122 mm howitzer M1938 (M-30)
The 122 mm howitzer M1938 (M-30) is a Soviet 121.92 mm (4.8 inch) howitzer. The weapon was developed by the design bureau of Motovilikha Plants, headed by F. F. Petrov, in the late 1930s, and was in production from 1939 to 1955. The M-30 saw action in World War II, mainly as a divisional artillery piece of the Red Army (RKKA). Captured guns were also employed later in the conflict by the German Wehrmacht and the Finnish Army. Post World War II the M-30 saw combat in numerous conflicts of the mid- to late twentieth century in service of other countries' armies, notably in the Middle East.
M-30 in VDV history museum, Russia.
1. Barrel, 2. Recoil system, 3. Gunshield, 4. Panoramic sight, 5. Breech with breechblock, 6. Wheels, 7. Split trails of a carriage
M-30 in Sevastopol
M-30 in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
The howitzer is an artillery weapon that falls between a cannon and a mortar. It is generally aimed lower than a mortar but higher than a cannon. With their long-range capabilities, howitzers can be used to great effect in a battery formation with other artillery pieces, such as long-barreled guns, mortars, and rocket artillery.
Firing of an M114 155 mm howitzer by the 90th Field Artillery Battalion, US 24th Infantry Division, during the Korean War
Mountain howitzer firing
12-pound Napoleon at the Colorado State Capitol
Nineteenth-century 12-pounder (5 kg) mountain howitzer displayed by the National Park Service at Fort Laramie in Wyoming, United States