DANA (weapon)
Encyclopedia
Self-propelled
Self-propelled often refers to some form of self-propelled travel. It can refer to* Self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon* Self-propelled anti-tank gun* Self-propelled artillery* Self-propelled barge T-36* Self-propelled gun* Self-propelled mortar...
auto-loading
Autoloader
An autoloader or auto-loader is a mechanical aid or replacement for the personnel that load ordnance into crew-served weapons, such as tanks and artillery...
gun
Gun
A gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...
), also known as Samohybná Kanónová Húfnica vzor 77 (ShKH-77) (self-propelled gun howitzer model 77) was designed by Konštrukta Trenčín
Trencín
Trenčín is a city in western Slovakia of the central Váh River valley near the Czech border, around from Bratislava. It has a population of more than 56,000, which makes it the ninth largest municipality of the country and is the seat of the Trenčín Region and the Trenčín District...
and built by ZTS Dubnica nad Váhom
Dubnica nad Váhom
Dubnica nad Váhom ) is a town in the Ilava District, Trenčín Region in Slovakia.-Geography:It is located on the Váh river, in the Ilava Basin, between the White Carpathians and Strážovské vrchy mountains, at an altitude of 242 metres...
in the former Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
(now Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
) as the first wheeled 152 mm self-propelled artillery
Self-propelled artillery
Self-propelled artillery vehicles are combat vehicles armed with artillery. Within the term are covered self-propelled guns and rocket artillery...
gun to enter service. It was introduced in the 1970s. It is based on a modified 8x8
Eight-wheel drive
Eight-wheel drive, 8WD, or 8x8 is an eight-wheeled vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all eight wheels to receive power from the engine simultaneously.Some severe/extreme duty semi tractors may have this configuration...
Tatra 813
Tatra T813
Tatra T813 was a truck produced in Czechoslovakia by the Tatra company.-History:The first prototype already built in 1960 utilized existing Tatra T138 assemblies in 4x4 full time all wheel drive, which was also another first for Tatra. After the initial trials however the designers decided to...
chassis with excellent cross-country mobility. Currently it is in service with the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
, Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
and Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
.
Wheeled vehicles have the advantage of being cheaper to build and easier to maintain with greater mobility. Tire pressure can be regulated to allow good mobility off-road and there is power-assisted steering on the front four wheels. It lowers 3 hydraulic stabilizers into the ground prior to firing, and has a roof mounted crane to assist with ammunition loading.
The crew of the DANA consists of the driver (operates the hydraulic stabilizers) and commander sitting in the front cabin, the gunner (aims the gun and opens fire) and loader operator (selects the appropriate amount of powder charges) are on the left side of the turret, the ammo handler (sets the shells' primers) is on the right side turret.
Development history
The DANA was designed in the 1970s by Konštrukta TrenčínTrencín
Trenčín is a city in western Slovakia of the central Váh River valley near the Czech border, around from Bratislava. It has a population of more than 56,000, which makes it the ninth largest municipality of the country and is the seat of the Trenčín Region and the Trenčín District...
to fill the role of an indirect fire
Indirect fire
Indirect fire means aiming and firing a projectile in a high trajectory without relying on a direct line of sight between the gun and its target, as in the case of direct fire...
support weapon without buying the Soviet 2S3 Akatsiya
2S3 Akatsiya
SO-152 is a Soviet 152.4 mm self-propelled artillery developed in 1968. It was a response to the American 155 mm M109. The development started in 1967 according to the Resolution of the Council of Ministers of USSR from July 4, 1967. In 1968 the SO-152 was completed and in 1971 entered...
self propelled artillery. In 1976 the team of designers finished work on the DANA project and production was passed to ZTS Dubnica nad Váhom
Dubnica nad Váhom
Dubnica nad Váhom ) is a town in the Ilava District, Trenčín Region in Slovakia.-Geography:It is located on the Váh river, in the Ilava Basin, between the White Carpathians and Strážovské vrchy mountains, at an altitude of 242 metres...
.
It is a 152 mm gun mounted on an 8x8
Eight-wheel drive
Eight-wheel drive, 8WD, or 8x8 is an eight-wheeled vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all eight wheels to receive power from the engine simultaneously.Some severe/extreme duty semi tractors may have this configuration...
Tatra T815 truck. It was a significant departure from traditional self-propelled guns as it used a wheeled carriage. It was accepted for service in 1981 and by 1994 over 750 units had been built.
DANA's unique feature is that its autoloader is able to load a shell and a cartridge in any elevation of the barrel. Although this feature is nowadays considered as standard, Dana was one of the first such artillery systems in the time of its introduction to service.
Aiming system
As there is no gyroscopic or similar system for independent, automated and autonomous gun laying of DANA, the gunner of DANA uses panoramic telescope with a horizontal scale to set the appropriate horizontal laying via aiming at directing points. This means there needs to be an additional device to help gun laying of DANA (in fact, the firing positions of such artillery systems are usually prepared BEFORE the guns are stationed there). After laying the gun in horizontal plane, the gunner uses bubbles to level the desired gun elevation.Ammunition
Currently, there are three main shell types used by Czech Army:1) 152-EOF, which means "high-explosive" with a maximum range of 18 km
2) 152-EOFd, which means "high-explosive long-range" with a maximum range of 20 km
3) 152-EPrSv, which means "high-explosive anti-tank" used for direct-fire at armored targets
General characteristics
- Length: 10.5 m (34.44 ft)
- Width: 2.8 m (9 ft)
- Height: 2.6 m (8.53 ft)
- Weight: 23,000 kg (50,706 lbs)
- Performance:
- Maximum Road Speed: 80 km/h (50 mph)
- Range: 600 km (373 mi)
- Rate of Fire: 3 rpm for 30 minutes
- Maximum Gun Range: 18 km (11 mi)
- Fording: 1.4 m (4.59 ft)
- Vertical Obstacle: 1.5 m (5 ft)
- Trench: 1.4 m (4.59 ft)
- Crew: 4 to 5
- Armament:
- Primary: 152 mm gun-howitzer, length: 5,580 mm (37 calibers)
- Secondary: 12.7 mm MGMachine gunA machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
DŠKMDShKThe DShK 1938 is a Soviet heavy machine gun firing the 12.7x108mm cartridge. The weapon was also used as a heavy infantry machine gun, in which case it was frequently deployed with a two-wheeled mounting and a single-sheet armour-plate shield...
- Elevation: -4° to +70°
- Traverse: ±45°
- Powerplant: one V-12 air cooled diesel Tatra T2-939-34 engine delivering 345 horsepowerHorsepowerHorsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
(257.27 kW)
Variants
152 mm ShKH Ondava
The ShKH Ondava is a development step started during late eighties with a longer 152 mm barrel (47 calibers), new muzzle brake (2 chamber), new loading mechanism etc. Max range is 30 km. The Ondava project ended with the velvet revolution and dissolution of the Czechoslovakian state. Technical experience was carried over to the Zuzana project.152 mm ShKH MODAN vz.77/99
The ShKH MODAN is a Slovak upgrade of DANA with longer range, higher accuracy and rate of fire. The upgrade consists of a new on-board control system that enables higher combat efficiency and reduction of crew from 5 to 4 members.152 mm ShKH DANA-M1 CZ
The DANA-M1 CZ is a Czech upgrade of the DANA, developed by Excalibur Army from Prague. The upgrade package consists of a new fire control system, new navigation aids and a modified chassis with T3-930 engine.155 mm ShKH M2000 Zuzana
The Slovak ShKH ZuzanaShKH Zuzana
ZUZANA - 155 mm Self-propelled Gun Howitzer is a modern Slovak artillery system with a 45-caliber gun and automatic loader for loading of both, a projectile and charge...
has been modified with a 155 mm gun (45 calibers) to conform to NATO standards. First adopted by the Slovak Army
Military of Slovakia
The Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic number 14,000 uniformed personnel. Slovakia joined NATO in March 2004. From 2006 the army transformed into a fully professional organization and compulsory military service was abolished.-Structure of the Armed Forces:...
in 1998, the Slovak Army currently possesses 16 such units with plans to adopt more. The M2000G is a version for the Cypriot National Guard
Cypriot National Guard
The Cypriot National Guard , also known as the "Greek Cypriot National Guard" or simply as "National Guard", is the combined arms military force of the Republic of Cyprus...
with different signals equipment, 76mm smoke grenade launchers and an MG3 7.62mm machine gun instead of the NSVT of 12.7mm. It entered service in 2001.
155 mm ShKH A40 Himalaya
The ShKH Himalaya is an adaptation of the system to a tracked chassis required by export customers. It is essentially a tracked variant of ShKH ZuzanaShKH Zuzana
ZUZANA - 155 mm Self-propelled Gun Howitzer is a modern Slovak artillery system with a 45-caliber gun and automatic loader for loading of both, a projectile and charge...
with the same 155 mm turret mounted on a T-72
T-72
The T-72 is a Soviet-designed main battle tank that entered production in 1970. It is developed directly from Obyekt-172, and shares parallel features with the T-64A...
chassis with S1000 engine.
155 mm ShKH Zuzana 2
Initially known as Zuzana A1 and then Zuzana XA-1, this is the latest development of the Zuzana. It was unveiled for the first time in 2004. This model is fitted with a 155/52 ordnance and has other improvements such as a reworked turret and a different engine: the Tatra T3B-928.70 of 330 kW.Combat history
The DANA was used by the Georgian army during the 2008 South Ossetia war2008 South Ossetia war
The 2008 South Ossetia War or Russo-Georgian War was an armed conflict in August 2008 between Georgia on one side, and Russia and separatist governments of South Ossetia and Abkhazia on the other....
.
4-9 DANA's are thought to have been destroyed by a Russian air strike. According to Russian sources 3 were captured.
Poland has used its artillery systems in Afghanistan