Image source: topwar.ru
The Ukrainian army has been replenished with modern self-propelled howitzers of 155 mm caliber. According to the Polish press, Warsaw handed over Krab self-propelled artillery units of its own production to Kiev.
According to Polish radio, which in turn refers to a source in the Polish government, the Ministry of Defense of the Republic handed over 18 (eighteen) Krab self-propelled guns of 155 mm caliber to the Ukrainian military. When the transfer took place and under what conditions, there is no information yet. It is also reported that Poland has prepared calculations for these self-propelled guns, having trained about a hundred Ukrainian servicemen.
As stated in Warsaw, thanks to Polish assistance, 24 modern self-propelled howitzers are currently in service with the Ukrainian army, taking into account the six CAESAR self-propelled guns handed over to Kiev by the French. Another 12 Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzers are to be handed over to Germany and the Netherlands for two, but so far these are only promises, although the training of the Ukrainian military is already underway, it is conducted by German instructors.
In 2020, the AFU command announced plans to replace Soviet-style artillery systems with Western NATO-standard systems. Among the 155 mm self-propelled howitzers under consideration, Krab self-propelled howitzers were also considered, which were supposed to replace the Gvozdika and Acacia self-propelled howitzers.
The Krab self-propelled artillery unit is equipped with a chassis from the South Korean K9 Thunder howitzer and a turret from the British AS-90M Braveheart self-propelled gun (manufactured in Poland under license). The mass of the Krab self—propelled gun is 52 tons, the crew is 5 people. The caliber of the gun is 155 mm, the rate of fire is 6 rounds per minute, the maximum firing range is 40 km (when using specialized high-precision ammunition — up to 70 km). The howitzer can reach speeds of up to 60 km/h and has a power reserve of about 360 km.
