The PLZ-07 or Type 07 is a Chinese 122 mm self-propelled artillery made by the China North Industries Group Corporation (NORINCO). The PLZ-07 self-propelled howitzer was first unveiled to the public during the military parade celebrating 60th anniversary of the
PLA
PLA may refer to:
Organizations Politics and military
* People's Liberation Army, the armed forces of China and of the ruling Chinese Communist Party
* People's Liberation Army (disambiguation)
** Irish National Liberation Army, formerly called ...
on 1 October 2009. The PLZ-07 was developed to replace the older Type 89, Type 85 and Type 70/70-1 122 mm self-propelled artillery systems.
Design and development
PLZ-07 largely retained the design language of
PLZ-89
The Type 89 self-propelled howitzer (military designation PLZ-89) is a 122 mm self-propelled howitzer used by the People's Liberation Army of China to replace Type 85 and Type 70 122 mm self-propelled howitzer. PLZ-89 was first unveil ...
, the previous self-propelled howitzer developed by
Norinco
China North Industries Group Corporation Limited, doing business internationally as Norinco Group (North Industries Corporation), and known within China as China Ordnance Industries Group Corporation Limited (), is a Chinese state-owned defense ...
. The new chassis for PLZ-07 self-propelled artillery is developed from
ZBD-04
The ZBD-04 or Type 04 (industrial designation WZ502) – Military-Today.com is a Chinese infantry fighting vehicles, featuring improved armor protection, fire suppression system, and NBC protection. The vehicle is 6.66 m long, 3.28 m wide and 2.5 m high to the turret roof. It carries a crew of five and its 440 kW (600 hp) diesel engine gives it a top road speed of 65 km/h and a maximum road range of 500 km.
The PLZ07 122 mm tracked self-propelled gun mounts a PL-96 122 mm/L32 howitzer. The design of the PL-96 could be based on Soviet D30 howitzer. The vehicle weighs 22.5 tons fully loaded and carries 40 rounds of ammunition. The gun has a maximum range of 18 km with normal ammunition, 22 km with base bleed and 27 km with rocket assisted rounds. The gun has an elevation from 0° to +70° and a maximum rate of fire of 6–8 rounds per minute. In addition to the 122 mm howitzer, the QJC-88 heavy machine gun is mounted on the turret roof, and there are two triple banks of 76 mm smoke grenade dischargers on either side of the turret.
The PLZ-07 is land based while the PLZ-07B is the amphibious variant that shares a common design with modification derived from the ZBD-05.
Variants
;PLZ-07: Land based variant.
;PLZ-07B: amphibious variant with unique dedicated-designed amphibious chassis. Although this vehicle is part of the PLZ-07 series, the vehicle hull shares design elements from ZBD-05 amphibious fighting vehicle
Operators
;
*
People's Liberation Army Ground Force
The People's Liberation Army Ground Force (PLAGF; ) is the land-based service branch of the People's Liberation Army and the largest and oldest branch of the entire Chinese armed forces. The PLAGF can trace its lineage from 1927 as the Chine ...
- 700 units as of 2021. 550 units of PLZ-07A; 150 units of PLZ-07B.
International Institute for Strategic Studies
The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) is a British research institute or think tank in the area of international affairs. Since 1997, its headquarters have been Arundel House in London, England.
The 2017 Global Go To Think T ...
: The Military Balance 2022, p.257
*
People's Liberation Army Navy Marine Corps
The People's Liberation Army Navy Marine Corps (PLANMC), also known as the People's Liberation Army Marine Corps (PLAMC), is the marine force of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and one of five major branches of the PLA Navy (PLAN) responsib ...
- 20+ units of PLZ-07B
International Institute for Strategic Studies
The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) is a British research institute or think tank in the area of international affairs. Since 1997, its headquarters have been Arundel House in London, England.
The 2017 Global Go To Think T ...
: The Military Balance 2022, p.260
See also
*
List of equipment of the People's Liberation Army Ground Force
This is a list of military equipment in service with the People's Liberation Army Ground Force, either presently, or former equipment that has since been replaced.
Individual equipment
Small arms and light weapon Small arms
Grenades, explos ...
;Related development
* Type 70 SPH - 122 mm self-propelled howitzer developed by China in 1960s.
* Type 85 SPH - 122 mm self-propelled howitzer developed by China in 1980s.
*
PLZ-89
The Type 89 self-propelled howitzer (military designation PLZ-89) is a 122 mm self-propelled howitzer used by the People's Liberation Army of China to replace Type 85 and Type 70 122 mm self-propelled howitzer. PLZ-89 was first unveil ...
- previous generation of self-propelled howitzer system developed by China.
;Comparable ground systems
*
2S1 Gvozdika
The 2S1 ''Gvozdika'' (russian: link=no, 2С1 «Гвоздика», "Carnation") is a Soviet self-propelled howitzer based on the MT-LBu multi-purpose chassis, mounting a 122 mm 2A18 howitzer. "2S1" is its GRAU designation. An alternative Rus ...