M53/59 Praga

M53/59 Praga
M53/59 Praga, self-propelled anti-aircraft gun of Serbian Army
Type Self-propelled anti-aircraft gun
Place of origin Czechoslovakia
Production history
No. built More than 330[1]
Specifications
Weight 10.3 tonnes
Length 6.92 m (22 ft 8 in)
Barrel length 2.4 m (94 in)
Width 2.35 m (7 ft 9 in)
Height 2.95 m (9 ft 8 in)
Crew 4 (driver, commander and two gun operators)
Shell Fixed QF 30x210mm
Caliber 30 mm (1.2 in)
Barrels 2
Elevation -10° - +85°
Traverse 360°
Rate of fire 500 rpm per barrel cyclic
100 rpm per barrel practical
Muzzle velocity 1,000 m/s (3,300 ft/s)
Effective firing range 3 km (2 mi) effective range[2]
Armor Aluminum
Main
armament
 30 mm twin AA autocannon (900 rounds)
Engine Tatra T 912-2 6-cylinder inline air-cooled diesel
110 hp (82 kW) at 2,200 rpm
Power/weight 10.7 hp/tonne (8 kW/tonne)
Suspension torsion bar
Operational
range
 500 km (310 mi)
Speed 60 km/h (37 mph)
detail of 30 mm twin AA gun, vz.53/59

The M53/59 Praga is a Czechoslovak self-propelled anti-aircraft gun developed in the late 1950s. It consists of a heavily modified Praga Praga V3S six-wheel drive truck chassis, armed with a twin 30 mm AA autocannon mounted on the rear for which the vehicle typically carries 900 rounds of ammunition, each gun being gravity fed from distinctive 50 round magazines. The vehicle has an armoured cabin.

In Czechoslovakia it was known as Praga PLDvK vz. 53/59 - "Ještěrka" (PLDvK Model 53/59 - "Lizard").[3] PLDvK stands for Protiletadlový dvojkanón = Anti-aircraft twin-gun.

The system is optically aimed and can only be used effectively during the day with good weather conditions. The gun can be dismounted and used independently of the vehicle.

While mostly obsolete in anti-aircraft role, it can be used effectively as a ground support weapon against unarmored or lightly armored targets, as was shown during the Yugoslav wars. It remains in service with armies of Egypt, Libya, Serbia, Slovakia etc.

When Czechoslovakia imported one Soviet-made ZSU-57-2 for testing it considered it to be comparable to M53/59 which was the reason Czechoslovakia refused the Soviet SPAAG.[4]

Operators

Former Operators

  •  Czechoslovakia - Passed on to the successor states.
  •  Czech Republic - Last vehicle retired from service in 2003.[7]
  •  Croatia - 2 were given to a local army museum, rest was phased out and scrapped.[8]
  •  Cuba - Retired
  •  Bosnia and Herzegovina - Unknown
  •  Slovenia - Used during Ten-day war, retired in late 90s. Some donated to museums.[9]
  •  Yugoslavia - 220 ordered in 1965 from Czechoslovakia and delivered between 1965 and 1968.[1] By 1991 their quantity grew to 789.[10] Passed on to the successor states.[11]

See also

References

  • "M53/59 at ELDON s.r.o". 2003. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007.
  1. 1 2 3 SIPRI Arms Transfers Database
  2. ↑ Foss, Christopher (1977). Jane's pocket book of towed artillery. New York: Collier. p. 225. ISBN 0020806000. OCLC 911907988.
  3. ↑ Translation of "Ještěrka"
  4. ↑ Militaria Jowitka
  5. ↑ Mandrake. "M23 Rebel Group (Democratic Republic of Congo) M53/59 Praga". Esoteric Armor. Retrieved 6 February 2013.
  6. ↑
  7. ↑ Ještěrka šířila hrůzu a uprchlíci s ní proráželi železnou oponu (article in Czech)
  8. ↑ Air Defence weapons of Croatian Army
  9. ↑ Air Defence weapons of Slovenian Army
  10. ↑ http://oklop2.tripod.com/praga/m53.htm
  11. ↑ Air Defence weapons of Yugoslav People's Army
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