Bhim Self Propelled Howitzer
Side view of the Bhim SPH prototype
TypeSelf-propelled artillery
Place of originSouth Africa/India
Production history
Designed1994
Unit costUS$4.5 million
Produced1999-
Specifications
MassCombat: 54 t (60 short tons)
Length12.4 m (40 ft 8 in)[1]
Width4.7 m (15 ft 5 in)[1]
Height3.1 m (10 ft 2 in)[1]
Crew4 (commander,loader, driver and gunner)
Traverse360°[1]
Maximum firing range52 km (32 mi)[1]
Armorwelded steel, 14.5 mm resistant
additional bomblet protection
Main
armament
Denel 155 mm L52 G5 howitzer
(50 rounds) 3 rounds in 9.0 seconds (Burst)
8 round/min
Secondary
armament
MAG 7.62 mm machine gun[1]
EngineMTU 838 Ka-501
1400 hp(1000 kW)
Power/weight26 hp/t
Suspensionhydropneumatic
Operational
range
450 km (281 mi)[1]
Maximum speed Road: 60 km/h (38 mph)[1]
Off-road: 45 km/h (28 mph)

The Bhim self-propelled howitzer was a type of self-propelled artillery developed by the South African company Denel under the supervision of the Indian Defence Research and Development Organisation. It was designed to meet the Indian Army's requirements for self-propelled artillery units.[2] The howitzer is named after Bhima, one of the main protagonists and brother to Arjun of the Indian epic "Mahabharata". India eventually selected the K9 Varja-T produced by Hanwha Techwin and Larsen & Toubro in 2015 for its tracked self-propelled artillery requirements.

History

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The Bhim artillery system was developed by the Indian Defence Research and Development Organisation in the 1990s. Trials of the Bhim artillery system were successfully conducted in 1998 and 1999, but its development remained on pause for over ten years, as Denel was blacklisted by the Indian government.

Development

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Bhim is a self-propelled howitzer. It consists of the Denel T6 turret mounted on an Arjun MBT chassis. It was developed and tested successfully and was cleared for production but was put on hold after Denel was banned from working on the project.

Specifications

The Indian army required 400 mounted 155-mm /52 howitzer, of which 200 would be mounted on the Arjun chassis and another 200 to be mounted on modified TATRA trucks.

The Bhim artillery system has a fully automatic ammunition loading system[3] as well as a turret-mounted auxiliary power unit, which powers all systems.[1] The Bhim's primary armament is a Denel 155 mm howitzer gun, while its secondary armament consists of a single 7.62 mm machine gun.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i ARG. "Bhim 155-mm Prototype Self-Propelled Howitzer". Military-Today.com. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
  2. ^ "Army assures orders for DRDO Howitzers". Zeenews.india.com. 10 June 2012. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
  3. ^ "Indias Self-Propelled Artillery Project Bhim To Get a New Lease of Life". Defence Now. 4 January 2012. Archived from the original on 9 November 2013. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
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