SU-152

SU-152
SU-152 in Lubuskie Military Museum, Poland
Type	Self-propelled heavy howitzer
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Production history
No. built	704 (estimated)
Specifications
Weight	45.5 tonnes (100,300 lb)
Length	8.95 m (29 ft 4 in)
Width	3.25 m (10 ft 8 in)
Height	2.45 m (8 ft)
Crew	5
Armor	Front: 75 mm (2.95 in) Side: 60 mm (2.36 in) Roof: 20 mm (0.78 in)
Main armament	152 mm ML-20S gun-howitzer, with 20 rounds
Secondary armament	12.7 mm DShK machine-gun (optional)
Engine	12-cyl. 4-stroke diesel model V-2K 600 hp (450 kW)
Power/weight	13 hp/t
Suspension	Torsion Bar
Operational range	330 km (205 mi)
Speed	43 km/h (27 mph)

The SU-152 (Samokhodnaya ustanovka-152) was a Soviet self-propelled heavy howitzer used during World War II.

It mounted a 152 mm gun-howitzer on the chassis of a KV-1S heavy tank. Later production used an IS tank chassis and was re-designated ISU-152. Because of its adopted role as an impromptu heavy tank destroyer, capable of knocking out the heaviest German armoured vehicles—Tiger and Panther tanks, and Elefant tank destroyers—it was nicknamed Zveroboy ("Beast Slayer").

The Stalingrad counteroffensive, Operation Uranus, exposed the Red Army's urgent need for mobile heavy guns. Primary targets for these guns were German fortifications in and around Stalingrad. At the time Soviet front-line ground units did not possess sufficient firepower to deal with pillboxes and other fortifications.

Close support of artillery and combat engineers was an important factor in the success of Operation Uranus. However, with rare exceptions, all Soviet guns and howitzers at this time were towed rather than self-propelled. This lack of mobility proved to be greatly exacerbated by the absence of roads, the presence of deep snow cover and a scarcity of artillery tractors. Towed guns were also highly vulnerable to counterattack while on the move, especially since they were often hauled by horses or their own crews. The 152 mm heavy howitzers were particularly difficult to maneuver; owing to their great weight, they were incapable of crossing rivers on anything but tank bridges and were prone to becoming hopelessly mired and needing to be abandoned by their crews. This situation did not satisfy the state authorities. In November 1942 the State Defense Committee ordered the development of a heavy self-propelled gun armed with the 152.4mm ML-20 howitzer.