SH1 155mm howitzer

In order to make up for the technological gap, China has closely followed the development of foreign advanced wheeled self-propelled artillery technology. In the 1990s, it developed the domestic large and medium caliber self-propelled artillery. The SH1 self-propelled howitzer was developed by NORINCO for the export market. Development of this artillery system commenced in 2002. In 2006, it successfully developed the SH-1 155mm self-propelled plus howitzer and the SH-2 type 122mm self-propelled howitzer.

The SH-1 was first revealed in 2007. Details of this artillery system were released at the same time as were details of the smaller SH2 122-mm truck-mounted howitzer. Pakistan acquired approximately 90 SH-1 truck-mounted howitzers. These two types of truck guns are mainly for foreign markets, and the comprehensive technical performance belongs to the international intermediate level.

Myanmar began to obtain the SH-1 truck howitzer from China, and later appeared in the military parade of the 70th anniversary of the Myanmar Army.

These two advanced self-propelled guns not only have long range, high power and strong maneuverability, but also have perfect vehicle fire control and communication. Positioning and orientation systems, with high digital combat capability and world-class technology, have attracted the attention of potential foreign users.

The Chinese self-propelled gun "SH1" is a light artillery gun, which has been developed mainly for export. The weapon was first introduced at the 2007 Abu Dhabi International Arms Fair. The "SH1" is equipped with a 155mm howitzer capable of launching the 155mm ammunition of all types from China North Industries Group Corporation. In addition, the Russian 152mm artillery projectile can also be used in the "SH1". It is also noteworthy that the shot range of "SH1" can reach 53 kilometers when using rocket missiles.

This howitzer uses chassis of a Shaanxi 6x6 military trucks. Vehicle is fitted with a central tyre inflation system, which improves mobility over different types of terrain, such as sand, snow and mud. This artillery system can be airlifted by medium transport aircraft. The PCL-09 has a double cab, which accommodates a crew of 5.

According to data released by the North Industries Corporation, the SH1 is equipped with a more complete command, control and guidance system. The guiding device is composed of an optical satellite north finder and a GPS satellite navigation system, and the positioning is more accurate. The vehicle body is equipped with a newly designed large hydraulic auxiliary shovel to minimize the vibration of the car body caused by the high-speed recoil and improve the firing accuracy of the gun. Thanks to its modular design, the SH1 system is very easy to maintain and upgrade. At the same time, the vehicle communication system enables the artillery system to be connected to the C4ISR network of the company or battalion artillery unit for information sharing, automated command and control.

The main weapon of the SH1 system is a 52-caliber howitzer with a 155-mm body. It can launch various types of 155mm caliber ammunition produced by the Northern Industries Corporation, including: explosives, rocket-assisted extended-range ammunition and Russian "red" Laser semi-active guided projectiles based on 152 mm shells. In particular, it is important to emphasize that the SH1's range can reach an astonishing 53 kilometers when launching rocket-assisted extended range missiles, enough to suppress the enemy's long-range artillery. In addition, the gun can also launch various types of NATO standard 155mm shells with an ammunition base of 20 rounds and a maximum launch speed of 10 rounds per minute.

due to weight and maneuverability considerations, the gun may not be equipped with a fully automatic ammunition loading system. Many people may feel very puzzled by this point. It is true that the fully automatic loading system will greatly increase the rate of fire of the artillery. However, this complex and huge system will bring a great test to the reliability of the entire weapon system, especially when the space on the vehicle is limited. Once the automatic loading system installed fails, manual loading will be very inconvenient. However, related technologies such as the simultaneous landing of multiple bombs and precision guidance of digital artillery can make up for the shortcomings caused by the lack of rate of fire to a certain extent. Compared with the crawler chassis, the wheeled chassis provides a relatively spacious member space and improved member comfort, which also provides the possibility of manual loading.

The auxiliary weapon of the SH1 system is a 12.7 mm caliber QJC-88 high-altitude machine gun mounted above the cab. The SH1's off-road capability is excellent, with a maximum speed of up to 90 km/h on the road and an obstacle of 1.2 m in height. The engine is mounted on the front of the car, and the cockpit of the five crew members is equipped with armor plates that can withstand light weapons shells and small shrapnel. The SH1 system weighs 22 tons and is significantly lower than the tracked self-propelled gun system.

In general, the ultra-long range of the SH1 system enables it to open fire and provide effective vitality support for its own troops. It is another important achievement for China in the field of long-range artillery systems. It will become China’s competition for the international weapons market.

Data released by SIPRI confirmed that 36 (out of 90 ordered) Norinco SH-1 155mm SP howitzers had been delivered to Pakistan in 2013 and 2014. At the beginning of the new century, Pakistan was determined to introduce a new type of artillery in order to fight against a new generation of artillery in India. At that time, Chinese related units used to send domestically produced SH-1 155mm trucks to Pakistan. The test was carried out. The test results show that the SH-1 truck cannon uses a 52-caliber body tube and a bottom-range extended-range projectile.

The long-range gun can reach 50 kilometers, which can suppress the proposed new generation of artillery in India, but the Pakistani side also found there is a certain problem with the long-range accuracy of the SH-1 truck gun. That is to say, the SH-1 can fire very far, but it is not accurate. In addition, the SH-1 also needs improvement in terms of automation and convenience. The most important thing is that India's new-generation artillery project is progressing slowly. Instead of introducing SH-1 trucks in large quantities, the Pakistani side has chosen to take over a large number of second-hand M019A5 155mm self-propelled howitzers.