DIO Raad-2 (Thunder-2) History

Due to the need to introduce combat vehicles similar in form and function to the American M109 155mm self-propelled gun, the Iranian defense industry developed the "Raad-2" ("Thunder 2") series. The Raad-2 followed the introduction of the Raad-1 in 1996, a 122mm vehicle built by mating a Soviet 2S1 turret and gun with the hull of the BMP-1. Likewise, the Raad-2 uses the engine and wheels of the Soviet T-72 main battle tank (MBT) and the gearbox of the T-55 MBT.

The 155mm gun in the game is a locally designed and manufactured weapon.

Like the M109, the Raad-2 has the main armament mounted on the rear of the turret. The weapon is a long-barreled dual muzzle brake, medium-sized smoke trigger, designated "HM44". A heavy-duty folding clamp is mounted on the forward fuselage to hold the weapon in place during transport.

The turret is box-shaped to provide the necessary working space for the rifle group. The complete crew consists of three people - driver, commander and gunner. The driver is seated in the front left and the engine is in the front right of the fuselage. The wheeled track arrangement has six wheels on one side of the hull with armored skirts to provide some basic protection in the upper track area.

Before firing, the recoil support is lowered at the rear of each range section. As a howitzer weapon system, Raad-2 does not need to be aimed at the target area and drops its lethal munitions at enemy positions and fortifications.

Local defense is provided by a 12.7mm anti-aircraft (AA) machine gun mounted on the top trunnion of the fuselage.

Raad-2 has an operating weight in the 36 t range. It is 9 meters long, 3.4 meters wide and 2.6 meters high. Power comes from an 840-horsepower V-84MS air-cooled diesel engine. The road speed reaches 65 lmh and the road range is up to 450 km.

Turret design includes standard motor-assisted traverse function and manual backup assist. It can be rotated 360 degrees and has an elevation range of +75 to -3 degrees.

The gunner was completely enclosed within the armored turret structure and was largely separated from the driver's position in the hull.

The main battery can fire a variety of projectile types beyond the standard options for High Explosive (HE) ammunition. These include smoke, lighting, anti-personnel, chemical and missile-launched munitions.

A well-known variant in the Raad-2 series is the Raad-2M. It is equipped with a 700 hp Ukrainian diesel engine 5TDF. The car also features an enlarged exhaust port on the front right side of the fuselage structure.

Raad-2 is believed to remain active in the Iranian military??. Tests were already carried out in 1997.

DIO Raad-2 (Thunder-2) Specification

Basic

Year:
2002
Staff:
3
Manufacturing:
Defense Industry Organization (DIO) Iran
Production:
150 units

Roles

- fire support/attack/damage

Dimensions

Length:

9.14m

Width:

10.17 ft (3.1 m)

Height:

5.45 ft (1.66 m)

Weight:

40 tons (36,000 kg; 79,366 lbs)

Performance

1 x V-84MS V8 air-cooled diesel engine, 840 hp.

Performance

Maximum Speed:

65 km/h

Maximum range:

280 miles (450 km)

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Armor

1 x 155mm HM44 Howitzer

1 x 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine gun

Ammo:

30 x 155mm shells

650 x 12.7mm ammo

Changes

Raad-2 - name of the basic series

Raad-2M - Ukrainian-made 5TDF diesel engine with 700 hp.

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