ZSD63/PG87
Contents
Description
The ZSD63/PG87, Dual-Barrel AA is a rank III Chinese SPAA
with a battle rating of 5.3 (AB) and 5.0 (RB/SB). It was introduced in Update "Starfighters".
General info
Survivability and armour
Despite its armored box look, one would be hard pressed to call it armored. Almost entirely 8mm thick save for a for the upper front glacis which is 12mm, then compound with near vertical sides the word "armor" would seem to be a joke. Insult to injury is an high mounted open top turret with the crews head exposed on top like pumpkins. If one gets the impression the armor on this tracked box is non existent then I am doing a good job describing this units vulnerability to even rifle caliber machine guns. While you might survive a few glancing shots or pen though the empty rear part plus have 3 spare crew, the best survival tactic is avoid being seen and have cover in front of you to duck behind after unloading a few bursts.
| Armour | Front (Slope angle) | Sides | Rear |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 12 mm | 8 mm | 8 mm |
| Turret | 8 mm | 8 mm | 8 mm |
Notes:
Mobility
Mobility is excellent across all terrain with a good speed. With 19 hp/ton and it easily accelerates to 60 km/h forward (although disappointing 8 km/h reverse) and the suspension easily handles all kinds of terrain. There are few ground units up to Rank V that can exceed this ones performance offering you ample avoidance or flanking advantages, which is very important for this thin-skinned unit.
| Game Mode | Max Speed (km/h) | Weight (tons) | Engine power (horsepower) | Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | Reverse | Stock | Upgraded | Stock | Upgraded | ||
| Arcade | 66 | 10 | 14 | _,___ | 496 | __.__ | 35.43 |
| Realistic | 61 | 9 | _,___ | 260 | __.__ | 18.57 | |
Armaments
Main armament
The ZSD63/PG87 is arguably the most lethal cannon system at this rank in-game. Firing a staggering 10 rounds per second (600 rpm) at extremely high velocity and with precision which offers almost laser-like point-and-hit ability on a quick turning turret, and you have two of the PG87 (25 mm) to boot! Aircraft are instant confetti under its FI-T rounds. Although AP-T penetration at 100 m is at best 60 mm (500 m is 47 mm), its high fire rate and high velocity allow multiple hits at weak points until a kill shot is made. Lightly armoured units and nearly all ATG are easy targets, medium units should not be too difficult to eliminate either, and even heavy tanks can be disabled by these 25 mm cannons when aimed at vulnerable locations. It's one weakness is an extremely long reload time (30+ seconds), so be highly conservative with your fire control. YES, this monster will be just as effective to Rank 7 as in Rank 2.
Default is a 50/50 mix of AP-T and FI-T. This is marginally acceptable for Anti-air operations, but for anti-tank a pure AP-T load is far better. Recommend start game with AP-T only and switch to 50/50 midway. Adjust load-outs depending on Ranks and who to play with.
.| 25 mm PG87 (x2) | Turret rotation speed (°/s) | Reloading rate (seconds) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal | Stabilizer | Stock | Upgraded | Full | Expert | Aced | Stock | Full | Expert | Aced |
| Arcade | 480 (40) | 600 | -10°/+90° | ±180° | N/A | 47.6 | __.__ | __.__ | __.__ | 67.93 | 32.5 | _.__ | _.__ | 25 |
| Realistic | 32.1 | __.__ | __.__ | __.__ | 45.9 | |||||||||
Ammunition
- Default: AP-T · FI-T
- Type 87 AP: AP-T
- Type 87 HE: FI-T
| Penetration statistics | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belts | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | |||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | |
| Default | 63 | 60 | 47 | 35 | 26 | 19 |
| Type 87 AP | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Type 87 HE | 63 | 60 | 47 | 35 | 26 | 19 |
| Belt details | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile Mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | ||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | |||||||
| Type 87 AP | AP-T | 1050 | 0.25 | N/A | N/A | N/A | 47° | 60° | 65° |
| Type 87 HE | FI-T | 1050 | 0.25 | N/A | 0.1 | 19 | 47° | 56° | 65° |
Ammo racks
| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
3rd rack empty |
4th rack empty |
5th rack empty |
6th rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ |
Usage in battles
The ZSD63 is an excellent anti-aircraft vehicle, possibly the best Rank 2 SPAA in game and competitive in higher ranks up to Rank 4. The two 25 mm PG87 cannons shred aerial targets and lightly armored ground targets, but rapidly consumes its ammunition. Lacking any predictive aiming system it is best to practice to learn how much lead and spread is needed for best results. It is critical to practice short burst fire disciple, you only have 6 seconds of fire per load, and only 5 reloads. For only AA work the pure FI-T is good but the Default 50/50 FI-T/AP-T is fine. Just remember to have tree cover nearby to duck in for the 30 second reload!
In attacking ground units be extremely cautious and not expose your weak armor. Choose a pure AP (AP-T) load to double chance of penetrating hits and head straight to good ambush spots. Better would be wide flanking maneuvers to attack the week sides when players start spawning lighter armored units. Going wide you will likely encounter other weakly armored units like the popular M24 that is very vulnerable to the 25mm cannons. Know you targets, aim for weak points, fire 1 second bursts, damage, adjust and fire again. The AP round does not have explosive filler so more penetrating hits needed to defeat a tank. Remember it also has Artillery, a very useful spoiler to keep your targets off balance.
Expect to go to allied cap zone more than most vehicles to replenish ammo and possibly another crewman.
This unit demands a higher level of skill and tactical versatility for success, keep your game flexible.
Modules
| Tier | Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Tracks | Parts | Horizontal Drive | Type 87 HE | |
| II | Suspension | Brake System | FPE | Adjustment of Fire | Type 87 AP |
| III | Filters | Crew Replenishment | Elevation Mechanism | ||
| IV | Transmission | Engine | Artillery Support | ||
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Excellent firepower against both planes and tanks. Cannons have very high firerate and good traverse. The HE can critically damage lots of aircraft with a few hits, if not destroying it straight away. The AP, with its 63mm penetration, can frontally go through Chi-Nu, M24, Pz.IV F2 and StuG III F, or penetrate the sides of M4 Sherman and Cromwell, which are all very common at 3.7
- Great -10 degrees gun depression allows sneaky shots in hilly terrains
- Excellent terrain handling and maneuverability. Small size allow threading narrow passages.
- High top speed allows it to get to positions in time. It is faster than some medium tanks like the early M4
- Thin armor can lead to some shells over-penetrating without detonation (eg. 122mm)
- Huge gap behind the driving compartment and below the turret can absorb plenty of shells.
- Great gunsight magnification allows easy snipes from long range.
Cons:
- Very poor survivability due to its light armor and open-topped turret. Even the weakest rifle ammunition (7mm) is a real threat.
- Extremely long reload time of 32 seconds makes it vulnerable and defenseless when reloading. It also cannot change belt types quickly due to the reload.
- High profile makes it easier to get spotted and shot at.
- Requires expert fire control since the firerate can empty the magazine quickly and the reload is very long.
- AP is still not enough to penetrate heavy tanks even point blank.
History
The 装甲输送车 (Zhuangjia Shusong Che, Armoured Personnel Carrier) ZSD63 was China's first domestic armored vehicle design. China initiated the work in 1958 with prototype finished in 1960. It is also sometimes called the "Type 63", both a name system used to refer to Julian year of production start. Basic steel box design is simple and functional, designed for small arms protection and have all terrain operation with amphibious capabilities. Although a Chinese design the Soviet design influence is strongly visible. Thousands have been produced with hundreds sold to other countries making it one of the most successful military vehicles built.
This SPAA version mounts a turret on the roof armed with twin PG87 which is based on the Soviet ZU-23-2 23mm auto cannon which was modified to use domestically produced 25x183B 25mm rounds. As the name suggests this weapon was put in production in 1987 making for a retrofit of an approximately 23 year old chassis. This turret seems to be literally mounted on the roof, as there is no hole into the hull of the ZSD, likely an attempt to maintain is amphibious ability despite additional weight. In addition a pair of extending feet for stabilization are added, but not functional in game. It is likely in real world operation the vehicle had to be stationary, feet planted, and crew externally passing the large and heavy ammo magazines to the loaders on top.
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the series of the vehicles;
- links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.
External links
| China anti-aircraft vehicles | |
|---|---|
| Radar SPAAG | PGZ09 |
| Gun and Missile SPAAG | PGZ04A |
| Missile SPAA | Antelope |
| Other | ZSD63/PG87 · ZSL92 · WZ305 |
| Germany | ␗Sd.Kfz.222 |
| North Vietnam | Phòng không T-34 |
| USA | CCKW 353 (M45) · ␗M42 |
| USSR | Tor-M1 |
