Preface
In today's world, the degree of informationization is increasing day by day, and the form of future warfare is also undergoing profound changes.
How to achieve rapid mobility and precision strikes in a complex and ever-changing battlefield environment has become an important symbol for testing a country's military strength.
As a responsible major country, the mainland has always attached great importance to the leading role of scientific and technological innovation in the process of promoting the modernization of national defense and the armed forces.
The advent of the PCL181 155mm vehicle-mounted howitzer is an important achievement of the mainland's independent innovation and technology accumulation.
It only takes 3 minutes from the preparation to the launch of this weapon, and it will be transferred after the fight, and by the time the enemy detects the position and counterattacks, our PCL181 has already flown far away.
This domestically produced PCL181 truck gun, which can be called the world's strongest artillery sniper and made the PLA love it, really serve as "a magic cannon on the snowy plateau and a heavy hammer for mountain troops"?
Traditional artillery and new artillery
Traditional artillery has obvious problems of poor mobility, slow reaction speed and limited accuracy.
This is mainly manifested in the use of old chassis, which leads to weak maneuverability, long deployment time in place, weak response capability to rapid strikes against targets, and the difficulty of relying on simple optical aiming to achieve precision strikes in complex environments.
These limitations limit the combat effectiveness of traditional artillery and cannot meet the needs of modern warfare.
In order to solve the above problems, there is an urgent need to develop a new type of artillery that integrates high mobility, rapid response, and precision strike.
This requires an advanced chassis for improved mobility, a rapid stabilization system for rapid deployment, and sophisticated fire control and guidance equipment to greatly improve shooting accuracy.
It is against this background that the PCL181 vehicle-mounted howitzer independently developed by the mainland came into being.
Performance advantages of the PCL181 vehicle-mounted howitzer
(1) High mobility and rapid deployment capabilities
The PCL181 has a 6X6 wheeled chassis and is equipped with a diesel engine with a maximum power of 1000 hp.
This not only ensures its ability to maneuver at high speed on general roads, but also allows it to obtain strong off-road mobility.
Compared with traditional towed artillery, which can only rely on towed vehicles, the self-propelled characteristics of the PCL181 provide it with greater flexibility, which can quickly take place in complex environments, effectively improving the survivability of artillery units.
In addition, the PCL181 is equipped with a central air pressure system, which can intelligently adjust the vehicle height according to road conditions.
This further enhances its adaptability to all types of terrain, whether on motorways or rough mountain roads, the PCL181 is able to maintain efficient maneuverability and travel speeds of up to 100 km/h.
This is of great significance to ensuring the mobile operation of artillery units and achieving rapid strikes.
Specifically, the chassis suspension system of the PCL181 is designed with pneumatic springs and hydraulic shock absorbers, which can be switched between three working heights according to the needs of the application.
In road driving mode, the vehicle has a low ground clearance, which is conducive to high-speed movement, and when driving off-road, it can obtain greater contour obstacle capacity by increasing the vehicle height.
This intelligent adjustable suspension not only improves all-terrain maneuverability, but also enhances vehicle comfort.
(2) Powerful firepower and precise strikes
The PCL181 is armed with a 155 mm 52 x diameter barrel and has a maximum range of 70 km, which can be increased by 30%-40% in more thinner highland areas.
This not only exceeds the firing range index of our army's existing vehicle-mounted artillery of the same type, but also reaches the level of towed self-propelled artillery, and has greatly improved its long-range precision strike capability.
At the same time, the PCL181 is capable of making short pauses between marches for effective firing.
This "intermittent fire" mode allows it to fire quickly in a short period of time without waiting for the entire vehicle to come to a complete standstill, greatly reducing the preparation time for firing.
This is of great tactical significance for ensuring the survival of the troops and gaining the initiative on the battlefield.
In addition, the shooting control system of PCL181 is also automated, digitized and intelligent.
Not only is it highly accurate and responsive, but it is also able to automatically select the optimal firing parameters according to the nature of the target and environmental conditions, which further improves the accuracy and efficiency of shooting.
Specifically, the PCL181 is equipped with an advanced artillery image stabilization and aiming system, which can effectively suppress the impact of hull vibration and gun recoil on aiming, so as to ensure the shooting accuracy in high-speed maneuvering conditions.
At the same time, the system can also automatically identify and lock on according to the characteristics of the target, and quickly calculate the shooting solution accordingly, so that the shooter can carry out precision strikes with simple confirmation.
This greatly improves the unit's ability to respond quickly to maneuvering targets, and the PCL181 can be fully functional even when fighting in the mountains.
(3) Informatization construction
The PCL181 is designed to embody the "system-to-system" philosophy.
It organically integrates a variety of functional systems such as chassis, artillery, and shooting control radar on a platform, and realizes information interconnection and interoperability between systems through a highly digitized information network.
For example, its central control computer can collect multi-source data such as chassis status, ammunition information, and environmental parameters in real time, and efficiently dispatch various functional systems after intelligent analysis to make them work together.
This high degree of coordination not only improves the resilience of the combat system, but also enables each subsystem to give full play to its comprehensive effectiveness.
Specifically, PCL181 adopts a vehicle-mounted battlefield management system, which can organically connect the chassis, weapon system, and shooting control equipment to achieve information sharing and optimal allocation of resources.
Through this system, the commander and gun commander can clearly grasp the vehicle status, target information and other data, and can quickly formulate the optimal strike plan according to the battlefield environment.
At the same time, the system is able to predict failures and prevent them in advance, ensuring the sustainable combat capability of the troops.
Even compared with similar foreign equipment, the PCL181 has obvious advantages in terms of mobility, firepower and combat radius.
Comparison of PCL181 with the artillery equipment of other countries
(1) Comparison with the American M777
Although the M777 light howitzer used by the US military is lighter in weight, it is inferior to the PCL181 in mobility and firepower, and the PCL181 surpasses the M777 in range, rate of fire and first-shot hit rate.
American M777 ultralight howitzer
Although the M777 light howitzer used by the US military is lighter, it is inferior in mobility and firepower to the PCL181.
Helicopter lifting M777 howitzer
The PCL181 has a range of 70 km, much more than the M777's 30 km, and can strike at targets at longer distances.
M777M777
The PCL181 has a burst rate of fire of up to 10 rounds per minute, which is designed to treat the phobia of insufficient firepower, and even the M777 in the United States has a rate of fire of only 5 rounds per minute.
M777 Portee车载榴弹炮
In terms of accuracy, the PCL181 has a first-shot hit rate of more than 90%, which is significantly better than that of the M777.
Truck towing M777 howitzer
It can be said that in important indicators such as maneuverability, range, rate of fire and accuracy, the PCL181 comprehensively surpasses the M777.
MV-22倾旋翼机吊运M777榴弹炮
(ii) Comparison with the Russian 2S19
The Russian 2S19 self-propelled howitzer has a full-tracked chassis and is significantly inferior in mobility to the PCL181.
Russian 2S19 self-propelled howitzer
When maneuvering on the road, the PCL181 can reach a maximum speed of 100 km / h, which is more than twice that of the 2S19.
Self-propelled howitzer Type 2S19 at the parade
The maximum range of the 2S19 is 39 km, while the PCL181 reaches 70 km.
The 2S19 self-propelled howitzer opened fire during the exercise
Not only is there a gap in firing range, but the rate of fire and accuracy of the PCL181 are significantly superior to those of the 2S19.
2S19 self-propelled howitzer vehicle out-of-the-box bomb machine
(iii) Comparison with the German PzH 2000
The German PzH 2000 self-propelled howitzer also had a full-track chassis and was inferior in maneuverability to the PCL181, and the maximum firing range of the PzH 2000 was 30 km, which was only half that of the PCL181.
German PzH 2000
In terms of rate of fire, the PzH 2000 is 9 rounds per minute, compared to the 10 rounds per minute that the PCL181 can achieve, and the PCL181 is more accurate, with a starting shooting rate of more than 90%.
PZH-2000 front
Through the above comparison, it can be seen that it is not an exaggeration to call PCL181 the world's strongest artillery sniper, so what is the strategic significance of this artillery equipment to the mainland?
PzH 2000 live firing
The strategic importance of PCL181 artillery equipment for the mainland
(1) Enhance combat capability against Taiwan
The situation in the Taiwan Strait is complex and volatile, and there is always a risk of military conflict, and the PCL181's high mobility and long-range precision strike capability will greatly enhance the PLA's ability to strike targets on the island of Taiwan.
If necessary, the PCL181 can take advantage of its mobile and flexible characteristics to quickly locate on the southeast coast and carry out long-range strikes against important targets such as airports, ports, and command posts on the island, so as to cut off the strategic projection of the Taiwan military.
This will play an important role in curbing the separatist forces on the island and safeguarding national unity.
(2) Safeguarding homeland security
With the transformation of the PLA into an information-based force, long-range precision strikes have become an important combat method, and the emergence of PCL181 will greatly improve the army's long-range surprise attack and precision strike capabilities.
In the event of a territorial dispute or border conflict, the PCL181 can quickly maneuver to the front line and use its long range of 70 kilometers to strike at the opponent's targets, effectively deterring and deterring further provocations by the opponent.
This will strengthen the deterrence of our army in the border areas and ensure the security of the homeland.
And according to a report on October 21, 2021, this weapon was also deployed by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) on the Sino-Indian border, while India deployed the American M777 towed howitzer.
The PCL181 and the American M777 towed howitzer have also been compared above, and it can be seen that the M777 is far inferior to the mainland's PCL181 howitzer in terms of mobility, firepower, range, rate of fire and first hit rate.
(3) Enhance global military influence
The performance of PCL181 is at the leading level in the world.
This indicates that China's self-developed new artillery equipment has reached the world's first-class level, and the mainland's overall military strength and scientific research and innovation capability have been further enhanced.
The emergence of the PCL181 equipment unit will enhance the PLA's military influence on a global scale and help maintain peace and stability in the region and even the world.
【Disclaimer】The process and pictures described in the article are all from the Internet, and this article aims to advocate positive social energy and no vulgar and other bad guidance. If it involves copyright or character infringement issues, please contact us in time, and we will delete the content as soon as possible!