| PLZ45 Self-Propelled Howitzer | |
|---|---|
| Type | Self-propelled artillery |
| Place of origin | People's Republic of China |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 33 tons |
| Length | 10.52 m (34 ft 6 in) |
| Width | 3.3 m (10 ft 10 in) |
| Height | 3.52 m (11 ft 7 in) with AAMG |
| Crew | 5 |
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| Caliber | 155 mm (6.1 in) |
| Traverse | 360° |
| Rate of fire | Maximum: 5 rounds/min Sustained: 2 rounds/min |
| Effective range | 50 km (31 mi) |
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| Main armament |
155 mm howitzer |
| Secondary armament |
12.7 mm anti-aircraft machine gun/ 2 sets of 4-barrel grenade launchers |
| Engine | diesel 525 hp (391 kw) |
| Suspension | torsion bar |
| Operational range |
450 km (280 mi) |
| Speed | 56 km/h (35 mph) |
The PLZ-45 is a 155 mm self-propelled howitzer used by the People's Liberation Army of China, the Bangladesh Army, the Kuwaiti Army, the Saudi Arabian Army, and possibly the Pakistani Army.
The system was designed by Su Zhezi [苏哲子] of 674 Factory, and developed by Norinco, 123 Factory (Heilongjiang Hua’an Industry Group Company--黑龙江华安工业集团公司), 127 Factory (Tsitsihar Heping Machine Shop--和平机器制造厂), 674 Factory (Harbin First Machine Manufacture Limited Company 哈尔滨第一机器制造厂) and Beijing Institute of Technology. It is based on Norinco's Type 89 (PLL01) 155mm/45-calibre towed gun-howitzer.
PLZ-45 is companied by ZCY45/ZCL45 command vehicle, GCL recon vehicle, 704-1 recon radar system, LLX05K weather radar system, PCZ45 ammunition vehicle, W653 engineering vehicle, CXD45 maintenance vehicle and other support equipments.
When using ERFB rounds, PLZ-45 can reach target 30km away, 39km with ERFB-BB／HE rounds. PLZ-45 can also use NATO M-107 rounds.
Saudi Arabia has purchased the howitzer and is expected to become a major user.
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