ZU-23-2

Also known as SU-23, 23mm ZU-23

The ZU-23-2, also known as ZU-23, is a Soviet towed 23×152mm anti-aircraft twin-barreled autocannon. ZU stands for Zenitnaya Ustanovka (Russian: Зенитная Установка) – anti-aircraft mount. The GRAU index is 2A13.

Key facts

Weapon.name: ZU-23-2
Weapon.image: ZU-23-2 in Saint Petersburg.jpg
Weapon.image_size: 300
Weapon.caption: A ZU-23-2
Weapon.origin: Soviet Union
Weapon.type: Towed 23 mm anti-aircraft twin autocannon
Weapon.is_ranged: yes
Weapon.is_explosive: yes
Weapon.is_artillery: yes
Weapon.is_missile: yes
Weapon.service: 1960–present
Weapon.used_by: See Operators section
Weapon.designer: KBP Instrument Design Bureau
Weapon.design_date: Late 1950s
Weapon.production_date: 1960–present
Weapon.variants: See Variants and upgrades
Weapon.spec_label: ZU-23-2
Weapon.weight: 0.95 tonnes (2,094 lbs)

via Wikipedia infobox

~19 min read

Encyclopedic overview

21 sections

Contents

Development history
Description
Ammunition
Service history
Variants and upgrades
Soviet Union/Russian Federation
Polish People's Republic / Poland
Czech Republic
Slovak Republic
Egypt
Finland
China
Iran
Vietnam
General characteristics
Operators
Non-state operators
Former operators
See also
References
External links

== Development history == The ZU-23-2 was developed in the late 1950s. It was designed to engage low-flying targets at ranges up to 2.5 km as well as armoured vehicles at a range of two kilometres and for direct defence of troops and strategic locations against air assault usually conducted by helicopters and low-flying airplanes. In 1955, KBP presented the single-barrel ZU-1 and the twin-barrel ZU-14. While the former was eventually dropped, the ZU-14 was selected and, after some modifications, entered series production.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “ZU-23-2” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.