Hungary purchases a brutal military beast that can eliminate targets from over 60 kilometres

The Hungarian National Defence Force announced right before Christmas that they are not only going to purchase 44 new Leopard 2A7+ tanks but also 24 Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled artillery guns. The performance of the PzH 2000 of Krauss-Maffei Wegmann is incredible. It weighs 57 tonnes and is equipped with a 155-millimetre .52 Cal artillery gun.

The Panzerhaubitze 2000 (PzH 2000) is the self-propelled artillery gun platform of the German arms manufacturing company KMW. According to the information of the company besides executing conventional missions the vehicle can also be utilized in asymmetric warfare as an indirect supporting unit. Among others, Croatian, German, Greek, Italian, Dutch and Qatar military have been using PzH 2000s. Now Hungary joins the ranks of these armies in the sense of holding such military vehicle. Unfortunately, years could go by until these machines are manufactured and shipped –Portfolio.hu wrote.

PzH 2000, Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Previously we wrote about the acquisition of an air defence system from Airbus by the Hungarian National Defence Force. Nowadays our Defence Force is showing signs that it is catching up to other military forces in the world. Their methods are also developing. HERE you can read about how the Hungarian National Defence Force might collect biometric data in order to fight against criminals and illegal immigrants.

Main armament – 155 mm, Rheinmetall L/52 artillery gun

The main armament of the self-propelled howitzer is a 155 mm calibre artillery gun. The vehicle can carry 60 155 mm projectiles. The barrel of the gun is over 8 meters long. The equipped main gun can shoot 8-9 projectiles a minute and it is also equipped with an automatic loading system, but in the case of system error, the projectiles can also be loaded manually.

The turret

The turret is located in the back of the vehicle body and has 2 manholes, one on the left front and one in the right back. An MG3 machine gun can be installed for the front manhole and the turret is also equipped with 4 smoke launchers on every side.

Range

The PzH 2000 has a 30-kilometre standard radius, however, it is able to shoot targets 50-60 kilometres away thanks to rocket-assisted projectiles (RAPs). Thanks to the so-called MRSI (Multiple Rounds Simultaneous Impact) system, the artillery is capable of shooting projectiles in succession with decreasing firing arcs so that it can hit its target with up to 5 projectiles that strike at the same time. The radar in the turret is capable of tracking the route of its projectiles and it also helps with measuring wind force and direction.

Measurements

The PzH 2000 self-propelled howitzer is 11.7 meters long, 3.5 meters wide and 3.4 metres high. Its operational weight is 57 tonnes. A 986-horsepower engine is ensuring the propulsion of the vehicle which can get the vehicle over a distance of 420 kilometres without refuelling. The vehicle requires a crew of 5 soldiers.

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Featured image: Wikimedia Commons

Source: portfolio.hu