A train appeared in the Krasnoyarsk region transporting large weapons on its way to replenish forces for the Russian army in Ukraine, notably among these was the 2S5 Giatsint-S cannon, this is a type of large artillery system that can fire tactical nuclear munitions. This artillery gun is a type of 152-mm self-propelled howitzer, and is capable of engaging targets at longer ranges and at a higher rate of fire than any other russian gun. Earlier, the 2S5 has been employed by the Ukrainian Army and Russian Army in the war in Donbas. As of September 17th 2022, at least two Giatsint were captured by Ukranian forces during the Russian Invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian Ministry of Defense is continously makes efforts to increase the numbers of troops and military equipments in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine War. Most recently Russia has sent more numbers of 2S5 Giatsint-S artillery systems to support the troops fighting in Ukraine.
This is not the first time Russia has deployed additional artillery units to strengthen its military in the ongoing conflict. Previously, in June 2022, Russia deployed some additional units of this above-mentioned artillery systems in Ukraine.
Some media reports suggests that the Ukrainian Armed Forces has captured some units of the 2S5 Giatsint-S cannons in September and now the Ukrainian Army is using these guns against the Russian Armed Forces.
The 2S5 Giatsint-S is a standard 152-mm self-propelled howitzer launched by Russia into Ukraine since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine War in February this year.
The former Soviet Union researched to build a advanced self-propelled artillery system and designed the 2S5 Giatsint-S in 1976 and put it into official service in 1978.
The mass production of this self-propelled artillery system lasted till the early 1990s when it was officially stopped. Currently, these old soviet-era guns has been heavily upgraded by the Russian Armed Forces with many important changes.
To increase the accuracy of each shot fired by the cannon, a new reconnaissance and aiming system has been integrated into the gun system.
Especially, the integration of guidance technology and target indicator from UAVs helps the gun to shoot more accurately.
Russian media also claims that the 2S5 Giatsint-S is the only large-caliber artillery gun in the world that can hit at very long distances with great accuracy.
The 2S5 Giatsint-S uses a chassis modified from the SA-4 Krug surface-to-air missile system with good cross-country mobility, and can carry 30 152 mm rounds with a range of 28 kilometers, or 33-40 kilometers for rocket-assisted projectiles.
In addition to high explosives, the gun can also fire HEAT, cluster, smoke and nuclear projectiles. Deploying to fire the gun takes 3 minutes, and it can sustain a rate of fire of 5 to 6 rounds per minute. Most of the crew, with the exception of the gunner, deploys outside of the vehicle while firing.
It is usually accompanied by an ammunition carrier with an additional 30 rounds of ammunition.
The 2S5 was first used in combat by the Soviet Union in Soviet–Afghan War. Later, Russian forces used it in the First Chechen War and Second Chechen War.
The current operators of the 2S5 Giatsint-S are Belarus, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Ukraine and Russia. The Finnish Army is a former operator of this type, the gun was known as 152 TELAK 91 in Finnish service, they has operated 18 units of this system.
The Russian Army says that the 2S5 Giatsint-S can fire tactical nuclear projectiles with the maximum yield capacity upto 2 KT.
Although the 2S5 is a very powerful and capable warmachine but it ammunition load of only 30 rounds is quite small. So after firing all available ammunition of the gun, it must be replenished immediately with more ammunition from ammunition carrying trucks.
The Gun has the mass of 28.2 tons (61,729 lbs), width of 3.25 m (10.66 ft), length of 8.33 m (27.32 ft) and height of 2.76 m (9 ft). The gun has its protection in the form of 15 mm (.59 in)thick layer of armor.
The Gun has the operational range of 500 km (311 mi), it is equipped with a Diesel engine generating 388 kW (520 hp) of power. It has the maximum speed of 62 km/h (38 mph) on road and 25 km/h (15 mph) in off-road conditions.
In addition to the main 152-mm 2A36 cannon, the gun designers has also added a 7.62 mm machine gun on the artillery system for self-defense in case enemy infantry approaches.
Russia has more than 1,000 units of 2S5 Giatsint-S artillery systems in its active service, distributed among the Russian Army and the Russian Navy, some guns are also kept in storage.