones. Since the winter campaign of 1941-1942 ended on an optimistic note for the USSR (the Wehrmacht was defeated near Moscow, Rostov-on-Don was liberated, and a number of important bridgeheads were captured in the vicinity of the lost Kharkov), the Soviet military leadership planned the further development of these successes. Accordingly, in the course of the proposed offensive actions, a meeting with long-term enemy fortifications was expected and the need arose for a powerful fire support vehicle to destroy them - a “pillbox destroyer.” Before the start of the Great Patriotic War, the Red Army received such a specialized vehicle - the KV-2 heavy tank, armed with a 152-mm M-10 howitzer. However, production of the KV-2 was discontinued in July 1941, a little later the 152-mm M-10 howitzer was also discontinued, and the losses of already produced vehicles were such that by the beginning of 1942 only a few KV-2 units survived. In addition, the KV-2 had a number of serious design flaws, low reliability of its components and assemblies (especially the transmission) and was overloaded - even during the Winter War it was noted that KV tanks got stuck in deep snow. As a result, the need for a new car of this class was not in doubt.

However, at the end of 1941, the issue of arming the heavy fire support vehicle remained unclear. The famous Soviet designer N.V. Kurin continued work on the KV-9 tank, armed with a 122-mm howitzer in a rotating turret. In essence, this vehicle was a lightweight analogue of the KV-2, both in weight and firepower. Another area of ​​work was increasing the fire power by installing several small or medium caliber guns on one vehicle. At the beginning of 1942, the KV-7 “artillery tank” was tested with armament from one 76 mm and two 45 mm guns in a frame mount in a fixed armored cabin instead of a rotating turret. It was assumed that such numerous weapons would allow its flexible use - a 45-mm cannon against lightly armored targets, a 76-mm cannon against enemy tanks with powerful armor, and a salvo from any combination of guns against particularly heavily defended targets. But this idea actually collapsed - firing in a salvo from guns with different ballistics, with the exception of point-blank fire, turned out to be extremely ineffective - 76-mm and 45-mm shells had different direct firing ranges, not to mention firing at distances exceeding them. Also, due to the location of the 45-mm guns not on the axis of rotation of the entire triple installation, when firing from any of them, a turning moment of force arose, which confused the aiming of all guns. The second version of the KV-7 was armed with two 76-mm cannons, which made it possible to eliminate the first drawback, but the time that disrupts aiming when firing still remained. The KV-9 had great promise, but compared to the KV-1 base tank it was more massive, and therefore its engine and transmission were more heavily loaded. By the beginning of 1942, the quality of manufacturing of the KV transmission components had dropped so much that it was precisely because of fears of transmission breakdowns on the overloaded KV-9 that this project was closed. But the idea of ​​such a tank did not die - in particular, the experimental tank IS No. 2 or Object 234 armed with a turret directly borrowed from the KV-9.

As a result of this work, the direction of development of a heavy fire support vehicle was determined - the installation of a single large-caliber gun in a fixed armored cabin, in order to thereby ensure weight savings for an acceptable time between failures of the engine and transmission units. On April 14-15, 1942, a plenum of the artillery committee was held, at which issues regarding the design and construction of the “pillbox fighter” were discussed. Immediately after the plenum, the famous Soviet designer S.A. Ginzburg, who was at that time the head of the self-propelled artillery bureau, sent a letter to the State Defense Committee (GKO) about the possibility of quickly creating a heavily armored assault self-propelled gun based on the KV-1 armed with a 152-mm howitzer -ML-20 gun. However, the Bureau of Self-Propelled Artillery at that time could not complete the project of such a vehicle, since it was creating a self-propelled gun chassis using components and assemblies of light tanks. As a result, this work was entrusted jointly to the Ural Heavy Engineering Plant (UZTM, Uralmash) in Sverdlovsk and the Chelyabinsk Kirov Plant (ChKZ). Designers G.N. Rybin and K.N. Ilyin developed a preliminary design for the U-18 installation of the ML-20 howitzer-gun, but it was not quickly refined and implemented in metal.

The reason was the reality of the summer of 1942, which turned out to be different than what the Soviet senior military leadership had planned. The successful offensive of the Red Army in the area of ​​the Barvenkovsky ledge ended in disaster - the 6th Wehrmacht Army under the command of Friedrich Paulus successfully surrounded and destroyed the core of the armies of the Southwestern and Southern Fronts, and then with a powerful blow between the Don and Volga rivers reached Stalingrad and disabled all enterprises of the military-industrial complex of the USSR located there. Therefore, in the summer and early autumn of 1942, all official work at UZTM and ChKZ on “bunker fighters” and self-propelled artillery in general was either suspended or significantly slowed down - due to the loss of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant and Plant No. 264 in Sarepta, there was a serious threat of failure in the production of T-tanks. 34, T-60 and T-70. To avoid this, it was decided to launch production of the T-34 medium tank at UZTM and ChKZ; all available personnel were assigned to master its serial production. In this situation, the development of a heavy assault self-propelled artillery mount continued only at the level of preliminary studies. In particular, at UZTM, in parallel with the U-18, work was carried out by order of the Main Artillery Directorate on the U-19 203-mm self-propelled gun project, but such a vehicle turned out to be overly overweight. A number of other design teams also presented their research on the topic during this period; for example, the research department of the Stalin Military Academy of Motorization and Mechanization worked in this direction. But nothing was realized in metal at that time - after mastering the serial production of the T-34 at Uralmash, its design personnel in October - November 1942 were busy working on the future self-propelled gun SU-122, and ChKZ was still mastering the serial production of the T-34, continuing their work to improve heavy tanks.

Creation

The immediate stimulus for the resumption of work on “dillbox destroyers” was the again changed situation at the front. On November 19, 1942, the Red Army launched a counteroffensive near Stalingrad (Operation Uranus). As it progressed, Soviet troops had to overcome enemy fortifications (some of them were captured by the Germans and their allies during the summer battles; there are also references to the remains of fortifications from the Civil War). In Stalingrad itself, the enemy’s defenses also included well-fortified city buildings, difficult to destroy by the fire of small and medium caliber guns. Direct support of the advancing units by artillery and combat engineers played an important role in the success of both Operation Uranus and subsequent operations in the final stages of the Battle of Stalingrad. However, everything fire weapons barrel artillery at that time they were towed and their mobility was severely limited by the lack of a developed road network, the presence of deep snow cover and the small number of available tractors. Towed guns, their tractors and draft horses on the march were highly vulnerable to any type of enemy attack. There were cases when guns were moved only by their own crews, since in winter conditions the horses were quickly exhausted. Reality has once again shown that the Red Army urgently needs mobile heavy artillery both for direct support of tanks and infantry, and for firing from indirect positions.

This state of affairs did not satisfy the Soviet military leadership. To speed up the creation of a heavy self-propelled gun with a 152-mm gun, a special group was organized at the ChKZ design bureau, where, by order No. 764 of the People's Commissariat of Tank Industry (NKTP) from UZTM, designers and engineers N.V. Kurin, G.N. Rybin were transferred, K. N. Ilyin and V. A. Vishnyakov. All of them already had experience in quickly creating another self-propelled artillery unit, the SU-122. GKO Decree No. 2692 of January 4, 1943 ordered the NKTP and the People's Commissariat of Armaments (NKV) represented by ChKZ and pilot plant No. 100 from the first and plants No. 9 and 172 from the second to complete the design of a heavy 152-mm self-propelled gun in 25 days, build a prototype of it and submit it for testing. At that time, three alternatives were considered in detail: the U-18, the projects of Lev Sergeevich Troyanov and Joseph Yakovlevich Kotin. Fedor Fedorovich Petrov, designer of the main armament of the future vehicle - the ML-20 howitzer-cannon, insisted on its modernization. However, the very short time allotted for completing the task naturally forced the designers to settle on the option with the least number of alterations to the tank base and gun. The project of Zh. Ya. Kotin met these requirements and it was he who was accepted for implementation.

On January 17, 1943, a mock-up of the future self-propelled gun was made, which received approval from above. Machine in business correspondence and NKTP documents received the designation KV-14 or SU-14 (not to be confused with the pre-war heavy self-propelled guns designed by P. N. Syachintov based on components and assemblies of the T-28 and T-35 tanks). On January 19, the installation of semi-finished armored cabin products received from Plant No. 200 began on the KV-1S chassis; by the morning of January 23, only the gun was missing to complete the overall work on this prototype. It was delivered late in the evening, and it did not fit the embrasure in the armored mantlet, so the necessary work to install it in the self-propelled gun went on all night. This gun was somewhat different from the serial ML-20 howitzer guns - all its control flywheels were moved to left side barrel for greater convenience for the gunner in the cramped fighting compartment of the vehicle. Muzzle velocity and other external ballistic data remained unchanged compared to the base version. The next morning the car, designated Object 236, independently went to the Chebarkul test site, where it successfully passed factory and subsequently state tests. On February 9, 1943, the State Defense Committee, by resolution No. 2859, adopted a new self-propelled gun for service with the Red Army under the name SU-152.

Mass production

Unlike the light SU-76 and medium SU-122, which were quickly put into production and already took part in their first battle in February 1943, the organization of production of the SU-152 at ChKZ was slow. The plant was busy with the simultaneous production of both the KV-1s heavy tank and the T-34 medium tank; a lot of time and personnel were required to prepare for the planned transition to the production of a new model of a heavy tank. Therefore, the pace of development of the SU-152 in the series was not as high as that of other models of Soviet self-propelled guns of that period. March 1943 was spent on the technological component of the production process; by the end of this month, more than 80% of the work had been completed as planned. necessary equipment and tools. In April, production began to gain momentum; in May, the material for the first heavy self-propelled artillery regiment (12 vehicles) was delivered to the customer.

The SU-152 was not in serial production for long. Already at the end of 1942, it became clear that the KV-1s base tank for this self-propelled gun did not meet the increased requirements for a heavy breakthrough tank; work was actively underway to create a new vehicle, the prototype of which Object 237 was built and tested in July - August 1943. On September 4, 1943, by decree of the State Defense Committee No. 4043ss, it was adopted by the Red Army as the IS-85 (somewhat later it began to be called the IS-1 in parallel) and the production of the KV-1s was finally completed. However, it was not possible to launch serial production of the IS-85 and 152-mm heavy self-propelled guns on its base in September 1943, so a temporary decision was made to install the turret from the IS-85 on the KV-1s chassis (this is how the KV-85 tank turned out) and continue produced by SU-152. But by the end of October 1943, work on transferring the 152-mm self-propelled guns to new base In general, they were successfully completed, and on November 6, an order was issued to stop production of the SU-152. But since mass production is a rather inertial process, the assembly of already produced SU-152 hulls continued in December 1943, and the last three vehicles were delivered in January 1944. In total, ChKZ built 671 SU-152 self-propelled guns.

Deep modernization.

The planned replacement of the KV-1 heavy tank with the promising IS-85 breakthrough tank also required the transfer of the SU-152 to a promising base. But work on improving self-propelled guns was not limited to this. Even before the combat debut of the SU-152, a number of serious shortcomings were identified. In this regard, on May 25, 1943, by order of plant No. 100, the self-propelled artillery design group began modernizing the vehicle. The group was headed by G.N. Moskvin, and N.V. Kurin, who had extensive experience in creating self-propelled artillery units, was seconded to it. Together with the customer, expanded tactical and technical requirements were developed for a modernized model of a heavy self-propelled gun, which at that time was designated in documents as SU-152-M. According to primary sources, they included the following:

The development of the SU-152-M heavy self-propelled gun is being carried out to replace the KV-14 self-propelled gun. 1) for self-propelled vehicles, use the chassis and mechanical equipment of the “Object 237” tank; 3) it is necessary to supplement the cannon armament of a heavy self-propelled gun with a defensive all-round machine gun of 7.62 mm caliber or an anti-aircraft machine gun of 12.7 mm caliber; 4) increase the thickness of the armor of the frontal hull plate to 90-100 mm; 5) increase visibility by using several Mk-IV type viewing devices on a rotating base; 6) improve the ventilation of the fighting compartment by introducing an additional fan or provide for purging of the gun barrel after firing...

The project was planned to be completed by July 1, 1943, but the group completed the task ahead of schedule; at the end of July, construction of a prototype, called IS-152, began.

However, in the future, ambiguity sets in - new tanks IS-85, KV-85 and self-propelled guns IS-152 were shown in the Kremlin to the country's leadership headed by I.V. Stalin, however, in the memoirs of participants in the events and available archival documents, there is no: exact the date of this review and the exact list of those present. The day is called July 31, 1943, but according to ChKZ documents, the KV-85 and IS-85 tanks were being tested at that time. Historian M. N. Svirin suggests holding the show on August 31, and a group of authors of numerous publications on armored vehicles under the leadership of Colonel I. G. Zheltov - on September 8. It is also not clear which self-propelled guns were shown to management. It is assumed that this was an experimental IS-152 self-propelled gun, but there is a photograph showing I.V. Stalin in the Kremlin on a self-propelled gun, externally identical to the SU-152. It is possible that the management was shown a modernized model of the SU-152, on which the improvements planned for implementation on the IS-152 were tested.

One way or another, by the above-mentioned GKO decree No. 4043ss of September 4, 1943, it was the IS-152 self-propelled gun that was put into service along with the KV-85 and IS-85, but according to ChKZ documents it turned out to be much more expensive than the serial SU-152. During September - October 1943, the design of the IS-152 self-propelled guns was improved, and a second prototype was built: Object 241 based on the IS tank, which turned out to be comparable in cost to the serial SU-152. It was accepted for serial production on November 6, 1943 as the ISU-152 and already in January 1944 completely replaced the SU-152 on the ChKZ assembly lines.

The myth of the SU-152

A common myth about the history of the creation of the SU-152 is the assertion that the SU-152 was created as a response to the appearance of a new heavy Tiger tank by the enemy. Although the good anti-tank capabilities of the 152-mm heavy self-propelled gun due to the high muzzle velocity and large mass of shells for the ML-20 were noted by the Soviet military at the stage of preliminary development in the first half of 1942, the main purpose of this type of vehicle was artillery support for tank and mechanized units of the Red Army . The first heavy tank PzKpfW VI Ausf.H "Tiger" was captured near Leningrad in January 1943 and tested by shelling even later, so it could not have any influence on the development of the SU-152. It is also interesting that at a joint meeting dedicated to the appearance of Tiger tanks by the enemy, neither the SU-152 nor the towed howitzer-cannon ML-20 were considered as possible means of solving the problem; rather, on the contrary, ideas were expressed for arming self-propelled guns KV- 14 122-mm A-19 cannon and increasing the production of towed 122-mm cannons due to a slight decrease in the production volume of the ML-20. However, even before the appearance of the “Tigers” on the battlefield in significant numbers (i.e., battles on Kursk Bulge) in order to increase the morale of the troops, the SU-152 was widely used in leaflets, films and demonstration shootings of captured equipment. Moreover, the Red Army personnel for the most part had not seen either of these vehicles before the battle (and during the Battle of Kursk, only about one and a half hundred Tigers and 24 SU-152s were involved, which is compared to thousands of others armored vehicles the Wehrmacht and the Red Army accounted for a small share). These propaganda events formed the basis of the belief.

Description of design

The SU-152 self-propelled artillery mount had the same layout as all other serial Soviet self-propelled guns of the Great Patriotic War period with the exception of the SU-76. The fully armored hull was divided into two parts. The crew, gun and ammunition were located in front in the armored cabin, which combined the fighting compartment and the control compartment. The engine and transmission were installed at the rear of the vehicle. Three crew members were located to the left of the gun: in front was the driver, then the gunner, and behind was the loader, and the other two - the vehicle commander and the castle officer - were on the right. One fuel tank was located in the engine compartment, and the other two were in the combat, that is, in the habitable space of the vehicle. The latter had a negative impact on the explosion safety and survivability of the crew in the event of the self-propelled gun being hit by an enemy shell.

Armored hull and deckhouse

The armored hull and wheelhouse of the self-propelled gun were welded from rolled armor plates with a thickness of 75, 60, 30 and 20 mm. Armor protection is differentiated, anti-ballistic. The armor plates of the wheelhouse were installed at rational angles of inclination. For comfort Maintenance the over-engine armor plates, as well as the cabin roof, were removable. Enough cuts were made in the body a large number of hatches and openings for loading ammunition, firing personal weapons, installing suspension torsion bars, antenna input, fuel tank necks, viewing devices and sights, draining fuel and oil. A number of them were closed with armored covers, plugs or visors. To provide access to engine components and assemblies, there was a large rectangular hatch on the roof of the engine compartment with a stamping and a hole for pouring water into the cooling system of the power plant. In the armor plate above the transmission compartment there were two more round hatches with hinged lids. They were intended for access to transmission mechanisms.

The crew was located entirely in the armored cabin, which combined the fighting compartment and the control compartment. The cabin was separated from the engine compartment by a partition containing dampers necessary for ventilation of the fighting compartment. With the dampers open, the running engine created the air draft necessary to renew the air in the habitable space of the vehicle. For boarding and disembarking the crew, there was a right round single-leaf hatch on the roof of the cabin and a rectangular double-leaf hatch at the junction of the roof and rear armor plates of the cabin. The round hatch to the left of the gun was not intended for the crew to get in and out; it was required to bring the panoramic sight extension out; but in an emergency it could also be used to evacuate the crew. Another emergency hatch for leaving the car was located in the bottom, behind the driver’s seat. The main armament - a 152-mm howitzer-gun ML-20S - was mounted in a frame-type installation to the right of center line vehicles on the front armor plate of the wheelhouse. The gun's recoil devices were protected by a fixed cast armor casing and a movable cast spherical armor mask, which also served as a balancing element.

Handrails for a tank landing force were welded to the armored cabin and hull, as well as bonnets and brackets for attaching additional fuel tanks and some elements of a set of spare parts, equipment and accessories for the vehicle. Its other components were placed on the fenders or in the fighting compartment of the self-propelled gun.

Armament

The main armament of the SU-152 was a modification of the ML-20S rifled 152-mm howitzer-gun mod. 1937 (ML-20). The differences between the swinging parts of the self-propelled and towed versions were determined by the need to ensure the convenience of the loader and gunner in the cramped fighting compartment of the self-propelled gun. In particular, the flywheels for horizontal and vertical aiming of the ML-20S were located to the left of the barrel (while for the ML-20 they were on both sides) and the self-propelled version of the gun was additionally equipped with a charging tray. The gun was mounted in a frame-type gimbal mount, allowing elevation angles from −5° to +18° and a horizontal firing sector of 12°. The ML-20S howitzer gun had a 29-caliber barrel, the direct fire range reached 3.8 km, the maximum possible was about 13 km. Both rotating mechanisms of the gun were manual, sector-type with flywheels to the left of the barrel, and were serviced by the gunner of the self-propelled gun. The release of the howitzer-gun is mechanical and manual.

The gun's ammunition consisted of 20 rounds of separate cartridge loading. Shells and propellant charges in cartridge cases were placed along the sides and rear wall of the self-propelled gun's fighting compartment. The gun's rate of fire is 1-2 rounds per minute. The ammunition load could include almost all 152-mm cannon and howitzer shells, but in practice only a limited subset of them was used:

Ammunition nomenclature
	Designation	Projectile weight, kg	Explosive mass, kg	Initial speed, m/s	Table range, m
Caliber armor-piercing shells
Pointed head without ballistic tip
Blunthead with ballistic tip (in service from late 1944)
Marine semi-armor-piercing	arr. 1915/28
Concrete-piercing shells
Concrete-piercing long-range howitzer (with the index Ш - equipped with TNT using the auger method)	G-530 (G-530Sh)
Concrete-piercing long-range cannon
High-explosive fragmentation shells
Cannon grenades
Steel Long Range Grenade
Old Pointed Head Grenade
Dumb old grenade
Howitzer grenades
Steel long-range high-explosive fragmentation grenade
Steel cast iron long range fragmentation grenade

The range of propelling charges was also significantly reduced - it included a special charge Zh-545B for an armor-piercing projectile, full and reduced charges of the “new model” (Zh-545, ZhN-545, Zh-545U, ZhN-545U) and “old model” "(Zh-544, ZhN-544, ZhN-544U) for other types of projectiles.

For self-defense, the crew was equipped with two PPSh submachine guns with 18 discs (1278 rounds) and 25 hand grenades F-1. Later, the ammunition for submachine guns was increased to 22 discs (1562 rounds). In some cases, a pistol for firing signal flares was added to this weaponry.

Also for the SU-152, a turret installation of a large-caliber anti-aircraft 12.7-mm machine gun DShK with collimator sight K-8T on the right round hatch of the vehicle commander. The ammunition load for the DShK was 250 rounds. This machine gun was not installed at the factory on newly produced self-propelled guns, but there are references to the fact that a small number of SU-152s received the DShK installation during a major overhaul in 1944-1945.

Engine

The SU-152 was equipped with a four-stroke V-shaped 12-cylinder liquid-cooled diesel engine V-2K with a power of 600 hp. With. (441 kW). Starting the engine was ensured by an ST-700 starter with a power of 15 hp. With. (11 kW) or compressed air from two 5-liter tanks in the fighting compartment of the vehicle. The SU-152 had a dense layout, in which the main fuel tanks with a volume of 600-615 liters were located in both the combat and engine compartments. Also, the SU-152 was equipped with four external additional cylindrical fuel tanks, two along the sides of the engine compartment and not connected to the engine fuel system. Each of them had a capacity of 90 liters of fuel. The fuel supply in the internal tanks was enough for 330 km on the highway.

Transmission

The SU-152 self-propelled artillery mount was equipped with a mechanical transmission, which included:

• multi-disc main clutch of dry friction “steel on ferodo”;
• four-speed gearbox with range (8 forward gears and 2 reverse);
• two multi-disc side clutches with steel-on-steel friction and floating ferodo band linings;
• two onboard planetary gearboxes.

All transmission control drives are mechanical; the driver controlled the rotation and braking of the self-propelled gun with two levers under both hands on both sides of his workplace.

Chassis

The chassis of the SU-152 was identical to the base tank KV-1s. The vehicle's suspension is individual torsion bar for each of the 6 solid-cast gable road wheels of small diameter (600 mm) on each side. Opposite each road wheel, travel limiters of the suspension balancers were welded to the armored body. The drive wheels with removable pinion gears were located at the rear, and the idlers with a screw mechanism for tensioning the caterpillar were located at the front. The upper branch of the caterpillar was supported by three small solid support rollers on each side. Each caterpillar consisted of 86-90 single-ridge tracks with a width of 608 mm.

Fire-fighting equipment

The self-propelled artillery unit was equipped with a tetrachlorine portable fire extinguisher, standard for Soviet armored vehicles. Extinguishing a fire in a car was required to be carried out in gas masks - when carbon tetrachloride came into contact with hot surfaces, a chemical reaction occurred, partially replacing chlorine with atmospheric oxygen with the formation of phosgene - a potent toxic substance suffocating effect.

Surveillance equipment and sights

The SU-152 had a fairly large number of battlefield surveillance equipment. Three prismatic viewing devices with protective armor covers were installed on the roof of the fighting compartment; two more such devices were installed on the left round hatch and the top flap of the rectangular double-leaf hatch. Workplace The vehicle commander was equipped with a PTK-4 periscope. In combat, the driver conducted observation through a viewing device with a triplex, which was protected by an armored flap. This viewing device was installed in an armored hatch on the front armor plate to the left of the gun. In a quiet environment, this plug hatch could be pulled forward, providing the driver with a more convenient direct view from his workplace.

For firing, the SU-152 was equipped with two gun sights - a telescopic ST-10 for direct fire and a Hertz panorama for firing from closed positions. The ST-10 telescopic sight was calibrated for targeted shooting at a distance of up to 900 m. However, the firing range of the ML-20S howitzer gun was up to 13 km, and for shooting at a distance of over 900 m (both direct fire and from closed positions) the gunner I had to use a second, panoramic sight. To provide visibility through the upper left round hatch in the cabin roof, the panoramic sight was equipped with a special extension. To ensure the possibility of fire in the dark, the sight scales had illumination devices.

Electrical equipment

The electrical wiring in the SU-152 self-propelled gun was single-wire, the second wire was the armored hull of the vehicle. The exception was the emergency lighting circuit, which was two-wire. The sources of electricity (operating voltage 24 V) were a GT-4563A generator with a RPA-24 relay-regulator with a power of 1 kW and four series-connected batteries of the 6-STE-128 or 6-STE-144 brand with a total capacity of 256 or 288 Ah, respectively . Electricity consumers included:

• external and internal lighting of the vehicle, illumination devices for sights and scales of measuring instruments;
• external sound signal;
• instrumentation (ammeter and voltmeter);
• means of communication - radio station and tank intercom;
• electrician of the motor group - starter ST-700, starting relay RS-371 or RS-400, etc.

Means of communication

Communication equipment included a 9P radio station (or 10P, 10RK-26) and a TPU-4-Bis intercom for 4 subscribers.

Radio stations of types 9P, 10P or 10RK were a set of a transmitter, receiver and umformers (single-armature motor-generators) for their power supply, connected to an on-board 24 V power supply.

The 9P radio station was a simplex tube shortwave radio station with an output power of 20 W, operating for transmission in the frequency range from 4 to 5.625 MHz (respectively, wavelengths from 53.3 to 75 m), and for reception - from 3.75 to 6 MHz (wavelengths from 50 to 80 m). The different ranges of the transmitter and receiver were explained by the fact that the range of 4-5.625 MHz was intended for two-way communication “self-propelled guns - self-propelled guns”, and the extended range of the receiver was used for one-way communication “headquarters - self-propelled guns”. When parked, the communication range in telephone mode (voice, amplitude modulation of the carrier) in the absence of interference reached 15-25 km; while moving, it decreased slightly. The 9P radio station did not have a telegraph mode for transmitting information.

10P was a simplex tube shortwave radio station operating in the frequency range from 3.75 to 6 MHz. In the parking lot, the communication range in telephone mode was similar to the 9P radio station, but unlike it, a greater communication range could be obtained in telegraph mode, when information was transmitted by a telegraph key using Morse code or another discrete coding system. Frequency stabilization was carried out by a removable quartz resonator; there was no smooth frequency adjustment. 10P allowed communication at two fixed frequencies; to change them, another quartz resonator of 15 pairs was used in the radio set.

The 10RK radio station was a technological improvement of the previous 10P model; it became simpler and cheaper to produce. This model now has the ability to smoothly select the operating frequency; the number of quartz resonators has been reduced to 16. The communication range characteristics have not undergone significant changes.

The TPU-4-Bis tank intercom made it possible to negotiate between members of the tank crew even in a very noisy environment and connect a headset (headphones and laryngophones) to a radio station for external communication.

Modifications

The SU-152 self-propelled artillery mount was produced in a single modification, although during serial production minor changes were made to its design aimed at improving its manufacturing technology. It was in this regard that the production vehicles differed from the Object 236 prototype, during the construction of which it was necessary to resort to on-site fitting work to install a number of important structural elements, for example, the barrel group of a howitzer-gun. Also, based on a photograph of I.V. Stalin in the Kremlin on a self-propelled gun with the external appearance of the SU-152 and his conversation recorded by the accompanying persons with the driver of this vehicle, it can be assumed that there is a transitional version from the SU-152 to the future ISU-152, when the first a number of components and assemblies of the new self-propelled gun were installed. There were no other experimental and production vehicles based on the SU-152, with the exception of the above-mentioned “Object 236” and the transitional version shown to I.V. Stalin. Also, sometimes in popular Soviet literature of the 1980s, the index SU-152 refers to the 2S3 Akatsiya self-propelled howitzer, developed a decade earlier and completely unrelated in design to the vehicle of the same name during the Great Patriotic War.

Organizational and staffing structure

Since the SU-152 of the serial self-propelled artillery units of the first generation entered service with the troops later than others, the formation of units equipped with them began after the transfer of self-propelled artillery to the commander of the armored and mechanized units of the Red Army in the spring of 1943. However, by analogy with the organizational structure of previously formed units armed with the SU-76 and SU-122, self-propelled artillery units equipped with the SU-152 also decided to be formed in the form of heavy self-propelled artillery regiments (TSAP). This regimental structure was borrowed from artillery and was tactically and organizationally convenient. Its first option for TSAP under No. 08/218 with 12 SU-152 and 361 people in the regiment still retained some features of the organizational structure characteristic of “pure” artillerymen:

• SAP Commander:
• Batteries:
• 1st battery (2 SU-152);
• 2nd battery (2 SU-152);
• 3rd battery (2 SU-152);
• 4th battery (2 SU-152);
• 5th battery (2 SU-152);
• 6th battery (2 SU-152);
• Regimental headquarters:
• Control platoon;
• Home front services:
• Regimental medical center;
• Economic department;
• Artillery repair shop;
• Platoons:
• Park Platoon;
• Ammunition platoon.

From the point of view of the hierarchy of subordination, heavy self-propelled artillery regiments were to belong to the reserve of the Supreme High Command (RVGK) and were used for qualitative reinforcement in the main attack directions of tank and rifle units and formations of the Red Army. At the same time, they were supposed to act primarily in the role of reinforcement artillery, striking from indirect firing positions, and only if necessary, move into combat formations of troops to destroy enemy fortifications, repel his tank counterattacks and counter his suitable reserves.

Based on the results of the analysis of the first months of combat use of the SU-152, the organizational structure of the TSAP was revised towards unification with the staff of regiments armed with the SU-76 and SU-85, which were more typical for tank forces. In the new state No. 010/482 for TSAP, with the same number of self-propelled guns, the number of personnel in the regiment was reduced to 234 people, and a “commander” KV-1s tank was introduced into the control platoon. The division of linear self-propelled guns into batteries and the organization of regiment rear services were also revised:

• SAP Commander:
• Batteries:
• 1st battery (3 SU-152);
• 2nd battery (3 SU-152);
• 3rd battery (3 SU-152);
• 4th battery (3 SU-152);
• Regimental headquarters:
• Control platoon (1 KV-1s);
• Home front services:
• Regimental medical center;
• Economic department;
• Platoons:
• Repair platoon;
• Transport platoon;
• Ammunition platoon.

However, this option was not final either. In connection with the launch of the new self-propelled gun ISU-152, staff No. 010/461 was developed for them, largely unified with the staff of a separate guards heavy tank regiment (OGvTTP), a total of 21 vehicles in both cases. This version of the organizational structure was considered optimal and existed until the end of the war:

• SAP Commander:
• Batteries:
• 1st battery (5 SU-152/ISU-152);
• 2nd battery (5 SU-152/ISU-152);
• 3rd battery (5 SU-152/ISU-152);
• 4th battery (5 SU-152/ISU-152);
• Company of machine gunners;
• Regimental headquarters:
• Control platoon (1 SU-152/ISU-152);
• Home front services:
• Regimental medical center;
• Economic department;
• Platoons:
• Repair platoon;
• Transport platoon;
• Sapper platoon;
• Ammunition platoon.

When formed, the heavy self-propelled artillery regiments of the state No. 010/461 were immediately awarded the rank of guards, and they also had the status of separate (OTSAP). Therefore, starting from 1944, there is a variety of regimental designations in documents - the abbreviations TSAP, GvTSAP, OTSAP, OGvTSAP are used simultaneously in various combinations of lowercase and capital letters, as well as points during abbreviations. In the spring of 1944, TSAP on the SU-152 were transferred to staff number 010/461, but since the ISU-152 (and from April 1944, the ISU-122) entered the troops gradually, rearmament proceeded as they were delivered to the Red Army. At the same time, some TSAP on the SU-152 retained the old staff, while others were transferred to a new one, remaining with the same equipment. Due to the shortage of SU-152s, there were cases when TSAP were equipped with other vehicles, for example the KV-85, and vice versa - OGvTTP received SU-152s to replace tanks lost in battles or left for repairs. This is how separate heavy self-propelled tank regiments appeared in the Red Army and subsequently this practice took place until the end of the war.

Combat use

The combat debut of the SU-152 was the battle on the Kursk Bulge, where there were two TSAP (1540 and 1541 tsap) with a total of 24 vehicles of this type. Due to their small number, they did not play a noticeable role in the scale of the entire battle, but the importance of their presence is not questioned. They were used to a greater extent as tank destroyers, since they were the only existing models of Soviet armored vehicles that could effectively fight new and modernized German tanks and self-propelled guns at almost any combat distance. It is worth noting that the majority of German armored vehicles on the Kursk Bulge were modernized PzKpfW III and PzKpfW IV (of the well-known new German models, “Tigers” there were about 150 vehicles, including command vehicles; “Panthers” - 200; “Ferdinands” - about 90). However, medium German tanks were formidable opponents, since the frontal armor increased to 70-80 mm at a distance of over 300 meters was practically impenetrable to caliber armor-piercing shells of Soviet 45-mm and 76-mm tank guns. More effective sub-caliber ones were available in very small quantities and at distances over 500 m they were also ineffective - due to their aerodynamically unfavorable “reel” shape they quickly lost speed. Any 152-mm SU-152 shells, due to their large mass and kinetic energy, had a high destructive potential and the consequences of their direct hit on an armored vehicle were very serious. Since in 1943 there was a shortage of BR-540 armor-piercing shells, naval semi-armor-piercing models were also used against enemy equipment. 1915/28, and concrete-piercing, and often high-explosive fragmentation shells. The latter also had a good effect on armor targets - although they did not penetrate thick armor, their explosion damaged the gun, sights, and chassis of enemy vehicles. Moreover, a close hit was enough to disable an enemy tank or self-propelled gun. high-explosive fragmentation projectile in the vicinity of the target. The crew of Major Sankovsky, commander of one of the SU-152 batteries, disabled 10 enemy tanks in one day and was awarded the title of Hero Soviet Union(some sources say that this success applied to his entire battery). The number of enemy vehicles destroyed and damaged by SU-152 fire varies greatly among different authors, for example, 12 “Tigers” and 7 “Ferdinands” are mentioned, or 4 “Ferdinands” of the 653rd heavy anti-tank fighter division near the village of Tyoploye, not counting other models German armored vehicles. However, it should be borne in mind that in the Red Army “Ferdinand” was very often called any German self-propelled gun, and shielded versions of the PzKpfW IV, which greatly changed their appearance, were mistaken for “Tiger”. However, the effectiveness of using the SU-152 against enemy armored targets was relatively high, and what appeared even before Battle of Kursk the nickname of the self-propelled gun “St. John’s wort” took root in the Red Army, which had important to raise the morale of troops who suffered heavy losses in battle and, to some extent, became victims of the “Tiger” and “Ferdinand fear”.

Before the start of the Battle of Kursk, the Voronezh Front had one heavy self-propelled artillery regiment with SU-152, 1529 TSAP. This regiment was part of the 7th Guards Army under the command of Lieutenant General M.S. Shumilov. Tactically, the regiment was subordinate to 201 separate tank brigade, equipped with British tanks "Valentine" and "Matilda". The regiment's SU-152s were actively used in battles with German troops belonging to the Kempf group. Mainly, self-propelled guns were used for firing from closed firing positions, but there were also cases of direct fire at enemy tanks. Typical example The regiment's combat work is given in the regiment's operational report for July 8, 1943:

...During the day, the regiment fired: 07/8/1943 at 16.00 at a battery of assault guns on the southern outskirts of the storage farm. "Glade". 7 self-propelled guns were knocked out and burned and 2 bunkers were destroyed, 12 HE grenades were consumed. At 17.00, enemy tanks (up to 10 units) reached the grader road 2 km southwest of the temporary storage facility. "Batratskaya Dacha" Direct fire from the SU-152 of the 3rd battery set fire to 2 tanks and knocked out 2 tanks, one of them T-6. Consumption of 15 HE grenades. At 18.00 the 3rd battery was visited by the commander of the 7th Guards. And Lieutenant General Shumilov expressed gratitude to the crews for the excellent shooting at the tanks. At 19.00 a convoy of vehicles and carts with infantry was fired upon on the road south of the farm. "Polyana", 2 cars, 6 carts with infantry were destroyed. Up to a company of infantry was scattered and partially destroyed. Consumption of 6 HE grenades.

Later, the regiment was withdrawn from the subordination of the 201st brigade and reassigned to the 5th Guards Tank Army. It was planned to take part in the famous counterattack near Prokhorovka, but the regiment arrived at its initial positions only in the evening of July 12 and without shells, and therefore did not take part in the battles that day.

During the offensive phase of the Battle of Kursk, the SU-152 also performed well as mobile heavy artillery to reinforce tank and rifle units of the Red Army. They often fought in the first lines of advancing forces, but there is also evidence that they were often used as originally planned - as a means of fire support in the second line, and therefore the survivability of the crews was higher. The geography of use of the SU-152 in the second half of 1943 and the first half of 1944 was very wide - from

Leningrad to Crimea, for example, on May 9, 1944, the only surviving SU-152 (along with KV-85) of the 1452nd TSAP entered liberated Sevastopol. But the relatively small number of vehicles produced, together with combat and non-combat losses, led to the fact that from the second half of 1944 there were already few of them left; in TSAP (which became the Guards OTSAP) they were replaced during their reorganization by ISU-152 and ISU-122, the remaining self-propelled guns fought as part of various units and formations, including formations of the Polish Army in the USSR.

In the summer of 1943, the Wehrmacht managed to capture at least one SU-152 and examine the vehicle in detail. Photos of the captured self-propelled gun with a brief description were published in the illustrated magazine “Die Wehrmacht”, and it was also mentioned in the illustrated humorous guide to combat use"Panthers" "Pantherfibel", published in 1944 with the sanction of Heinz Guderian.

The surviving SU-152s were also in service with the Soviet Army in the post-war period at least until 1958, since their ML-20S howitzer guns could fire a 152-mm atomic projectile.

In service

• THE USSR.
• Poland - a small number of surviving vehicles, possibly already in the post-war period - at least two of the three known currently existing SU-152s are located in the village of Djonov, Lubusz Voivodeship of Poland. On July 16, 1945, the troops had only one SU-152, which by 1949 was no longer available.

Project evaluation

Among the serial Soviet self-propelled artillery systems of the first generation, the SU-152 occupies a somewhat isolated place - as the most successful multi-purpose vehicle, suitable for performing all the tasks facing it. Other self-propelled guns - SU-76, SU-122 and SU-85 - only partially met the expectations placed on them. It turned out to be very difficult to use the SU-122 against tanks due to the low level of fire from its guns; The firing power of the SU-76 and SU-85 against unarmored targets was in some cases insufficient, in addition, the SU-76 of the first modifications were equipped with an unsuccessful power plant, which forced it to be radically redesigned later. Thanks to the combination of mobility and great firepower, the SU-152 was used both as an assault gun, as a tank destroyer, and as self-propelled howitzers. However, the low rate of fire of the gun due to separate loading and the large mass of shells significantly reduced the vehicle’s qualities as a tank destroyer, and the small elevation angle, together with the closed fighting compartment, did not favor the use of the SU-152 for firing from closed positions. In addition to these shortcomings, which were determined by the armament and layout of the vehicle, the SU-152 also had a number of its own - the lack of forced ventilation of the fighting compartment (especially evident when the engine was turned off; there were even cases of crews burning out when firing) and a defensive machine gun, insufficient frontal protection for 1943 armor, tight fighting compartment. Almost all of the SU-152’s own shortcomings were, if not eliminated, then at least smoothed out in the design of its successor ISU-152, while maintaining the main armament and layout of the vehicle, which were recognized as adequate to the conditions not only of World War II, but also of the post-war period.

Among foreign vehicles, the SU-152 did not have direct or similar analogues in its weight category. Armed with long-barreled guns of 150-155 mm caliber, the German self-propelled gun Hummel ("Hummel") and the American Gun Motor Carriage M12 were lightly armored self-propelled howitzers with a semi-open or open installation of the main armament based on medium tanks. Armed with 88-mm StuK 43 cannons, German self-propelled guns based on the Ferdinand and Jagdpanther heavy tanks were specialized tank destroyers (the former also had one of its official designations “assault gun” and was more than one and a half times heavier than the SU-152) . The armor penetration of their guns and frontal armor protection significantly exceeded these parameters of the SU-152. The closest analogue of the Soviet self-propelled guns was the so-called “assault tank” Sturmpanzer IV “Brummbär” (“Brummbär”), built on the basis of the PzKpfW IV medium tank and armed with a short-barreled 150-mm howitzer StuH 43, a modification of the well-known infantry gun sIG 33. The Brummbär, with its smaller mass of high-explosive fragmentation grenades, was distinguished by much more powerful frontal armor (up to 100 mm with some slope) and was also very effective against fortifications and unarmored targets. Like the SU-152, the German self-propelled gun could be used for firing from closed positions, and due to the large elevation angle of the gun, mounted firing was possible, but due to the low initial velocity of the projectile, the Brummbär was inferior to the SU-152 in the maximum range of its fire. The Brummbär could also be successfully used against tanks, since in addition to the already destructive 150-mm high-explosive fragmentation grenade, its ammunition also included cumulative projectile, piercing 170-200 mm of armor. However, the advantage of the SU-152 in shooting at armored targets over the German self-propelled guns was high starting speed its projectiles - that is, a greater flatness of trajectory and a direct shot range, less difficulty in aiming at a moving target.

Technical data
State		Third Reich
Width, m		2.9 (without screens)
Height, m
Crew, people
Years of manufacture
Main weapons
Machine gun weapons		2 × 7.92-mm-MG 34
Gun ammunition, shells
Ammunition of machine guns, cartridges
Frontal armor, mm/tilt	60/70° (top), 60/30° (bottom)
Side armor, mm/tilt
Cabin reservation, mm/tilt	75/30° (front), 60/25° (side)	100/40° (front), 50/15° (side)
engine's type	diesel V-2K	carburetor HL 120 TRM
Power, l. With.
Specific power, l. s./t
Maximum speed, km/h
Cruising range on the highway, km

An interesting fact about the enemy’s assessment of the SU-152 self-propelled guns were the following lines dedicated to it in the poetic, humorous manual on the combat use of the Panther tank Pantherfibel:

Mit dieser Sturmgeschützmodelle

Denk scharf am Siegfrieds schwachen Stelle

Literally this means “with this model of assault gun, think seriously about weak point Siegfried." Although the following lines emphasize the need to have no fear of the SU-152, nevertheless, this characteristic speaks for itself.

Surviving copies

It is reliably known about four SU-152 self-propelled artillery mounts that have survived to the present time. One of them is on display at the armored tank museum in Kubinka in a covered hangar in good hull condition, two are in the museum military equipment V locality Djonov in Poland. The cars are located on an open observation deck and lack a number of parts. In the village of Prokhorovka Belgorod region The museum of the Third Military Field of Russia displays parts of this self-propelled gun.

In Perm, in the museum of JSC Motovilikha Plants there is also 1 copy. External parts that could be torn off were torn off by vandals. But in general the condition is not bad. In the village of Oktyabrsky, Perm Territory. In Ukraine, in the village of Zolotoy Kolodets, Donetsk region, this machine has been preserved on a pedestal.

SU-152 in the souvenir and gaming industry

The SU-152 is rather poorly represented in the modeling industry. A 1:35 scale model of this self-propelled gun is produced by Eastern Express, but contains a number of very gross mistakes in its detail, the convergence and quality of the casting plastic are also criticized; as a result, the model requires a lot of work to fine-tune. A number of modeling and military history publications also published drawings for self-construction of the model (for example, “Armored Collection” No. 2 for 2006), but they also contain a number of inconsistencies with the prototype.

In 2009, the VsTank company was preparing to release a radio-controlled model of the SU-152 in 1:24 scale.

In the computer and gaming industry, the SU-152 is represented in a number of software products, for example, in war game"Panzer General III", in the real-time strategy "Blitzkrieg", in the game "Close Combat III: The Russian Front" (English) and its remake "Close Combat: Cross of Iron", as well as in the tank MMO game "World of Tanks". However, it is worth noting that the reflection of the tactical and technical characteristics of the SU-152 and the features of its use in combat in computer games is often very far from reality.

It is not for nothing that the Second World War is called the “war of engines”; during this conflict, it was tanks and self-propelled guns that determined the outcome of all major military operations. This is especially true for the Eastern Front. There are a number of legendary combat vehicles of that period; we know them well thanks to books and films.

The most famous self-propelled guns of the Great Patriotic War are the German Ferdinand self-propelled guns and the Soviet SU-152. The most curious thing is that these combat vehicles were not the most popular: the Soviet industry produced only 670 SU-152 units, and the number of Ferdinand self-propelled guns produced was 91 units. These steel giants had the opportunity to meet for the first time on the Kursk Bulge, and for both vehicles this battle was their combat debut.

In 1943, production of both self-propelled guns was discontinued. However, until the very end of the war, Soviet tank crews called almost all German self-propelled guns “Ferdinands,” and in any Soviet or Russian history textbook you can find mention of the “St. John’s wort,” which Soviet soldiers nicknamed the SU-152.

The SU-152 was used until the very end of the war, although the number of these vehicles in the army gradually decreased due to combat losses and wear and tear of the engine and chassis. Almost all of the remaining "St. John's worts" after the war were cut into metal. Today, only a few units of this legendary self-propelled gun remain, all of them are in various museums.

History of creation

The history of the SU-152 self-propelled gun often begins in December 1942, when work began on the creation of this combat vehicle at the Kirov plant (Chelyabinsk). But this is not entirely correct. The design and creation of the first SU-152 was carried out in record time; for this, the designers needed only 25 (!!!) days.

Of course, there was a war going on, and the front was in dire need of new powerful armored vehicles capable of effectively destroying German tanks. However, despite this, the self-propelled gun could not have been created so quickly without using the developments made by Soviet designers back in the early forties.

The first self-propelled guns appeared during the First World War, but they were not widely used. In the period between the two wars, work on the creation of self-propelled guns was most actively carried out in Germany and the USSR. The Soviet Union realized the urgent need for a powerful self-propelled artillery system after the start of the Winter War. Overcoming the Mannerheim Line was very costly for the Red Army. It was during this period that work began on the creation of self-propelled guns based on the T-28 and T-35 tanks. However, these works were never completed.

Instead of self-propelled guns, a modification was created heavy tank KV (KV-2), armed with a 152 mm M-10 howitzer.

The situation in Germany was completely different. On initial stage During the war, the German army had in its arsenal a large number of obsolete and captured tanks, which could be quickly and relatively cheaply converted into self-propelled guns.

From the available options, Joseph Kotin's self-propelled gun project was chosen for implementation. For the new self-propelled gun, the chassis of the KV-1S heavy tank and the 152-mm ML-20 howitzer were chosen. The assembly of the first prototype of the combat vehicle was carried out at ChKZ, on January 25, 1943, its testing began at the training ground, and on February 14, the new self-propelled gun was put into service under the designation SU-152.

Production of the new self-propelled gun was launched at the Chelyabinsk Kirov Plant. In May 1943, the first batch of SU-152 (12 vehicles) was handed over to the troops. Serial production of the self-propelled gun was short-lived. Already in September 1943, the KV-1S, on the basis of which the self-propelled guns were manufactured, was withdrawn from service. It was decided to produce a new self-propelled gun with a 152-mm cannon, but on the basis of the IS-85 (IS-1) tank. It was named ISU-152; this machine is also often called “St. John’s wort” in historical and popular literature.

The last SU-152s rolled off the ChKZ assembly line at the beginning of 1943.

There is a very common myth that Soviet self-propelled guns with high-power guns (SU-152, ISU-152) are the response of domestic tank builders to the appearance of the Pz Kpfw VI “Tiger” tanks by the Nazis. This is not entirely true. The development of such vehicles in the USSR began even before the first contact of the Red Army with the new armored vehicles of the Nazis. However, after it, work was intensified, as it became clear that only vehicles like the SU-152 could effectively fight the new German tank at all combat distances.

But, even taking this circumstance into account, the SU-152 should not be considered a tank destroyer. This self-propelled gun It was designed primarily as an assault weapon.

Description of design

The SU-152 self-propelled gun had a layout similar to other Soviet self-propelled guns of the war period (with the exception of the SU-76). The vehicle was based on the KV-1S tank, had a fully armored hull and was equipped with a 152 mm howitzer. The crew of the self-propelled gun consisted of five people.

The armored cabin was located in the front part of the hull; it combined the fighting compartment and the control compartment. The cabin contained the seats of the crew members, all the ammunition and the gun. The engine and transmission were located at the rear of the vehicle.

In the wheelhouse, three crew members were located to the left of the gun: the driver, the gunner and the loader. The seats of two more crew members, the commander and the castle commander, were located to the right of the gun. One of the vehicle’s fuel tanks was located in the self-propelled gun’s wheelhouse, which significantly reduced the crew’s chances of getting out of the vehicle alive if it was hit.

The hull and wheelhouse of the self-propelled gun were welded from rolled armor plates. The armor protection of the vehicle was differentiated (armor thickness from 20 to 75 mm), anti-ballistic, the hull had rational angles of inclination.

The wheelhouse and the aft compartment were separated by a partition. For boarding and disembarking crew members, there was a round hatch on the roof of the conning tower; another double-leaf hatch was located at the junction of the conning tower roof and its rear wall. Another round hatch on the roof was intended to bring out the vehicle’s equipment (panoramic sight extension), but in extreme cases it was also possible to evacuate the self-propelled gun crew through it. Another hatch for emergency escape from the vehicle was located in the bottom.

The main weapon of the SU-152 was the 152-mm rifled howitzer ML-20S, model 1937. The gun mounted on the self-propelled gun was not much different from the towed version. The flywheels for vertical and horizontal aiming were moved to the left side of the gun (for the towed version of the gun they are on both sides) to provide greater convenience for the crew.

Vertical guidance angles ranged from −5 to +18°, horizontal - 12°.

Direct fire SU-152 could shoot at a distance of 3.8 km, maximum range shooting - 13 km. Loading is separate-case, ammunition capacity is 20 shots.

To ensure all-round visibility, a PTK-4 periscope and five viewing devices on the roof of the cabin were used. The driver's visibility was provided by a viewing device protected by an armored flap.

The SU-152 was equipped with a V-2K diesel engine with a power of 600 hp. With. The chassis of the self-propelled gun was completely identical to the KV-1S tank. The SU-152 transmission is mechanical with a dry friction main clutch and a four-speed gearbox.

Combat use

Combat debut and " finest hour» SU-152 became the Kursk Bulge. The self-propelled gun did not play a decisive role in this battle, due to the small number of vehicles that the Soviet troops had. A total of 24 SU-152 units were sent to Kursk.

The self-propelled gun was mainly used as an anti-tank weapon. The SU-152 turned out to be almost the only example of Soviet armored vehicles that could reliably hit all types of German tanks and self-propelled guns at all combat distances.

It should be noted that not only the well-known “Tigers” and “Panthers” (there weren’t that many of them) were serious opponents for Soviet tankers; modernized German medium tanks also posed no less danger. PzKpfw tanks III and PzKpfw IV with frontal armor increased to 70 mm. Soviet armor-piercing caliber shells could penetrate it only from minimal distances (less than 300 meters).

The 152-mm SU-152 shell was practically lethal to any type of German armored vehicle. The armor-piercing shell literally destroyed German medium tanks, and the armor of the Tigers and Panthers could not withstand them. With a lack of armor-piercing shells, concrete-piercing and even high-explosive fragmentation shells were used. The latter did not penetrate armor, but they destroyed sights, guns and other equipment of combat vehicles. The energy of the projectile was so great that the turrets of enemy tanks were often torn off their shoulder straps.

At the Kursk Bulge, the SU-152 was the only Soviet combat vehicle that could withstand the German Ferdinand self-propelled guns.

SU-152s were deployed to the most tank-dangerous areas. The soldiers greeted with delight the appearance of a new super-powerful anti-tank weapon and soon nicknamed the new self-propelled gun “St. John’s Wort.” Although the number of these combat vehicles on the Kursk Bulge was relatively small, their appearance had a great psychological effect on both the Germans and Soviet soldiers. To raise the morale of the troops, Soviet soldiers were told about the new self-propelled guns in leaflets and films about them were shown.

SU-152 operated mainly from ambushes, confidently destroying Nazi armored vehicles. The number of enemy tanks and self-propelled guns destroyed by the SU-152 differs in different sources. In the Red Army, any German self-propelled gun was often called “Ferdinands,” and modernized versions of the PzKpfw IV were mistaken for “Tigers.” However, the effectiveness of the SU-152 as an anti-tank weapon is beyond doubt.

If you have any questions, leave them in the comments below the article. We or our visitors will be happy to answer them

The SU-152 heavy self-propelled gun was developed at the beginning of 1943 and was the first example of a heavy self-propelled artillery unit manufactured at the Chelyabinsk plant on the basis of the KB-1C heavy tank. The design team was headed by L.S. Troyanov.

In connection with the start of preparations for a decisive offensive at Stalingrad? The State Defense Committee made a decision in the shortest possible time(pf 25 days!) create a powerful self-propelled artillery unit. armed with a 152-mm howitzer cannon - a new effective means of combating enemy tanks.

For designers and technologists - participants in the ultra-high-speed design of artillery self-propelled guns - it was a time of super-intense work. Many lived right in the offices, slept on beds placed near the drawing boards, without leaving the workshop for weeks. It was necessary to solve many problems in a short time: how to position the fighting compartment and howitzer, taking into account its ballistics, how to reduce the load on the hull when firing in order to prevent damage to the torsion bars, how to allocate space for rollback, etc.

And now, on February 7, 1943, the newly created self-propelled guns successfully passed tests, and by March 1, the first series of 35 vehicles was produced. Director of the Kirov Plant A.A. Goreglyad and Zh.Ya. Kotin was reported to the People's Commissariat: "The task of the State Defense Committee... to design and manufacture a self-propelled artillery installation with a 152-mm howitzer gun of the 1937 model ML-20 based on the KB-1C has been completed. The KB-14 self-propelled gun, after factory tests, was transferred to the state commission." In the spring of 1943, new vehicles began to arrive in training units and in the active army.

At the same time, she received her new and final index SU-152. During the production process, changes were made to the design of the vehicle aimed at improving its combat qualities. In particular, a turret mount for the DShK machine gun was developed. However, the life of these machines in production was short-lived. Already in the fall of 1943, its place in the assembly shop was taken by ISU-152. In total, from spring to autumn 1943, ChKZ produced more than 600 SU-152 vehicles.

By the beginning of the Battle of Kursk, several hundred 152-mm self-propelled guns had been manufactured. The Germans were in the dark and mistook them for stationary artillery installations, then for batteries of ship guns or even for supertanks. General layout of the SU-152. like medium self-propelled guns: in the front part there are control and combat compartments, in the stern there is a motor-transmission compartment. In the bow of the hull, next to the gun, there was a driver mechanic, to the right of the gun was the vehicle commander, and to the left of the gun was the gunner. and in the rear part of the hull there are two loaders.

The chassis was similar to the KB-1C tank and inherited all the shortcomings inherent in the engine-transmission group of this vehicle. Onboard
armor, only 60 mm thick, did not protect against German long-barreled 75 mm and 88 mm guns. Another drawback was the small horizontal aiming angle of the gun - about 12" and, as a result, the vulnerability of the self-propelled guns from the flanks. But despite all this, the SU-152 earned the reputation of a very necessary machine among the front-line soldiers. All its shortcomings were covered by enormous firepower.

The SU-152 received its baptism of fire in the battles of the Kursk Bulge, where the greatest effectiveness of using tank armies as a means of developing success was demonstrated. Self-propelled gun shells not only broke through the armor of German “Panthers” and “Tigers”, but often tore off their turrets altogether, smashed and overturned medium fascist tanks. The last months of the war passed. The city and fortress of Koenigsberg were turned into a single powerful fortified area. The path to Soviet tanks and infantry was blocked by a ring of old forts and new reinforced concrete pillboxes. Fort Queen Louise proved particularly difficult. Our light anti-tank guns, which were transported across the Land Graben Canal. unsuccessfully tried to break through the barricaded gates and walls of the fort.

Performance characteristics of the SU-152

Heavy guns were needed, which could not be delivered under dense, destructive fire.
The sound of a volley of heavy guns forced our machine gunners to raise their heads - 152-mm guns were firing. After the second salvo, a battery of heavy SU-152 self-propelled guns appeared from behind the ruins. The command vehicle stopped and fired at one of the "Tigers", and when the smoke cleared, the machine gunners saw a "Tiger" turned sideways without a turret. The crew of the second "Tiger" left the car in panic. Now the self-propelled guns, firing from short stops at the embrasures, quickly advanced to the gates of the fort. With each self-propelled gun shot, flames flared up in the towers of the fort, the firing points were suppressed, the walls collapsed. Another powerful volley swept away the barricade at the gate, and the battery, together with the infantry, burst into the internal fortifications of the fort. 350 prisoners were taken. 9 tanks. 200 cars, fuel warehouses.

Battery of self-propelled guns SU-152. which suppressed the firing points of one of the enemy’s most fortified forts in April 1945, was part of the 350th Guards Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment. Its commander was senior lieutenant Alexander Kosmodemyansky.
In 1944, individual tank self-propelled artillery regiments (OTSAP) began to gradually rearm with new ISU-152 and ISU-122. These vehicles managed to eliminate the disadvantages inherent in the chassis of KV tanks and strengthen the armor without increasing weight. The turret mount developed for the SU-152 was useful for the ISU self-propelled guns.

The remaining SU-152 self-propelled guns continued to be actively used, so few of them reached the end of the war. Currently, a sample of the SU-152 is on display at the Museum of Armored Vehicles in Kubinka, near Moscow.

________________________________________________________________________________________
Data source: author Arkhipova M.A. "Complete encyclopedia of tanks and armored vehicles of the USSR"

Hello tankers!Today we will talk about a machine capable of picking apart any combat unit in the game, a level 8 vehicle, a machine that everyone is afraid of being hit, regardless of level and armor. MeetingEat Isu-152 or “Soviet style can opener”!

Basics

The price of ISU-152 is 2,520,000 credits. Also, let’s not forget about the crew; the crew already on this vehicle greatly influences its characteristics.
I highly recommend starting to play with a 100% crew (the stock car is already dull). There are 2 ways to achieve 100% crew:

• 1st buy for gold which will be 200*5=1000 gold,
• The 2nd should be correctly transplanted from the SU-152. On the SU-152, do not teach perks to the crew and then when transferring for credits to the ISU you will receive 100%

crew, which will be 20,000*5 = 100,000 credits.
Quite a decent amount, but what do you want? Tank lvl 8...

Equipment

In stock condition, the tank behaves very poorly, the high-explosive weapon gets on your nerves (except for shooting gold), the speed and maneuverability leave much to be desired, but be patient and in the end you will get a completely different tank and the most terrible weapon in the game - the BL-10. A gun that makes even TT10 back behind cover, and tanks of lvl 6 and below burst with 1 hit.

Here is the research thread

Very large numbers of experience. Therefore, you will have to spend quite a few battles before you bring the car to the top.

There will be an extra on the stock chassis. equipment (rammer, mixing, etc.), but a top-end chassis will increase the turning speed, and this is very important for a comfortable game. Yes, and the BL-10 will not be installed without it (unless you install reinforced torsion bars)

The top radio station should already be open on your Su-152, just install it. Well, if you haven’t opened it, then open it as quickly as possible, 360 m for level 8 is very little.

A short digression on why a radio station is so important:

To play effectively, you need to know what is going on in another part of the map, if you do not know what is happening on the other flank, for example, you cannot make the right decision and ask yourself questions:

Is the flank broken?

do you need support?

Where are the rest of the enemy forces?

If you downloaded the Soviet TT branch, you had to open the top engine on the IS or IS3. If not, I recommend opening it after installing the top gun. The engine has a low % of fire; there are very, very few cars in the game with such a % chance of fire when hit.

Stock gun - 152 mm high explosive:

Most likely, with it you will have to gain at least 60 thousand experience; 122 mm guns of levels 7 and 8 will no longer decide where we will end up in those battles.
The advantages of the gun are that it doesn’t matter to us which part of the tank we hit, the main thing is to hit the enemy, the damage will still occur. And the idea that with each hit the enemy will have a critical module/crew member is pleasing, the main thing is to shoot only landmines
The disadvantages are that it is crooked, takes a long time to assemble and recharge.

You can also shoot premium. shells for silver, if there are premium and premium tanks for farming silver. But the level of combat, accuracy and penetration of shells even for gold, in my opinion, are incompatible. It's your choice though.

BL-9S gun:

The gun has average penetration and high damage per minute. Many people prefer to gain another 20,000 experience and buy a BT-10, so the weapon is not popular and is very rare to find. I will not consider it in more detail, due to its low popularity.

Well, BL-10 or who can hide:

Now you have installed the chassis (or installed reinforced torsion bars) and opened this treasured gun.
As I said above, this is the best weapon in the game (it was before the introduction of PT and ST 10). 286 penetrations - the highest indicator at level 9, coupled with huge damage from 600 to 900, can instill fear in everyone who stands in front of the gun, and after the 1st hit, panic begins! No one wants to get the 2nd shot which for many will be fatal...
But as there is always a BUT, shells sometimes just want to ricochet or hit the track without causing damage. Yes, yes, the gun is also famous for this.

Here, in my opinion, is the best option for upgrading the ISU-152:

1. The radio station must be open, so we just install- playing with a stock radio is very unpleasant, you don’t know what’s happening on the flank.
2. We are accumulating experience for the chassis (if there are no problems with loans, we install torsion bars and do not pump the chassis) - without it there will be no top weapon.
3.Installing the BL-10 or BL-9S gun- with new guns we will gain much more experience.
4.Downloading the chassis(if there were torsion bars) - it will be much more pleasant to play with on a tank, and the turning speed will noticeably increase
5.Downloading the engine- he still switches to rev. 704 + will add dynamics to the tank.

In general, we can highlight the following disadvantages and advantages of the tank:

Pros:

• A good weapon at the top.
• Good dynamics and speed are also in the top configuration.
• Very often at the top of the team.
• There are a lot of positive feelings from playing in the top configuration.

Minuses:

• Very often we glow after the 1st shot.
• Enemies have high priority.
• Cardboard armor.
• The first light is minus 200 - 300 HP.

Profitability of ISU-152:

It all depends on what kind of weapon you have:
If it costs 122 mm, then it’s not even worth talking about profitability and the PA will not save you, each shot is 1 thousand credits + repairs are about 10 thousand.
If - high explosive 152, then with PA you can play at 0.
Well, if BL-10 - without PA* at 0 or a small plus. With PA* there will be a small farm.

Naturally, gold will lead to big minuses on any weapon.

* - Premium account.

But in any case, you need a tank to farm credits, either lvl 5, 6, or any premium. tank lvl 8.

Combat tactics on the ISU-152:

We are not a breakthrough tank like vol.704. Our armor will not withstand hits from even medium guns.

Therefore, it is necessary to use tactics of ambushes and support of allies from behind the TT.

Don't forget that our gun tends to knock down the gusli or ricochet, so aim well. Reloading is very long.

If you use ambushes, then choose places where you will be very close. It’s hard to light up (2nd, 3rd bushes) because after a shot our tank lights up like a Christmas tree. Also, when using ambush tactics, do not forget that many opponents, after the 1st hit, “will no longer try to meet the 2nd projectile.” Our task, together with a pair of TT/PT, is to occupy one of the directions and defend it.

Well, if you decide to support the TT with your fire, then you need to follow these instructions:

If you are playing in the city and are trying to pick out opponents from around the corner, choose the moment when all the splashes catch the TT, do not get in front of them (our cardboard will not withstand even 1/3 of the hits)

Deal damage to the most terrible enemies, do not shoot at small things. Our gun penetrates absolutely everyone, and you will get more experience...

Don't expose yourself to attack, hide behind allied tanks

Also try not to launch an ST or LT (especially French ones) into your side/stern; knock it down with a harp, ram it, do whatever you want, but don’t launch it.

Fight level:

From this table it is clear that we fall into battle levels 8 - 10, which means we may encounter both PT 10 and ST 10.

I'll spend short review according to PT 10 so that you know what to do when you see a particular opponent and how dangerous he is.

About. 268:

Pros of the tank:

• Very fast
• Cannon with average damage 850
• Good penetration
• Frequent rebounds
• Has the most accurate gun among the PT10

Disadvantages of the tank:

• Relatively poor armor
• Poor aiming angles

Try to shoot only at the NLD, otherwise there may be ricochets and non-penetration. Built on the basis of the IS-8.

YagdPz E-100:

Pros of the tank:

• Good penetration
• good accuracy
• impenetrable cabin and gun mask
• average damage 1100

Disadvantages of the tank:

• Relatively slow
• big silhouette
• long reload
• glows like a Christmas tree
• cardboard NLD
• Arty has high priority when shooting

The PT can easily swanshot you, don’t expose yourself to the attack, hit the NLD exactly

T110E3:

Pros of the tank:

• Good armor
• big mask
• good penetration and damage.

Disadvantages of the tank:

• Relatively slow
• bad aiming angles

T110E4:

• Pros of the tank:
• Good armor
• presence of a tower
• good penetration and damage

Disadvantages of the tank:

• Relatively slow
• the tower rotates only 90 degrees
• very poor aiming angles and takes a long time to aim.

Shoot only at the NLD (body from T110E5)

Franz PT10:

Pros of the tank:

• Good dynamics
• good frontal armor
• drum for 3 shells, 850 damage each.

Disadvantages of the tank:

• Takes a long time to recharge

Shoot only at NLDs or surveillance devices.

Equipment:

Universal set:

We can tank a little, support TTs, or just defend key points.

1. Rammer - reload speed for AT is one of the important indicators.
2. The fan generally improves everything.
3. Optics, Stereo tube or amplified. aiming drives - 1st and 2nd increase. viewing range, 3rd improves convergence.

Subbush set:

This set is suitable for shooting from afar, passive light and def of key points

1. Rammer - reload speed for AT is one of the important indicators
2. Stereo tube - increases visibility
3. Musk. network - increases camouflage

Equipment:

Everything is standard

1. Repair kit
2. first aid kit
3. fire extinguisher

• The latter can be replaced with oil since the % combustion is 12

Crew Perks:

• 1st perk - camouflage is mandatory for all crew members, the Isu already glows after a shot, but unfortunately there is no armor. But when you land the crew on rev. 704 then you will understand why download the disguise...
• 2nd or more at your discretion, I recommend repairs to everyone except the commander, he has a sixth sense. But don’t forget that repairs, firefighting and military brotherhood need to be upgraded to everyone at once.

Happy fighting everyone!