“It’s like switching from a Lada to a Porsche”: Ukrainian soldiers compare Soviet cannons to Polish Krab
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Ukraine is gradually phasing out its reserves of old Soviet-era armaments. The latest change came when Poland provided Ukraine with 18 self-propelled howitzers “AHS Krab” of its own making. It seems this 155 mm NATO standard weapon impresses Ukrainians a lot.
Image credit: Ukrinform
New Krab howitzers are urgently being produced for Ukraine – Ukraine has ordered 54 in total, but Poland can produce that many just in a couple of years. This manufacturing bottleneck could be overcome only by increasing local production capacity. The Krab uses a South Korean K9 Thunder base, a British BAE Systems turret, and a French Nexter Systems gun. The fire control system was developed by Polish specialists
For now, Ukraine has very few Krab machines, but their crews are happy with the modernized weaponry. Especially content are those soldiers who switched to the new Krab from Soviet self-propelled artillery guns.
“We used Msta-S before. The Krab system is much easier to master. Everything is electronically controlled. Press the button and aim. You enter numbers, press a button, and that’s it,” one Krab crew member told reporters.
“Comparing Krab with Msta-S, this machine is faster – it can go 60-70 km/h. speed It is maneuverable and responds well to the driver’s movements. The Msta-S is steered by handlebars, this one by a steering wheel. That’s better,” said the car driver.
“If the Msta-S was a Lada, this is a Porsche,” added another soldier, who explained that the Krab allows for much faster targeting with less work and effort.
And this is not surprising. “Krab” is a modern weapon, created around 2000 and produced since 2008 (admittedly, with a break from 2008-2011). Poland now has 62 such self-propelled howitzers, but plans to expand its arsenal. Of course, the howitzers produced now will be sent to Ukraine, a country that needs them more urgently.
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