ROMARM Model 89
Notes:
This Romanian self-propelled howitzer is basically the turret of the 2S1
fitted onto the chassis of a modified MLI-84 IFV.
The resulting vehicle is lighter than the 2S1, somewhat cheaper, and
better able to travel on the flimsy roads and bridges often found in Romania, as
well as better handling on the mountain paths in southern Romania.
It has not been exported as of yet, nor has it been offered for export.
The Romanians are in the process of replacing the Model 89 with true
2S1s, and only 18 Model 89 of the original 42 remain in service today.
The 2S1 turret
fits perfectly into the MLI-84’s turret ring, though the 2S1 turret itself is a
bit larger than that of the MLI-84.
The 2A31 122mm gun itself is not the same as on the 2S1, but is a Romanian
ground-mounted gun that has several common components with the 2S1’s 2A31 gun.
The gun itself is actually a gun/howitzer, meaning that the gun has
deliberately low depression and can function as a tank destroyer as well as a
howitzer. The gun on the Model 89
has a semiautomatic autoloader, meaning that the loader must affix the fuzes and
place the round in the autoloading train for loading into the breech; the breech
block is also semiautomatic, and the loader must close the breech.
The Model 89 seems almost to be optimized for the tank destroyer role, as
the fire control suite is marginally more advanced than the indirect fire
computer. Max Depression is -3 degrees with elevation +70 degrees. A Model 45
normally carries a few antitank rounds (about 10% of its total), but mostly
carries howitzer-type rounds. The gun turret has 360 degree rotation and can
also fire from any angle. The Model
45 does not normally have a commander’s machinegun, though an optional one it
figured into the entry. The
commander has a manually-rotating cupola, with all-around vision blocks and a
night channel is borrows from the gunner.
Following the
BMP-1 design, the MLI-84 has a driver’s hatch on the front right hull, and
commander’s and gunner’s positions in the turret; the turret has one hatch for
the commander. All three have night
vision equipment. The Model 89 has a new engine, the Perkins CV-8V-1240 DTS
supercharged diesel developing 360 horsepower; this is larger and heavier, but
is more powerful than standard BMP-1 engine, and is also uprated slightly from
the MLI-84’s engine. The fitting of
its engine and the associated automatic transmission required rebuilding and
enlarging of the engine compartment.
The increase in the length of the hull also allowed small fuel tanks to
be incorporated into the walls, increasing the fuel capacity.
The gaps between the roadwheels are also wider. Unfortunately, the
suspension is still of the conventional torsion bar type with shock absorbers
only on the first and last roadwheels on each side, so the ride can be even
rougher than that of the BMP-1. The
heavier weight of the Model 89 also reduced its amphibious capability; it is
slow in the water, and freeboard is greatly reduced.
The crew and passenger are protected by a fire detection and
extinguishing system, and the commander also has access to a Geiger counter and
chemical agent detector, which can be operated with hatches closed.
The Model 89
retains the MLI-84’s doors in the rear, but has no firing ports.
From the 2S1 turret, the Model 89 inherits the long equipment box on the
left side of the turret. This is
large enough to carry ancillary equipment for the Model 89, and little more.
At the rear of the turret are slotted covers used to retract a portion of
the suspension during swimming and fording operations.
This of course requires that the turret be squared up with the front when
swimming and fording deeply. The Model 89 has an NBC overpressure with a
collective NBC backup. As intimated
above, the Model 89 is amphibious, and has waterjets and bilge pumps.
The Model 89 does require an FDC, though it does have one short-range and
one long-range secure radio, both with data capability.
Price |
Fuel Type |
Load |
Veh Wt |
Crew |
Mnt |
Night Vision |
Radiological |
$288,780 |
D, A |
500 kg |
17.5 tons |
5 |
14 |
Passive IR (D, G), Image Intensification (G) |
Shielded |
Tr Mov |
Com Mov |
Fuel Cap |
Fuel Cons |
Config |
Susp |
Armor* |
157/110 |
40/28/11 |
600 |
134 |
Trtd |
T4 |
TF10
TS6 TR6
HF8 HS4
HR4 |
Fire Control |
Stabilization |
Armament |
Ammunition |
+2 |
Fair |
122mm L/40 D-30 Howitzer, NSVT (C) |
40x122mm, 500x12.7mm |
*Chassis deck armor is
3; Turret deck armor is 5.