Photo from the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine
The expert mentions the absence of an automatic loading system among its drawbacks.
Military expert and publicist Mykhailo Zhyrokhov has criticized the Ukrainian-made large-caliber Bohdana self-propelled howitzer, saying that the weapon system still needs to be honed.
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The expert notes the weapon does not have an automatic loading system. Moreover, the fact that it is built on the basis of a KRAZ truck with a Russian engine looks rather ambiguous, which is clearly beyond the concept of a closed production cycle, the Ukrainian online newspaper Dilova Stolytsia quoted him as saying.
"My lingering impression is that they have introduced it because they had to showcase something. Thus, it's too early to seriously discuss any characteristics [of this military hardware]," he said.
At the same time, he says, Ukraine's defense industry has already some success stories, namely locally developed rifled barrels.
"Until recently, the country has not produced rifled barrels whose caliber exceeds 30mm. Perhaps they have succeeded in this thanks to the purchases of industrial machines and, most importantly, technologies," he said.
The expert says he is sure that Bohdana will not be used in its current configuration, especially since other models, including foreign ones, are being tested simultaneously. However, this may be a little more complicated since the country's political leaders have set the task of maximizing the use of domestic resources at defense enterprises.
"By the way, almost no one paid attention to an ambitious statement by Ukrainian Defense Minister Stepan Poltorak that he would make a decision on August 10 to accept the Bohdana self-propelled howitzer for service. So what? There is no official statement on the use [of the equipment] even after the announced deadline. The reason is simple: there is nothing to accept. The main thing is that the gun most likely was unable to open fire. In general, this is understandable, as there has never been any production of weapons of such caliber [155mm] in Ukraine and its development is accompanied by challenges," the expert summed up.