Stationary ZAK-30 "Citadel" systems will be mounted on mobile platforms based on the "Ural" chassis
Just recently, we reported that the ZAK-30 “Citadel” gun mount, designed to protect fixed installations, had appeared in Russia. However, as it turns out, there will also be a mobile system based on this mount, which we will discuss below.
Mobile version on a “Ural” chassis
The latest “Citadel” anti-aircraft artillery system, designed to counter drones, may be developed in a mobile version mounted on a wheeled platform. Companies within the Russian defense-industrial complex are planning to develop this version of the system. According to an industry source, the future modification will be based on “Ural” trucks.
The introduction of the mobile version will expand the scope of application of “Citadel” and allow the system to be used not only for the protection of stationary facilities but also for covering various areas and infrastructure, with the ability to deploy rapidly. This is particularly important given the need to protect extensive facilities and mobile units from massive drone attacks.
Components of the Mobile Complex
The mobile complex will consist of several vehicles equipped with combat modules, as well as a separate vehicle housing a radar station. This separation ensures maximum flexibility during deployment and maneuvering. Each combat vehicle is equipped with a 30-mm artillery mount mounted on a Ural truck chassis, which ensures high cross-country mobility and the ability to quickly move to new positions.
A separate vehicle equipped with a radar station detects and tracks air targets at a considerable distance from the firing positions. This makes it possible to identify threats well in advance and distribute targets among the system’s various fire elements.
Weapons and Mode of Operation
“Citadel” is part of a new generation of countermeasures against unmanned aerial vehicles. The system is equipped with a 30-mm artillery mount, presumably based on the BM-30-D “Spitsa” combat module with a 2A42 automatic cannon. To engage targets, the system uses ammunition with a shrapnel warhead and a remotely programmable detonator.
The system’s key feature is the use of “smart” projectiles with programmable detonation. Depending on the target’s flight path, the guidance system calculates the optimal point of detonation for the projectile, thereby ensuring the drone is destroyed. The use of shrapnel reduces ammunition consumption and increases the effectiveness of engaging small targets.
The system is equipped with both optoelectronic and radar detection and tracking systems for enemy unmanned aerial vehicles. The optical channel operates in the visible and infrared spectra, ensuring all-weather and round-the-clock operation. The system’s operations—from target detection to destruction—are highly automated.
Tactical Capabilities
The ZAK-30 “Citadel” is designed to protect facilities from both helicopter-type and aircraft-type drones at any time of day or night. The system has already been tested in real combat conditions, where it was successfully used to repel raids by Ukrainian fixed-wing drones.
The mobile version, based on the “Ural” platform, retains all the combat capabilities of the stationary system but gains the ability to deploy rapidly and change positions. This makes it an effective means of protecting not only stationary facilities but also convoys of military vehicles, field airfields, base camps, and other critical infrastructure elements in the field.
Technical Specifications of the ZAK-30 “Citadel”
- Caliber: 30 mm
- Basic artillery system: BM-30-D “Spitsa” with a 2A42 automatic cannon
- Rate of fire: 200–300 rounds/min (low rate), 550–800 rounds/min (high rate)
- Engagement range of aircraft-type UAVs: up to 1 km along an oblique trajectory
- Range of small multicopters: up to 800 meters
- Target detection range: up to 2,000 meters (aircraft), up to 1,000 meters (multicopters)
- Target engagement range: up to 3 km
- Maximum range: up to 4 km
- Ammo type: shells with a shrapnel warhead and a remotely programmable detonator
- Detection systems: radar and optoelectronic (visible and infrared bands)
- Base chassis for the mobile version: “Ural” trucks
- The mobile complex consists of: several combat vehicles equipped with artillery systems and a separate vehicle equipped with a radar system
- Degree of automation: high (from target detection to destruction)
Sources:
https://topwar.ru/283374-zak-30-citadel-kak-30-mm-snarjad-nauchilsja-dumat-sam.html
