122 mm howitzer M1938 (M-30)

122 mm howitzer M1938 (М-30)
M-30 in VDV history museum, Russia.
TypeField howitzer
Place of originSoviet Union
Service history
In service1939–present
WarsWorld War II
Korean War
Vietnam War[1]
Laotian Civil War
Indonesian invasion of East Timor[2]
Soviet–Afghan War[3][4]
Lebanese Civil War
Iran–Iraq War[5]
Second Sudanese Civil War[6]
Syrian Civil War
Sri Lankan Civil War
Russo-Ukrainian War
Production history
DesignerDesign bureau of Motovilikha Plants,
headed by F. F. Petrov
Designed1938
ManufacturerPlants No. 92 & No. 9
Produced1939–1960
No. built19,266
VariantsM-30S, Chinese Type 54
Specifications
Masscombat: 2,450 kg
(5,401 lbs)
travel: 3,100 kg
(6,834 lbs)
Length5.9 m (19 ft 4 in) (with limber)
Barrel length2.8 m (9 ft 2 in) L/22.7
Width1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)
Height1.82 m (6 ft)
Crew8

Shell122 x 284mm .R
loading charge and projectile[7]
Caliber121.92 mm (4.8 in)
BreechInterrupted screw
RecoilHydro-pneumatic
CarriageSplit trail
Elevation−3° to 63.5°
Traverse49°
Rate of fire5–6 rounds per minute
Maximum firing range11.8 km (7.33 mi)

The 122 mm howitzer M1938 (M-30) (GRAU index: 52-G-463) is a Soviet 121.92 mm (4.8 inch) howitzer. The weapon was developed by the design bureau of Motovilikha Plants, headed by F. F. Petrov, in the late 1930s, and was in production from 1939 to 1955. The M-30 saw action in World War II, mainly as a divisional artillery piece of the Red Army (RKKA). Captured guns were also employed later in the conflict by the German Wehrmacht and the Finnish Army. Post World War II the M-30 saw combat in numerous conflicts of the mid- to late twentieth century in service of other countries' armies, notably in the Middle East.

  1. ^ Schuster, Carl Otis; Coffey, David (May 2011). "Vietnam, Democratic Republic of, Army". In Tucker, Spencer C. (ed.). The Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War: A Political, Social, and Military History (2 ed.). p. 1251. ISBN 978-1-85109-960-3.
  2. ^ Haryadi 2019, p. 331
  3. ^ Isby, David C. (1990). The War in Afghanistan 1979–1989: The Soviet Empire at High Tide. Concord Publications. p. 41. ISBN 978-9623610094.
  4. ^ Zaloga, Steven; Luczak, Wojciech; Beldam, Barry (1992). Armor of the Afghanistan War. Armor 2009. Concord Publications. p. 9. ISBN 978-9623619097.
  5. ^ Murray, Williamson; Woods, Kevin M. (2014). The Iran–Iraq War: A Military and Strategic History. Cambridge University Press. p. 158. doi:10.1017/CBO9781107449794. ISBN 9781107449794.
  6. ^ "Sudan – Global trade, local impact: Arms Transfers to all Sides in thåe Civil War in Sudan" (PDF). Human Rights Watch Report. 10 (4): 24. August 1998.
  7. ^ Foss, Christopher (1977). Jane's pocket book of towed artillery. New York: Collier. p. 97. ISBN 0020806000. OCLC 911907988.