85 mm antitank gun D-48

Infobox Weapon
name=85-mm antitank gun D-48


caption=85 mm antitank gun D-48.
origin=USSR
type=antitank gun
is_ranged=
is_bladed=
is_explosive=
is_artillery=yes
is_vehicle=
is_UK=
service=
used_by=
wars=
designer=
design_date=1948
manufacturer=
production_date=1955-1957
number=
variants=
weight=2350 kg
length=8.72 m
part_length=74 calibers
width=1.59m
height=1.89m
crew=6
cartridge=
caliber=85 mm
action=
rate=up to 15 rounds per minute (max)
8 rounds per minute (normal)
velocity=1040 m/s
range=1200 m
max_range=18.97 km
feed=
sights=OP-2-77
OP-4-77
breech=
recoil=
carriage=split trail
elevation=-6° to 35°
traverse=54°
blade_type=
hilt_type=
sheath_type=
head_type=
haft_type=
diameter=
filling=
filling_weight=
detonation=
yield=
armour=
primary_armament=
secondary_armament=
engine=
engine_power=
pw_ratio=
suspension=
vehicle_range=
speed=

The 85-mm antitank gun D-48 ( _ru. 85-мм противотанковая пушка Д-48) was a Soviet 85-mm calibre antitank gun used after World War II. It was designed as the replacement for the 100 mm field gun M1944 (BS-3). Distinguishing features of the D-48 include a very long barrel and a pepper-pot muzzle brake. The D-48 was itself replaced in the 1960s by the T-12 antitank gun.

Overview

The gun was designed by the F. F. Petrov Design Bureau on the basis of the D-44 85-mm divisional gun and production of the D-48 began in 1953 at the No. 75 factory in Yurga. The D-48 used the breechblock from the BS-3 100-mm field gun in order to achieve a rate of fire of 15 rounds per minute at maximum cadence. [ [http://legion.wplus.net/guide/army/ar/d48.shtml Page in Russian on the D-48.] ] The gun can transition from march to combat order in about two minutes.

The D-48N was a version with an APN 2-77 or 3-77 infrared imaging device fitted for night combat. A licensed version of the D-48 was produced in China as the Type 60.

The gun fires a high velocity armor-piercing tracer (HVAP-T) BR-372 projectile at 1040 meters per second and can penetrate 185mm of armor at a range of 1000 meters at an angle of obliquity of 90 degrees. [ [http://legion.wplus.net/guide/army/ar/d48.shtml Page in Russian on the D-48.] ] The 3BK-7 high explosive antitank (HEAT) projectile can penetrate 192mm of armor at an angle of obliquity of 60 degrees. The effective range of armor piercing shells for the D-48 is 1,230 meters (HVAP-T) or 940 meters (HEAT). Additionally, the D-48 antitank gun is capable of firing a 9.66 kilogram OF-372 high explosive projectile to a direct fire range of 1,200 meters or an indirect fire range of 18.97 kilometers. The ammunition for the D-48 was developed by necking down 100-mm ammunition in order to achieve higher muzzle velocities. [Janes, p. 525.]

The gun is towed by a URAL-375D truck [Janes, p. 526.] or an AT-P tractor with a maximum towing speed over asphalt roadway of about 60km/h. The tires on the D-48 are those of the ZIS-5 truck.

Designs with auxiliary power units were also investigated but never developed beyond prototype stage.

Use by other nations

The D-48 has been exported to Afghanistan, Bulgaria, Congo, India, North Korea, Mongolia, Mozambique, Romania, Somalia, Sudan, and Vietnam. [Janes, p. 526.]

Citations

References

* Brassey's Encyclopedia of Land Forces and Warfare, Brassey's Inc., Washington D.C., 2000, ISBN 1-574-88087-X.
* "Die Landstreitkräfte der NVA", Wilfried Kopenhagen, Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttart, 2003, ISBN 3-613-02297-4.
* "Jane's Armour and Artillery 1981-1982", Jane's Publishing Company Ltd, London, 1982.
* Shunkov V. N. - "The Weapons of the Red Army", Mn. Harvest, 1999 (Шунков В. Н. - "Оружие Красной Армии." — Мн.: Харвест, 1999.) ISBN 985-433-469-4.

External links

* [http://legion.wplus.net/guide/army/ar/d48.shtml Page in Russian on the D-48.]