ZSU-23-4 Shilka

One kind of weapon that the Soviet Union lacked during the Second World War were the self-propelled anti-aircraft guns (SPAAG). The existing vehicles were either inefficient (eg. quadruple Maxim machine guns mounted on a truck) or not aviable in large numbers (ZSU-37). Towed anti-aircraft guns took some time to dismount and prepare for fire. That's why any airstrike often ended with heavy losses, and therefore it was decided that the Soviet Army needs a better vehicle of this type.

The first attempt was ZSU-57-2 (ZSU standing for zenitnaya samokhodnaya ustanovka, SPAAG; the first number is the caliber of the gun, the second - their number on the vehicle), which mounted two 57 mm guns on the chassis of a T-54 tank in a lightly armoured, revolving turret. Though popular in communist countries, it was not a succesful weapons: its guns were aimed by hand, it lacked radar assisstance, and the open roof made the crew vurnerable to strafing. Fully enclosed, radar-guided vehicle was desirable.

Exactly this type of machine materialised as ZSU-23-4 in 1964. It was named Shilka after a Russian river, but - probably due to translation error and a similarity of words Shilka and shilo, awl - recieved exactly such NATO designation, Awl. The gun combined four quick-firing 23 mm guns in a fully traversing turret with a radar guidance that was far more effective than the optical guidance of the previous systems. Based on a PT-76 chassis, it was fast and mobile, although not amphibious. Shilka was so feared by NATO leaders that soldiers and airmen were ordered to always disable them first even if they have to abandon their main objective.

For the first time they were used by the Arab forces during the Six-Day War against Israel, with deadly effectiveness, repeated during the Yom-Kippur War, during which Arab Shilkas brought down 30 Israeli planes. Since then it became one of the most popular Soviet equippment in the armies of the world and took part in most of major conflicts involving USSR-supplied forces.

Quite often, Shilkas were used for ground fire as well, due to the rapid rate of fire and sheer force of impact of its bullets; for example in Vietnam it was sometimes used to mow down foliage to expose the enemy. During urban warfare, its high gun elevation allowed it to fire at targets at higher levels, for example in buildings; in this role, it was used during the 2nd Chechen War, Libyan Civil War and Syrian Civil War. They were also succesfuly used by Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh, where said gun elevation allowed to target Azeri forces in mountainous terrain. Against Western forces, Shilkas were used by Iraq during the Gulf War in 1991 and 2003 Invasion of Iraq.

Poland recieved its first units shortly after 1964; Shilkas remain the backbone of Polish air defence, although several were modernised to the ZSU-23-4MP Biała standard (Biała is a small river in Poland, as well as feminine adjective "white"), in which extensive digital systems were installed, and the basic 23 mm guns were supported by 4x PZR Grom anti-aircraft missiles. This increases its range from Shilka's original 2,5 km to 3,5 km with guns and 5,5 km with rockets. 70 Biała SPAAGs were supplied to Polish Army as an alternative for PZA Loara system that is still being developed.

This particular gun is an exhibit in Polish Military Hardware Museum, Warsaw.