The Soviet self-propelled guns in service with the Russian army are “showing off” their weakest point – very worn barrels
There is a recent photo in the open media indicating that on one of the large-caliber 2S7M Malka 203-mm self-propelled artillery systems, which is in service with the russian army, the barrel was torn apart during the shot. Most likely, the incident happened during firing at the positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The 2S7M “Malka” self-propelled gun is essentially a modernized Soviet “Pion” artillery gun. Such self-propelled systems began to enter service with the russian army only in 2021. The main improvements that Malka received were the replacement of the gearbox and power supply units; updated communications, surveillance devices and guidance systems.
Having transformed into Malka, russian Pions also received updated anti-nuclear protection and were connected to the automated combat control system called Unified Tactical Control System (ESU TZ).
But as usual in such cases, in their attempts to “stuff” their Soviet-made self-propelled guns, the russians forgot the most important thing: the lifespan of the barrel is not infinite.
Perhaps soon we will witness even more such occasions as russian losses of self-propelled artillery due to the rupture of the barrel during firing.