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Soltam M-71

The M-71 is a 155 mm 39 caliber towed howitzer manufactured by Israeli company Soltam Systems.

Design

The weapon was based on the earlier Soltam M-68 and uses the same recoil system, breech and carriage but had a longer gun barrel (39 calibre versus 33 calibre of M-68). It is fitted with a compressed air-driven rammer to permit rapid and easy loading at all angles of elevation as well as having a rechargeable battery mounted on the right trail for auxiliary power. It can fire a high-explosive shell up to a maximum range of at a muzzle velocity of .

Deployment

In addition to Israel, this weapon is in service with Chile, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, South Africa, Slovenia and Myanmar. A version of this weapon was developed to mount on a modified Centurion chassis (M-72), but this vehicle never reached production.

Operators

  • : 18
  • : 60 howitzers used by the Chilean Army, 36 Soltam M-68s acquired in the 1970s later upgraded to Soltam M-71 standard and 24 Soltam M-71 howitzers acquired in the 1980s. 24 designated G-4 howitzers acquired by the Chilean Marine Corps in South Africa in 1992.
  • : 72
  • :
  • Philippine Army: 20
  • Philippine Marine Corps: 6
  • : 13 or 38 - modified to the M-71S standard using less crew + addition of APU.
  • : 18; M839 variant.
  • : 32; designated G-4.
  • : 32

See also

References

External links