The Palmaria is an Italian

self-propelled Self-propelled may refer to * Human-powered transport, humans moving themselves (and their cargo) via their own muscle energy * Machines that power their own movement: ** Automobile (from ''auto-'' + ''mobile'', "self-moving") ** Locomotive (from ...

howitzer A howitzer () is a long- ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like ot ...

using the

155 mm 155 mm (6.1 in) is a common, NATO-standard, artillery caliber. It is defined in AOP-29 part 1 with reference to STANAG 4425. It is commonly used in field guns, howitzers, and gun-howitzers. Land warfare The caliber originated in France after ...

(6.1″) NATO-standard artillery calibre.

History

Developed by

OTO Melara OTO Melara was a subsidiary of the Italian company Finmeccanica, today Leonardo, active in the defence sector, with factories in Brescia and La Spezia. The Mod 56 pack howitzer, in service throughout the world, and the 76mm naval gun, ado ...

for the export market, the development of the Palmaria began in 1977, with the first prototype appearing in 1981.

Design

The Palmaria's chassis is based on the OF-40 main battle tank. The primary armament is a 155 mm howitzer, with a secondary 7.62 mm machine gun or 12.7 mm machine gun on anti-aircraft mount and four 76 mm forward-facing smoke grenade dischargers on either side of the turret. The howitzer has an automatic loading system, providing a rate of fire of one round every 15 seconds or a burst-fire rate of three rounds every 25 seconds. The loader has 23 ready rounds, with seven more rounds stored in the hull. Including manual reloading of the charge, the overall firing rate is normally one round per minute for one hour. Intense firing is four rounds in one minute. Sustained fire is one round every three minutes for an indefinite period. A wide variety of

munitions are available, including specially developed

Simmel Simmel is a German language surname. It may refer to: *Ernst Simmel (1882–1947), German psychologist *Friedrich Simmel (born 1970), German biophysicist *Georg Simmel (1858–1918), German sociologist *Johannes Mario Simmel (1924–2009), Austria ...

rounds with a range of 24.7 km and rocket-assisted ones with a range of 30 km. The turret is hydraulic with manual backup, and has 360 degree rotation with elevation limits of -4 to +70 degrees.www.armyrecognition.com
/ref> It has its own auxiliary power supply which conserves fuel for the main engine. The Palmaria is powered by a 750 hp MTU MB 837 Ea-500 (or 1,000 hp Ka-500) 4-stroke, turbocharged, 8-cylinder multifuel engine coupled to a Renk RK 304 transmission. The Palmaria has torsion bar suspension with seven roadwheels and five return rollers on either side. The drive sprocket is located at the rear while the adjustable idler sprocket is at the front.

Operational history

Libya was the first country outside Italy to adopt the Palmaria, initially ordering 210 in 1982. Their army's artillery strength in 2004 included 160 Palmaria. Several were destroyed during the

2011 Libyan civil war The First Libyan Civil War was an armed conflict in 2011 in the North African country of Libya that was fought between forces loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and rebel groups that were seeking to oust his government. It erupted with the Liby ...

as a result of multinational military intervention."Battle Of Libya"
''Al Jazeera'' video report, 22 March 2011, at 35 second mark Other users include Nigeria, which took 25 Palmaria in 1982, and Argentina, taking the last 25 vehicles in 1986. Argentina mounted the Palmaria turrets onto TAM chassis as one possible replacement for their AMX-13 Mk. F-3 self-propelled guns. This vehicle became the TAM VCA Palmaria.

Operators

Current operators

* - Bought 20 Palmaria turrets in 1986, and integrated them into 17/18 TAM VCA chassis. * - Initially ordered 210 vehicles in 1982, had a count of 160 vehicles in 2004, several were destroyed during the

. * - Bought 25 vehicles in 1982.

References

{{reflist Self-propelled artillery of Italy 155 mm artillery Tracked self-propelled howitzers Artillery of Italy Military vehicles introduced in the 1980s