2С4 Тюльпан самоходный миномет

Platforms

2S4

2S4 Tyulpan Self-propelled Mortar

from: Wikipedia

edited by: Tim Wing

The 2S4 Tyulpan (English: tulip) was a Soviet self-propelled 240mm mortar system. The Tyulpan was at one time the heaviest mortar in deployment among any country.

General Characteristics

  • Type: Self-propelled mortar
  • Place of origin: Soviet Union
  • In service: 1972-2024
  • Primary users: Soviet Union
  • Produced: 1969-1978

Specifications

  • Weight: 30 tons
  • Length: 8.5 meters
  • Width: 3.2 meters
  • Height: 3.2 meters
  • Crew: 9

History

The 2S4 entered service with the Soviet Army in 1972. In design, it was based a GMZ tracked minelaying vehicle, carrying an externally mounted M-240 240 mm breech-loading mortar on the rear of the hull.

 

Propulsion

  • Engine: V59 V-12 liquid-cooled diesel 387.76 kW (520 HP)
  • Suspension: Torsion bar

Performance

  • Road speed: 62 km/h
  • Operational range: 420 km
  • Power to weight: 17 HP/ton

Armor

 

Armor thickness, in Rolled Homogenous Steel Armor equivalency (RHAe)

  • Hull, frontal: 20 mm RHAe

 

2S4 2Armament

Primary

Though the crew consisted of four men, an extra five were required to operate the mortar. The 240mm mortar had a range of 9.65 km, or up to 20 km with extended range ammunition. Due to the large size of the weapon and the weight of the ammunition (130 kg for a standard projectile), it had a slow rate of fire: one round per minute. In addition to the high explosive rounds, it could fire armor-piercing, chemical and nuclear rounds. It could also fire the “Smel’chak” (“Daredevil”) laser-guided round.

  • 2S4 1Designation: M-240 240 mm breech-loading mortar
  • Calibers: 240 mm
  • Range, conventional rounds: 9.65 km
  • Range, extended range rounds: 20 km
  • Rate of fire: 1 round per minute
  • Warhead:HE, AP, Chemical, Nuclear (Fission)

Secondary

 

  • Designation: 7.62 mm PKT machine gun

 

Service History

The 2S4 saw action during the Soviet Union’s conflict in Afghanistan and the Global Civil War. In both conflicts, the Smel’chak projectile consistently destroyed targets quickly, precisely, and with only a few rounds. The extreme firepower per round compensated for the Tyulpan’s slow rate of fire.

Operators

Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, Syria

 

 

Bibliography

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Original artwork by: Unknown

Content by Tim Wing

Copyright © 2015 Tim Wing