the Krab gun-howitzer on a new carrier was composed of two basic
units – a tracked chassis and an autonomous turret. The main weapon
system is 155 mm l31A1 cannon, with a 52 caliber (8,997 mm) long
barrel,
mounted on a cradle base, a monolithic self-reinforced barrel with
a dual-chamber muzzle brake, with a vertically-sliding falling-block action
and a hydraulic return action. The cannon is equipped with electrical driving
mechanisms in the vertical and the horizontal plane. The chamber is suitable
to be loaded with any type of 155 mm JBMoU compliant ammunition.
Fire angle – full traverse range in horizontal plane, i.e. 360º; elevation in
vertical plane – from –3.5º to +70º. Loading is semi-automatic – projectiles
and propellants are loaded manually, but sent to the chamber mechanically.
The gun-howitzer has adittional 12.7 mm WKM-B heavy machine gun and
eight 81 mm 902A smoke grenade launchers. The Krab features digital fire
control unit, a Doppler radar to measure the muzzle velocity, and line-of-sight
sights.
Krab carries 40 projectiles and 48 propellants: 29 projectiles and
20 propellants are placed in transportation tubes stored in the turret's
niche, and with another 11 projectiles and 28 propellants stored in the back
of the hull. The Krab's chassis has been arranged typically for carriers of
artillery systems – the front hides the engine room, the transmission unit
section (on the right) and the steering section (on the left); the middle and
the rear parts of the chassis are occupied by the crew compartment, which
is taken by the turret basket and the gun-howitzer's power generators
in the K9 version.
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