85 mm divisional gun D-44

85-mm divisional gun D-44
85 mm D-44 divisional gun.
Type	Field gun
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Production history
Designed	1943-1944
Manufacturer	Uralmash
Produced	1944-1953
Number built	10,800
Variants	D-44N SD-44 Chinese Type 56
Specifications
Weight	D-44: 1,725 kg (3,803 lbs) SD-44: 2,250 kg (4,960 lbs)
Length	8.34 metres (27 ft 4 in)
Barrel length	55 calibers
Width	1.78 metres (5 ft 10 in)
Height	1.42 metres (4 ft 8 in)
Crew	8
Caliber	85 mm (3.34 in)
Recoil	hydraulic recoil buffer
Carriage	split trail
Elevation	-7° to 35°
Traverse	54°
Rate of fire	up to 20 rounds per minute (burst)
Muzzle velocity	1,030 m/s (3,379 ft/s)
Effective firing range	1,150 m (1,257 yds) (HVAP-T)
Maximum firing range	15.65 km (9.72 mi)
Sights	OP-2-7 w/5.5X Magnification

The 85-mm divisional gun D-44 (Russian: 85-мм дивизионная пушка Д-44) was a Soviet divisional 85-mm calibre field artillery gun used in the last action of World War II. It was designed as the replacement for the 76 mm divisional gun M1942 (ZiS-3). The gun is no longer in front-line service with the Russian Ground Forces, although some 200 of the Chinese Type 56 variant are still in service with the Pakistan Army. Wartime service included use by communist forces during the Vietnam War and by Arab forces during their conflicts with Israel.

The design of the D-44 started in 1943 at the design bureau of No.9 factory "Uralmash" and production began in 1944. Its GRAU code was 52-P-367. The SD-44 was a 1950s variant with an auxiliary propulsion unit and ammunition box for 10 rounds, with 697 issued to the airborne forces (VDV) from 1954. The D-44N was a 1960s variant with an APN 3-7 infra-red illumination device for night combat. China received D-44s during the Korean War and began manufacturing a copy, the Type 56, in the early 1960s. Finally, the Polish Army has equipped some of their D-44 guns with electrical subsystems in the early 1980s and designated them D-44M and D-44MN.

The barrel was developed from that of the T-34-85 tank and was capable of firing 20–25 high-explosive (HE), armor-piercing, and high-explosive antitank (HEAT) projectiles per minute. Subcaliber BR-365P HVAP-T (high velocity armor-piercing-tracer) projectiles were capable of penetrating 100 mm of armor at 1000 meters at a ninety-degree obliquity, and the BR-367P HVAP-T projectile penetrates 180 mm of armor under the same conditions. The post-war round O-365K HE weighed 9.5 kg and packed 741 grams of TNT as its bursting charge, while the BK-2M HEAT-FS (fin-stabilized) projectile can penetrate 300 mm of armor. The HEAT round for the Type 56 has a maximum range of 970 meters and will penetrate 100 mm of armor at an angle of 65 degrees.