The Chinese Army has long used the Type 66 152mm cannon howitzer as the main equipment. The service life of this "treasure knife is not old" artillery has reached the level of quasi-grandfather. However, with the continuous development of China's artillery technology, our army's artillery equipment began to change in the direction of motorization and informatization, and more and more self-propelled artillery and vehicle-mounted guns began to join the troops. Nevertheless, the path of improvement for this old gun did not stop. At the 2018 Zhuhai Air Show, Poly exhibited the Type 66 152mm howitzer with auxiliary push, which attracted widespread attention. The Type 66 152mm cannon howitzer is a copy of the Soviet D-20 type 152mm cannon howitzer, which began production in 1966 and began to equip army artillery and artillery divisions in the late 60s. The artillery is used to suppress and annihilate enemy forces, artillery** and other equipment, as well as to destroy field fortifications, destroy armored targets, etc. As the first large-caliber cannon howitzer independently developed by China, the Type 66 152mm cannon howitzer fills the gap in our army's artillery equipment.
The gun has a length of almost 87 meters, about 242 meters, for the towed artillery, the high and low firing range is minus 5 degrees to positive 45 degrees, the directional firing range is 30 degrees to the left to 28 degrees, and the whole gun weighs about 57 tons. It uses a two-chamber muzzle brake, a semi-automatic wedge bolt, and an anti-recoil device of the hydraulic gas type. The Type 66 152-mm cannon howitzer is mainly used to shoot at vertical, armored and long-range targets. Its shells and cartridges are divided into parts, and the projectile weighs 4356 kg, including anti-personnel blasting grenades, flares, smoke grenades, etc., can also fire incendiary bombs with 5 incendiary canisters. Although the Type 66 152-mm cannon howitzer was once the main equipment of our army, with the continuous progress of technology, modern artillery has become the main force of the artillery unit. However, as part of the history of Chinese artillery, the Type 66 152-mm cannon howitzer is still worth pondering and recalling. The Type 66 152 mm plus howitzer, as the main heavy artillery of our army's long-term equipment, has the characteristics of full manual loading, with a rate of fire of up to 6 rounds per minute and a maximum range of up to 174 km, while the minimum firing range is 4 km, the crew of the artillery squad is 9 people.
This gun has been in service for more than 50 years, although in the 80s there were certain improvements and upgrades, including the development of the bottom row extended range projectile, so that the maximum range was increased to 22 kilometers, in order to narrow the gap with the advanced level of foreign countries. Since the beginning of the new century, the gun has also been equipped with a digital artillery command system and precision-guided munitions, which have further enhanced its combat capability. However, due to the fact that its technical design was far behind, its mobility could not meet modern needs, so it was gradually replaced by auxiliary 152-mm guns. Its weight is huge, it is limited by road conditions when towing, it is easy to get trapped, and its climbing ability is insufficient, which seriously restricts the mobility and speed of artillery units. In addition, the towed artillery needs to be picked up in a relatively safe and hidden place, the tractor and the gun are separated, and then the gunner uses manpower to advance the gun into the firing position. Although the distance is usually not too long, it can still be a great drain on the gunner's physical strength, especially in rough or steep terrain. These problems became one of the main reasons for the obsolescence of the gun. With the rapid development of counter-battery technology, the traditional way of artillery combat is facing unprecedented challenges.
In the past, artillery units could stay in one position for a long time to shoot, but nowadays, artillery is required to quickly enter the position, quickly determine the firing parameters, and quickly withdraw after carrying out rapid fire to avoid being detected and attacked by enemy artillery. Otherwise, once the gun emplacement is discovered by the enemy, the consequences will be unimaginable. In order to adapt to this development trend, countries have begun to study how to improve the mobility of artillery. In this process, two main lines of development emerged: one was to add auxiliary propulsion units to conventional towed guns, typified by the Swedish FH77B;The other is to erect artillery directly on trucks, forming the so-called "truck guns", typical of which is the French "Caesar". As early as the 80s of the last century, China began to try to develop auxiliary artillery. The earliest attempts were made on the Type 59-1 130-mm cannon, which significantly increased the maneuverability of the gun by adding an auxiliary propulsion unit with an engine and a hydraulic transmission. Although this technique was not officially equipped with troops. Later, China also developed the PLL-01 155mm auxiliary gun, but it was also not officially equipped with troops, but was mothballed as a technical reserve.
The auxiliary 66 type 152 mm howitzer displayed at the 2018 Zhuhai Air Show was developed based on the technology reserved that year. The gun is based on the traditional towed Type 66 152 mm howitzer, with the elimination of the protective shield, by installing a set of auxiliary propulsion units in the front of the gun carriage, using a 4-cylinder water-cooled gasoline engine, the gasoline engine is connected to two hydraulic pumps, which in turn are connected to two hydraulic motors on the gun wheels, thus improving the mobility and adaptability of the gun. The hydraulic system drives the auxiliary propulsion unit of the Type 66 152mm howitzer, which allows the driver to control the gun truck forward, reverse, stop, change speed and steer by manipulating the small steering wheel and gear device, achieving a car-like operation. In addition, the auxiliary propulsion unit is equipped with a backup hand-crank pump to provide power in the event of a malfunction, while also being quiet during night operation. The driver's seat is located on the left side of the gun carriage, and is responsible for the march-battle transition of the artillery, through the hydraulic device of the operating support wheels, the gun and the towing vehicle can be completed in about two minutes, so as to quickly change the state and improve the rapid reaction time of the gun.
The installation of auxiliary propulsion devices not only makes the Type 66 152 mm howitzer more swift and labor-saving when entering and exiting the position, but also enables the tractor and the gun to pass separately during long-distance maneuvers, thus improving the passage ability of the artillery unit. In addition, auxiliary propulsion units provide a power source for the automated or semi-automatic operation of towed guns, freeing the gunner from heavy manual labor. The application of auxiliary propulsion units makes the operation of artillery more efficient, helps to reduce the burden on the operator and increases combat efficiency.