What is this Gun

[Feanor]

This artillery piece was part of a photoset made public by the Russian Ministry of Defense, under the title Independent Marine Battalion, Caspian Flotilla Marines.

What is it?

The rest of the photoset is here: Министерство обороны Российской Федера&#

Whatever it is I guess it must be organic to the new btln structure, from the looks of it at least a battery of them.

 

[kato]

Definitely 85mm D-44 guns, vintage WW2.

The wheels look like they might also have come off a D-48 chassis (there's a wide variation in wheels used with the D-44).

 

[Feanor]

Frightening to know they're still in service. It's not like they don't have enough newer artillery pieces... not to mention it makes little sense to include a separate arty battery in an independent btln.

If the 77th Brigade still exists, then they have access to the brigade arty units, and if it doesn't, then supplying a handful of ancient guns in an independent btln with ammo, and trained crews, must be unpleasant.

 

[Waylander]

I will never stop to be amazed by the Russian style of equipping 2nd line units with ancient equipment while mountains of more modern stuff are rusting away in the depots...

 

[Feanor]

This isn't a second line unit. In fact there really is no more such thing as a second line unit. All units are at or near 100% personnel and equipment strength. Although the Marines are known for having to use outdated equipment across the board. For example the 61st Rgt, Northern Fleet, still uses the SPG-9 recoilles gun for their anti-tank element. The 810th Brigade, Black Sea Fleet, recently upgraded iirc to the AT-3 from the SPG-9.The Marines also used upgraded T-55 forever, even equipping them with a Drozd APS in a desperate attempt to keep them useful.

But WWII era 85mm guns is just mind boggling. There are no other 85mm guns in the current arsenal, to the best of my knowledge, so the ammo supply for these must come from old war stores. As it is, they're trying to eliminated towed guns entirely from the active units (the VDV is an exception). It's not like there aren't enough Msta-B, 2S1, or 2S3 sitting around to replace these. But somehow they keep a mismatched, absolutely ancient, artillery piece in service on a btln level.

 

[Feanor]

What about this one? Anyone have an ID? I don't have a context for this one.

 

[Abraham Gubler]

What about this one? Anyone have an ID? I don't have a context for this one.

That's the Cornflower (say it like you would say "Great White Buffalo") the greatest mortar ever built. It’s a tray feed automatic mortar that can also fire at low angles like a gun. Otherwise known as the 82mm AM 2B9 Vasilek.

 

[Abraham Gubler]

It's not like there aren't enough Msta-B, 2S1, or 2S3 sitting around to replace these. But somehow they keep a mismatched, absolutely ancient, artillery piece in service on a btln level.

But all these weapons are much heavier. The 85mm is a serviceable field gun that they can deploy with whatever helicopter or landing craft they use that is too small to carry the bigger guns.

 

[Feanor]

You may have a point because the 77th Marines is a mountain unit, and is (was) generally located in coastal Dagestan. However I do believe the D-30 is air transportable. It's also more commonly used (for example the 7th VDV uses it).