Anti-aircraft self-propelled gun M163 VADS
Self-propelled gun M163 one of the latest modifications, 1988
At the end of the sixties, the newest self-propelled anti-aircraft gun M163 VADS entered service with the US Army. It became one of the main means of military air defense and remained in service for about a quarter of a century. Over time, the effectiveness of such a ZSU in the original role was reduced, but new combat missions were found for it.
Promising systems
In 1964-65. The Pentagon has launched the development of a promising short-range anti-aircraft missile system for military air defense. It later entered service under the names M48 and MIM-72 Chaparral. As an addition to it, they ordered an anti-aircraft self-propelled gun with a small-caliber rapid-fire gun. This project later became known as the M163 VADS (Vulcan Air Defense System).
The aim of the M163 project was to create a modern, effective anti-aircraft self-propelled gun to combat low-flying aircraft and helicopters. To simplify the development, production and operation, it was recommended to use one of the serial chassis and existing weapons.
The resulting machine could operate in the same battle formations with other army equipment and hit various targets that managed to break through the area of responsibility of the MIM-72 air defense system. In addition, according to the experience of previous conflicts, the use of a rapid-fire cannon against ground targets was not ruled out - as a means of fire support.
The development of the VADS installation was carried out by the Rock Island Arsenal with the participation of a number of commercial organizations that supplied the necessary components and products. The widespread use of off-the-shelf units accelerated the design process. The first experimental ZSU were manufactured already in 1965, and in 1967 they managed to complete all the tests.
Serial production of the M163 machines was launched in the same year, almost simultaneously with the release of the M48 air defense system. Then the process of deploying and mastering equipment in combat units began, as a result of which the first units in 1969 reached initial operational readiness. Mass production of new equipment made it possible to re-equip all military air defense units in a few years.
Technical features
The new ZSU M163 VADS was built on the existing M741 tracked chassis - it was a slightly modified M113 armored personnel carrier. Such a chassis retained a welded hull made of bulletproof / anti-fragmentation armor, a standard power plant and running gear. The control compartment remained in the bow of the hull, and the central volume served as the fighting compartment.
A simplified turret was developed for the installation of weapons and fire control equipment. In front, it housed an open mechanism for mounting a gun, and the side and aft projections were covered with a curved armor plate. A radar sight antenna was installed on the left side. The turret-tower did not have a roof, which simplified the observation of airspace, but led to unnecessary risks for the gunner-operator. The design of the turret provided circular horizontal aiming at an elevation of -5 ° to + 80 °.
On the armor of the turret, the "plate" of the radar sight is clearly visible
The basic one weapons ZSU VADS was a six-barreled M61 Vulcan cannon with a rotating block of barrels for 20x102 mm ammunition. The operation of the automatic gun was provided by an external drive; ignition is electrical. The gun could fire up to 6 rounds per minute, but on self-propelled guns, the rate of fire was halved. The effective range of fire against air targets reached 600-1000 m.
For use on the M163, shots with different types of projectiles were offered: high-explosive fragmentation and armor-piercing, with and without a tracer. Practical ammunition was also available. Ammunition in 2100 shells was in boxes inside the body of the self-propelled gun and was fed to the gun using a standard linkless system.
Guidance of the gun was carried out using an automatic anti-aircraft sight M61. The use of night sights was allowed. To improve accuracy, a compact radar rangefinder was used. Information from him was sent to the control unit of the main sight. The block calculated the lead and gave the necessary information to the sight. At the same time, the search for a target and aiming the gun were assigned to the operator using remote control or manual drives.
The control system had two firing modes, which gave an acceptable ratio of fire efficiency and economy. At the first, the gun worked at a rate of 3 thousand shots / min. and fired bursts of 10, 30, 60, or 100 shots. The second mode allowed the operator to independently determine the length of the queue, but reduced the rate of fire by a factor of three.
The dimensions of the ZSU M163 as a whole remained at the level of the unified BTR M113, but the height increased to 2,9 m. The combat weight reached 12,7 tons. Driving performance and characteristics did not change in general. The self-propelled gun was controlled by a crew of four - a driver, commander, gunner-operator and loader.
Development processes
After the adoption of the ZSU M163 VADS, they were repaired and upgraded several times. Thus, the M163A1 and M163A2 projects provided for upgrading the chassis to the M741A1 / A2 state, which improved technical and operational characteristics. At the same time, the combat equipment and the corresponding parameters did not change.
In 1984, Lockheed developed the Product-Improved VADS modernization project. The M163 PIVADS self-propelled gun received a new sight and a digital fire control system. Guidance drives were also replaced. All this improved the accuracy of the fire, but the gun remained the same, and the overall combat characteristics did not change. The modernization of cash M163A1 / A2 under the PIVADS project was completed by the end of the eighties.
In 1988, an impromptu "modification" was introduced, aimed at increasing the range of destruction. It was proposed to carry two Stinger MANPADS in the fighting compartment. If necessary, one of the crew members had to dismount and use them from the ground.
Technology in service
The first and largest customer of the ZSU M163 VADS was the US Army. Later, contracts from third countries appeared. They were given new production equipment and machines from American parts or from storage. A total of 671 combat vehicles were built, and this was enough to cover the needs of the United States and a number of foreign countries.
Israeli ZSU "Hovet" in the museum
A number of early US Army M163s ended up in Vietnam in the early seventies and were used in combat. The enemy did not have aviation, and there were also problems with armored vehicles, because of which the American ZSU had to be used only as a means of fire support. With all the limitations, 20 mm guns in this role showed sufficient effectiveness.
In the future, the United States repeatedly used VADS of all modifications in other conflicts. For obvious reasons, a large number of aircraft were not included in the combat account of such equipment. At the same time, she effectively fought against air and surface targets.
The last war of the American M163 PIVADS was the "Desert Storm" - again without much success in the field of air defense. By this time, self-propelled guns were completely outdated morally and physically, and it was decided to remove them from service. The last combat units lost such equipment in 1994.
One of the main foreign customers and recipients of the M163 was the Israeli army, which gave this technique the name Hovet. Later, self-propelled guns underwent modernization, which included the replacement of part of the equipment and the installation of a launcher for four Stinger missiles. This modification was called "Mahbet". Israeli technology was actively used in all conflicts from the early eighties to the early 2006s. The Makhbets were decommissioned in XNUMX.
Decommissioned American equipment in various quantities was transferred to other foreign countries. In total, there were a dozen customers from South America, Africa and Asia. Most of them still use such equipment as an air defense and support weapon. The only exception was Portugal: it acquired 36 American SPAAGs and made them a source of spare parts for its M113 armored personnel carriers.
No prospects and no replacement
By the end of the sixties, when serial M163s appeared, the development of combat aviation and its weapons raised the question of the prospects for anti-aircraft artillery. Nevertheless, despite all the doubts, the VADS product entered service and was actively used. However, the use in the original role was practically excluded, and the ZSU had to master a new specialty, which included firing at ground targets.
In the mid-seventies, the Pentagon decided to replace the existing M163 with more advanced self-propelled guns. The M247 Sergeant York project involved the use of more powerful guns with different characteristics and modern control electronics. However, the development of such a ZSU encountered a number of specific problems and was discontinued. As a result, the M163 VADS retained its place in the army - although it was inferior to the developed vehicle in all respects.
However, in the early nineties, the M163 was completely obsolete morally and physically, which is why they were written off. They were soon followed by the M48 missile systems, also distinguished by their great age. The old self-propelled guns gave way to the Avenger and Linebacker light anti-aircraft systems with missiles and guns. Based on the experience of operating the decommissioned samples, the Pentagon refused to develop new ZSUs with only artillery weapons.
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