Completion of Russian 152mm 2S43 Malva self-propelled howitzer tests planned for late 2022.

Russian State tests of the 152mm self-propelled howitzer (SPH) 2S43 "Malva" will be completed by the end of this year, RIA Novosti has been told by Uralvagonzavod (UVZ).
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Malva 152mm self-propelled howitzer (Picture source: bastion-karpenko.ru/VTS "BASTION" A.V. Karpenko)

“In 2021, as part of the tests of the chief designer, the effectiveness of the SPH and its compliance with the requirements of the tactical and technical assignment were confirmed. The prototype has been finalized and submitted for state testing by the Ministry of Defense, the planned completion date for which is the end of 2022," the company said. UVZ added that, simultaneously with the testing, the production of a pilot batch of Malva had already begun.

Malva was developed by the Burevestnik Central Research Institute (part of Uralvagonzavod) during the Sketch development work. As part of the Sketch, a wheeled self-propelled 80-mm mortar "Drok", a wheeled self-propelled 120-mm gun "Floks" and a 120-mm gun mount based on a two-link tracked tractor for use in the Arctic units were also created.

A 152 mm howitzer is designed to destroy enemy command posts, defensive structures, artillery and rocket batteries, equipment columns, and so on. The gun with an open installation of the artillery unit is mounted on the basis of an 8x8 truck chassis. According to the developer, the maximum firing range of the self-propelled gun should reach 24.5 kilometers. The vehicle is said to be able to carry 30 shells of various kinds. The mass of self-propelled guns is 32 tons. "Malva" uses the 2A64 gun, which is already in service with the Russian army, which, in particular, is used in the Msta-S self-propelled artillery mounts.

2S43 Malva 152mm 8x8 self-propelled howitzer at a military parade in Nizhny Novgorod on May 9, 2021. (Picture source: VK Военный Осведомитель)