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Vz. 77 DANA
ShKH vz. 77 of Czech Army during a military exercise, 21 November 2013.
Type	Self-propelled gun
Place of origin	Czechoslovak Socialist Republic
Service history
In service	1981–present
Wars	Chadian–Libyan Conflict War in Afghanistan 2008 Russo-Georgian War Libyan Civil War 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Russo-Ukrainian War
Production history
Designer	Konštrukta Trenčín
Designed	1976 (1976)
Manufacturer	ZTS Dubnica nad Váhom (SK) Excalibur Army (CZ)
Produced	1980–present
No. built	750+
Specifications
Mass	29.250 t (32.243 short tons)
Length	11.156 m (36 ft 7.2 in)
Width	3 m (9 ft 10 in)
Height	3.63 m (11 ft 11 in) (with AAMG)
Crew	5
Shell	HE, HEAT
Shell weight	43.5 kg (96 lb) (HE) 27.4 kg (60 lb) (HEAT)
Caliber	152.4 mm (6 in)
Barrels	5,580 mm (18 ft 4 in)
Breech	Semi-automatic, vertical sliding-wedge
Elevation	-4° to +70°
Traverse	±220°
Rate of fire	4 rpm (semi-automatic) 2 rpm (manual)
Muzzle velocity	693 m/s (2,274 ft/s) (HE)
Effective firing range	18.7 km (11.6 mi)
Maximum firing range	20 km (12 mi)
Sights	ZZ-73 with PG1-M-D collimator (indirect fire) OP5-38-D (direct fire)
Main armament	152 mm howitzer (approx. 36.6 calibre) (60 rounds)
Secondary armament	12.7 mm DShK (2,000 rounds)
Engine	Tatra T2-930-34 253.7 kW (340.2 hp)
Ground clearance	0.41 m (1 ft 4 in)
Operational range	600 km (370 mi)
Maximum speed	80 km/h (50 mph)

The DANA (Dělo automobilní nabíjené automaticky (gun on truck loaded automatically) is a wheeled self-propelled artillery piece. It is also known as the Samohybná Kanónová Húfnica vzor 77 (ShKH vz. 77; self-propelled gun howitzer model 77). It was designed by Konštrukta Trenčín and built by ZTS Dubnica nad Váhom in the former Czechoslovakia (now Slovakia). Introduced in the 1970s, it was the first wheeled 152 mm self-propelled artillery gun to enter service. It is based on a modified eight-wheel drive (8×8) Tatra 815 chassis with excellent cross-country mobility. Currently it is in service with the Czech Republic, Libya, Poland, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Slovakia, and Ukraine.

Compared to tracked vehicles, wheeled vehicles have the advantages 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 before firing, and has a roof-mounted crane to assist with ammunition loading.

The crew of the DANA consists of a driver (who operates the hydraulic stabilizers), the 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 of the turret.

Original DANA had manual fire control and automatic reloader. The latest version, DANA M2, also has computerized automatic fire control, allowing reduction of crew to as few as only 2 persons.

Development

The DANA was designed in the late 1970s by Konštrukta Trenčín to provide the Czechoslovak People's Army with an indigenous self-propelled indirect fire support weapon without having to resort to purchasing the Soviet 2S3 Akatsiya SPG. Design work was completed in 1976 and the DANA project was handed off to production at ZTS Dubnica nad Váhom. It was accepted into service in 1981, and by 1994 over 750 units had been built. The DANA was also exported to Poland and Libya.

Design

The DANA was a significant departure from contemporary self-propelled guns such as the tracked Soviet 2S1 Gvozdika/2S3 Akatsiya or its western-made M109 howitzer as it used a wheeled chassis and featured an innovative automated loading system which was the first of its kind at the time of its introduction to service. The vehicle has a driving cabin at the front, an open-topped fighting compartment at mid-length and the engine compartment in the rear. The front crew cabin seats both the driver/mechanic and vehicle commander. The armoured turret is installed on a traversable mount adapted to the Tatra 815 wheeled chassis (8x8) and is divided into two halves, divided by the howitzer's recoil mechanism and a pathway for the reciprocating action during firing. The left half of the turret is occupied by the gunner and first loader and houses the various fire control optics, electro-mechanical gun laying controls, the automatic propellant charge feeding device, and an auxiliary ammunition magazine. The right side of the turret contains a mechanized projectile delivery system which is operated by a second loader at this position.

The DANA's primary weapon is a 152 mm howitzer with a monolithic barrel (with a fixed rifling pitch) equipped with one expansion chamber. The howitzer has a semi-automatic, vertically-sliding-wedge-type breech which opens to the left side. The recoil assembly consists of a hydraulic buffer, two pneumatic return cylinders and a controlling plunger which governs the displacement of the buffering system. The gun laying is carried out by an electro-hydraulic drive system or an emergency manual control.

DANA's unique feature is that its autoloader is able to load a shell and a cartridge in any elevation of the barrel.

As there is no gyroscopic or similar system for independent, automated and autonomous gun laying in the DANA, the gunner of howitzer uses a ZZ-73 panoramic telescope with a PG1-M-D collimator for indirect gun laying. This sight has a horizontal scale used to set the appropriate horizontal laying via aiming at reference points. This means that the DANA is not an autonomous system there needs to be an additional device to assist in gun laying (in fact, the firing positions of such artillery systems are usually prepared before the guns are positioned there). For direct fire engagements, the gunner uses an OP5-38-D telescopic sight.

Ammunition

As of 2014, there are three main shell types used by Czech Army:

1. 152-EOF, which means "high-explosive" with a maximum range of 18 kilometres (11 mi)
2. 152-EOFd, which means "high-explosive long-range" with a maximum range of 20 kilometres (12 mi)
3. 152-EPrSv, which means "high-explosive anti-tank" used for direct-fire at armored targets

General characteristics

• Length: 10.5 m (34 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: 28 km (17 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 machine gun (MG) DShK
• Elevation: -4° to +70°
• Traverse: ±45°
• Powerplant: one V-12 air cooled diesel Tatra T2-939-34 engine delivering 345 horsepower (257.27 kW)

Variants

Variant	Image	Year	Crew	Calibre	Maximum range	Rate of fire	Chassis	Users	Notes
Czechoslovak variants
DANA		1979	5	152.4 mm (6 in) 37 calibers	18.7 km (11.6 mi) 25.5 km (15.8 mi) (DN1CZ shells)	5 rounds per minute 2 rounds per minute in manual mode 36 rounds carried in autoloader, up to 60 in total	Tatra 815 8x8 V12 engine Tatra T2-930-34 253.7 kW (340.2 hp)	Czech Republic  Georgia  Poland  Ukraine Former operators:  Czechoslovakia  Slovakia  Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya  Soviet Union
ONDAVA		Late 1980s	4	152.4 mm (6 in) 47 calibers	32 km (20 mi)	6 rounds per minute 2 rounds per minute in manual mode 36 rounds carried in autoloader, 40 in total	Tatra 815 8x8 V12 engine Tatra T3-930-52 265 kW (355 hp)	Prototype only.
Slovak development
MODAN		1999	4	152.4 mm (6 in) 42 calibers	20 km (12 mi)	5 rounds per minute 2 rounds per minute in manual mode 36 rounds carried in autoloader, 60 in total	Tatra 815 8x8 V12 engine Tatra T3-930-52 265 kW (355 hp)	Former:  Slovakia
M2000 Zuzana		1998	4	155 mm (6 in) 45 calibers	39 km (24 mi)	5 rounds per minute 2 rounds per minute in manual mode 36 rounds carried in autoloader, 40 in total	Tatra 815 8x8 V12 engine Tatra T3-930-52 265 kW (355 hp)	Slovakia  Cyprus
A40 Himalaya			4	155 mm (6 in) 45 calibers	39 km (24 mi)	5 rounds per minute 2 rounds per minute in manual mode 36 rounds carried in autoloader, 40 in total	T-72 tank chassis V-46 engine 573 kW (768 hp)	Prototype only
Zuzana 2		2019	4	155 mm (6 in) 52,9 calibers	41 km (25 mi) 51.5 km (32.0 mi) (VLAP shells)	5 rounds per minute 2 rounds per minute in manual mode 40 rounds carried	Tatra 817 8x8 V8 engine Tatra T3D-928-70 325 kW (436 hp)	Slovakia  Ukraine
Czech development
DANA M1		2011	5	152.4 mm (6 in) 37 calibers	18.7 km (11.6 mi) 25.5 km (15.8 mi) (DN1CZ shells)	5 rounds per minute 2 rounds per minute in manual mode 36 rounds carried in autoloaderl, up to 60 in total	Tatra 815 8x8 V12 engine Tatra T3-930-52M 265 kW (355 hp)	Azerbaijan
DANA M2		2018	2 minimum (+1)	152.4 mm (6 in) 37 calibers	18.7 km (11.6 mi) 25.5 km (15.8 mi) (DN1CZ shells)	5 rounds per minute 2 rounds per minute in manual mode 36 rounds carried in autoloader, up to 60 in total	Tatra 815 8x8 V12 engine Tatra T3-930-52M 265 kW (355 hp)	Poland  Ukraine
DITA		2021	2 minimum (+1)	155 mm (6 in) 45 calibers	39 km (24 mi) (HE BB shell)	6 rounds per minute (including Multiple round simultaneous impact) 40 rounds carried in autoloader	Tatra 817 8x8 V8 engine Tatra T3D-928-90 300 kW (400 hp)	Ukraine  Azerbaijan
MORANA		2022	3	155 mm (6 in) 52 calibers	Indirect fire: 41.5 km (25.8 mi) (HE BB shell) Direct fire: 5 km (3.1 mi)	6 rounds per minute (including Multiple round simultaneous impact) 45 rounds carried in autoloader	Tatra 817 wide-body 8x8 I6 engine Cummins ISX 447 kW (599 hp) STANAG Level 2 Armor protection	Prototype only.

Combat history

Used by Georgia against Russia during the Russo-Georgian War. Two Georgian DANAs were destroyed and three or four captured in 2008.

Used by Poland during the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021). Five Polish DANAs had been used in Afghanistan in Ghazni Province since 2008.

Used by Azerbaijan in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war against Armenia.

Used by Ukraine during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. An unknown number of 152 mm ShKH DANA M2 and 152 mm ShKH DANA vz. 77 were supplied by the Czech Republic in 2022.

Operators

Current operators

•  Azerbaijan – 36 DANA M1.
•  Czech Republic – 164 vz. 77 (to 1 July 2008) of original 273.
•  Cyprus – 12 M2000G Zuzana via Greece.
•  Poland – 111 vz. 77
•  Slovakia – 135 vz. 77 and 16 M2000 Zuzana.
•  Georgia – 47 vz. 77 delivered by the Czech Republic from 2004.
•  Ukraine – 26 M2 were ordered in 2020. An unknown number of M2 and vz. 77 were supplied by the Czech Republic in 2022. Slovak Defense Ministry announced the donation of 8 Zuzana 2 in May 2022, with delivery being completed as of January 2023. Germany, Norway and Denmark agreed to purchase further 16 Zuzana 2 for delivery to Ukraine in 2022.

Future operators

•  Ukraine – 9 DITA SPH to be donated by The Netherlands and delivered 2024 or later
•  Azerbaijan – 70 DITA ordered in May 2024 to Excalibur Army

Former operators

•  Czechoslovakia – 408, passed on to successor states the  Czech Republic and  Slovakia
•  Libya – 80 delivered in the 1980s. Retired in the 1990s.
•  Soviet Union – 150 delivered by Czechoslovakia between 1986 and 1990.

Comparable weapons

• Archer Artillery System – Swedish 155 mm self-propelled howitzerPages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets
• ATMOS 2000 – Israeli 155 mm self-propelled howitzer
• A-222E Bereg-E 130mm coastal mobile artillery system – Russian self-propelled coastal defense gunPages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets
• 2S22 Bohdana – Ukrainian 155 mm self-propelled howitzer
• CAESAR self-propelled howitzer – French 155 mm artillery
• G6 Rhino – South African 155 mm self-propelled artilleryPages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets
• AHS Kryl – Polish 155 mm self-propelled wheeled gun-howitzer
• Nora B-52 – Serbian 155 mm self-propelled howitzer
• PCL-09 – Chinese 122 mm self-propelled howitzer
• PCL-161 – Chinese 122 mm self-propelled howitzer
• PCL-181 – Chinese 155 mm self-propelled howitzer
• PLL-09 – Chinese wheeled armoured fighting vehicle family
• Type 19 155 mm Wheeled Self-propelled Howitzer – Japanese artilleryPages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets
• 155 mm SpGH Zuzana – Slovak 155mm self-propelled gun-howitzer

References

1. "Ondava (152mm samohybná kanónová houfnice)" [Ondava (152mm self-propelled gun howitzer)]. Valka.cz (in Czech). 18 May 2005.
2. "vz. 77/99 MODAN (152mm samohybná kanónová houfnice)". Valka.cz. 23 November 2015.
3. "vz. 2000 Zuzana (155mm samohybná kanónová houfnice)". Valka.cz. 28 June 2015.
4. "Zuzana A 40 Himalaya (155mm samohybná kanónová houfnice)". Valka.cz. 23 November 2015.
5. "ZUZANA 2 (155mm samohybná kanónová houfnice)". Valka.cz. 11 June 2016.
6. "DANA-M1M (152mm samohybná kanónová houfnice)". Valka.cz. 30 August 2016.
7. "DANA-M2 (152mm samohybná kanónová houfnice)". Valka.cz. 24 June 2018.
8. https://www.defensie.nl/actueel/nieuws/2024/02/27/generaal-eichelsheim-bezoekt-aan-oekraine-leverende-wapenfabrikanten-in-tsjechie
9. https://armyrecognition.com/news/army-news/army-news-2024/czech-company-excalibur-army-set-to-deliver-over-70-155mm-dita-self-propelled-howitzers-to-azerbaijan
10. "DITA (155mm samohybná kanónová houfnice)". Valka.cz. 20 January 2021.
11. ^ Visingr, Lukáš (26 January 2023). "Houfnice Morana" [Morana howitzer]. Střelecká revue (in Czech). 1 (2023).
12. "MORANA (155mm samohybná kanónová houfnice)". Valka.cz. 11 August 2023.
13. "EA ! Samohybná houfnice MORANA". morana.excaliburarmy.cz.
14. Tanks 2010, p. 110.
15. "Náboženství stranou, v Karabachu zabíjejí i české a izraelské zbraně" [Religion aside, Czech and Israeli weapons are killing in Karabakh]. Seznam Zprávy.
16. ^ "САУ Dana-M2, яку тестували в Україні, вже нищить рашистів у руках ЗСУ" [Dana-M2 SPG, which was tested in Ukraine, is already destroying rashists in the hands of the Armed Forces of Ukraine]. defence-ua.com (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 17 April 2022.
17. ^ "Vojenská pomoc Ukrajině – Na Ukrajinu odjely i houfnice Dana a raketomety RM-70 Grad" [Military aid to Ukraine - Dana howitzers and RM-70 Grad rocket launchers went to Ukraine]. www.echo24.cz (in Czech). 14 April 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
18. "Czech Dana M1 152mm 8x8 howitzers RM-70 Vampir MLRS in service with Azerbaijan army". Army Recognition. 21 September 2017. Archived from the original on 23 September 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
19. Nakra, Daksh (21 September 2017). "Exercise reveals Azerbaijani Army Dana SPH and RM-70 MRL". IHS Jane's 360. Archived from the original on 23 September 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
20. "Trade Registers". armstrade.sipri.org. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
21. "Wojsko Polskie – Uzbrojenie" [Polish Army - Armaments]. Militarium. Archived from the original on 26 August 2013.
22. "Ukrajina nakoupí 26 českých samohybných houfnic DANA" [Ukraine to buy 26 Czech self-propelled howitzers DANA]. armadninoviny.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 14 November 2020.
23. "Słowacja przekaże Ukrainie nowoczesną artylerię". defence24.pl (in Polish). 30 May 2022. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
24. "Ukrajina si od Slovenska prevzala poslednú ôsmu húfnicu Zuzana 2". TV 2 (in Slovak). 16 January 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
25. "Slovakia transfers two Zuzana 2 howitzers to Ukraine 'for Putin's birthday'".
26. "Generaal Eichelsheim bezoekt aan Oekraïne leverende wapenfabrikanten in Tsjechië" [General Eichelsheim visits arms manufacturers in the Czech Republic supplying Ukraine]. Archived from the original on 28 February 2024.
27. "Excalibur Army will supply Azerbaijan with more than 70 units of the 155/52 mm self-propelled gun "Zuzana-2" of Slovak production". ВПК.name. 8 May 2024. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
28. Cooper, Tom; Grandolini, Albert; Delalande, Arnaud (2016). Libyan Air Wars, Part 2: 1985-1986. Helion & Company Publishing. p. 13. ISBN 978-1-910294-53-6.
29. Mitzer, Stijn; Oliemans, Joost (3 January 2023). "Gaddafi's Massive Artillery Force That Kept On Fighting A Year After His Death". Oryx Blog.
30. International Institute for Strategic Studies (1991). The military balance. 1991-1992. London: Brassey's. p. 37. ISBN 978-0080413259.
31. "Trade Registers". armstrade.sipri.org. Retrieved 21 April 2023.

• Hogg, Ian (2000). Twentieth-Century Artillery. Friedman/Fairfax Publishers. ISBN 1-58663-299-X.
• "The Tanks of August" (PDF). Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies. 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 January 2011. Retrieved 10 May 2020.

External links

"Self-propelled Howitzers: Self-propelled howitzer class artillery guns with 122, 152 and 155 mm calibre available". Excalibur Army.

• "152 mm ShKH Dana vz.77". GlobalSecurity.Org. Retrieved 27 May 2006.
• "MODAN: 152 mm Self-propelled Gun Howitzer". Kotadef.sk. Archived from the original on 13 August 2008. Retrieved 10 October 2007.
• "Zuzana: 155 mm Self-propelled Gun Howitzer". www.kotadef.sk. Archived from the original on 27 October 2007. Retrieved 10 October 2007.
• "Hymalaya – 155 mm Self-propelled Gun Howitzer". www.kotadef.sk. Archived from the original on 27 October 2007. Retrieved 10 October 2007.

• Self-propelled artillery of Czechoslovakia
• Armoured fighting vehicles of the Czech Republic
• Self-propelled artillery of Slovakia
• 152 mm artillery
• Czechoslovakia–Poland relations
• Wheeled self-propelled howitzers
• Eight-wheeled vehicles
• Military vehicles introduced in the 1980s