How the newest Russian wheeled howitzer 2S43 “Malva” is used during the SVO –

The armored cabin of the newest self-propelled artillery gun “Malva” withstood the impact of the striking elements of the projectile of the American HIMARS multiple launch rocket system in the special operation zone, Rostec reported.

“Malva” withstood a hit from HIMARS… The photo shows that the striking elements of the M30A1 GMLRS rocket, launched from HIMARS, pierced the wheels, but got stuck in the hull or bounced off the glass,” the report says. message in the Rostec Telegram channel.

The state corporation emphasized that Malva successfully passed tests in the harsh conditions of real combat operations.

Speed ​​and mobility

The main feature of the 2S43 Malva self-propelled howitzer is its placement on a wheeled chassis. The weapon was developed at the Burevestnik Research Institute as part of the Nabrosok experimental design program. During the implementation of this R&D work, the Drok self-propelled mortar, the Floks self-propelled mortar, and the Magnolia self-propelled artillery gun were also created.

The first mentions of the development of “Malva” appeared in 2019, and already in 2020 it was presented to the leadership of the Russian Ministry of Defense in a closed mode – then the first photographs and general information about its characteristics appeared. Experimental tests continued in 2021 and 2022, at the same time Uralvagonzavod launched the production of a pilot batch of 2S43.

At the Army-2023 forum, the Russian Ministry of Defense signed a state contract for the supply of Malva howitzers, and the first serial batch of these guns was handed over to the military in October of the same year.

The 2S43 was the first Russian artillery weapon of this class to be built on a wheeled chassis rather than the traditional tracked chassis. The Malva is based on the BAZ all-terrain chassis with an 8×8 wheel arrangement. It can travel 1,100 km on public roads without refueling.

The chassis was equipped with a 2A64 152 mm cannon, used in the Msta-S self-propelled artillery unit. However, on the Malva, the howitzer is installed without additional armor and a turret, which made it possible to significantly lighten the entire system. The 2S43 weighs 32 tons.

Rostec notes that Malva has a greater technical resource and lower operating costs than tracked artillery guns.

“Deploying the Malva to a position, leaving it and aiming at a target takes much less time compared to towed guns,” the state corporation emphasizes.

The dimensions of the artillery mount allow the weapon to be transported on an Il-76 aircraft, which allows it to be quickly deployed over long distances.

“Thanks to the wheeled chassis, the Malva can quickly deploy to and from its position, avoiding return fire, which is very important in counter-battery warfare. This is a modern and powerful weapon that can destroy almost any object with high-explosive fragmentation shells at a range of more than 24 km. The rate of fire of the howitzer is more than seven rounds per minute, and the ammunition stock is up to 30 rounds,” noted Bekkhan Ozdoyev, Industrial Director of the Conventional Arms, Ammunition and Special Chemicals Complex of the Rostec State Corporation.

One of the main advantages of the Malva is the ability to fire in the so-called fire raid mode. It allows several shells to be fired sequentially along different trajectories, but they reach their targets simultaneously, not giving the enemy time to take cover.

At the same time, Malva is being improved during the production process. In August 2023, Rostec Deputy Director General Vladimir Artyakov reported that the state corporation’s enterprises are already creating a modernized 2S43 with an increased range to counter NATO howitzers.

“Believe me, we will have something to counter the long-range Western howitzers that are currently being supplied to the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” RIA Novosti quotes him as saying.

A promising direction

Military expert Anatoly Matviychuk, in a conversation with RT, emphasized that new design solutions have made it possible to significantly improve the armor of Russian equipment, including self-propelled guns.

“They receive active protection, additional elements of welded factory armor. Thanks to this, the vehicles can withstand hits, the crews survive, and the vehicles too,” the specialist said.

• 2S43 “Malva”

• RIA Novosti

• © Press Service of the Russian Ministry of Defense

In his view, Malva is a promising artillery platform.

“Since the beginning of its testing and use in the special operation, the design has been revised and some modifications have been made. “Malva” is one of the newest Russian weapons that can fire both conventional and active-reactive projectiles at long maximum ranges. At the same time, thanks to the wheeled chassis, it is more maneuverable and fast,” Matviychuk explained.

From his point of view, the Russian Federation should replenish its arsenal with new weapons on wheeled platforms in order to have parity with the enemy, which actively uses such weapons. Thus, the forces of the Kyiv regime use Slovak Zuzana 2 wheeled self-propelled guns, Czech Dana-M2, Swedish Archer, and French CAESAR. All of these self-propelled guns have already been repeatedly destroyed by the Russian military.

“So the appearance of such weapons in the Russian Armed Forces is not just a tribute to fashion, but a necessity. Russian artillerymen should also have the ability to be more mobile and quickly leave their positions,” the specialist emphasized.

In turn, military expert Kirill Fyodorov noted in a conversation with RT that the wheeled platform has clear advantages.

“First of all, it is much lower fuel consumption. In addition to reducing the cost, it also provides greater mobility, since it does not need a tractor or platform, as for tracked vehicles when it is necessary to transport over long distances. All this simplifies its operation. This self-propelled gun gets all the advantages and disadvantages of a wheeled chassis. Somewhat lower cross-country ability, but at the same time significantly increases the speed. At the same time, as serial production expands, the cost will decrease,” the expert said.

Despite the fact that Soviet and Russian equipment has traditionally been tracked, the increase in the number of new wheeled platforms indicates the potential of this direction in the development of new weapons, says Fedorov.

“This is potentially a very promising direction. Such platforms will be effective in Africa, the Middle East. Now Russia, acting within the framework of the SVO, is testing it,” Fyodorov concluded.