ZSU-57-2 (Italy)
| This page is about the SPAA ZSU-57-2 (Italy). For other versions, see ZSU-57-2 (Family). |
.jpg)
Contents
Description
The ◔ZSU-57-2 is a rank V Hungarian SPAA with a battle rating of 7.0 (AB/RB/SB) in the Italian research tree. It was introduced in Update "Sons of Attila" as part of the Hungarian subtree of the Italian tech tree. After the introduction of the ZSU-57-2 in the Soviet Army, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania each acquired ZSU-57-2s as well, being members of the Warsaw Pact. This Self propelled Anti-Air vehicle would be built on a heavily-modified T-54 chassis, the ZSU-57-2 features two powerful 57 mm anti air cannons. This armament is easily able to make short work of both air and ground targets alike. They're very fast-firing and have access to some different munition options. For being based on the old T-54 tank, it does have good mobility, however its main drawback is its very light armour. This means that if a player chooses to play aggressively, you won't have many chances to get away from an engagement once spotted. Its just too big for a player to conceal, as such if a player would like to play aggressively try stick with allies when possible. The ZSU-57-2 has proven to be more of a menace to ground vehicles than aircraft with its high-velocity cannons, but low sustained rate of fire and poor accuracy. Overall, keep in mind of your weaknesses when playing this vehicle because you usually won't be forgiven like more armoured armoured fighting vehicles.
General info
Survivability and armour
The SPAA has basic protection against 12.7 mm HMG in the hull, but the turret is still vulnerable to it, so it doesn't really matter outside of AB. Additionally, it doesn't have a roof, so any explosive hit will instantly eliminate all of the crew. Stealth approach is recommended.
Armour type:
- Rolled homogeneous armour
| Armour | Front | Sides | Rear | Roof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 13.5 mm (61°) Front glacis 15 mm (53°) Lower glacis |
15 mm | 10 mm (17-49°) Top 6 mm (73°) Bottom |
15 mm |
| Turret | 15 mm (14-57°) Turret front 15 mm (25-64°) Gun mantlet |
13.5 mm (9-61°) | 13.5 mm (4-59°) | N/A |
Notes:
- Suspension wheels and tracks are 20 mm thick.
- Belly armour is 13.5 mm thick.
- A 6 mm RHA plate separates the engine compartment from the crew.
- Hatches and air intake are 6 mm thick.
Mobility
| Game Mode | Max Speed (km/h) | Weight (tons) | Engine power (horsepower) | Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | Reverse | Stock | Upgraded | Stock | Upgraded | ||
| Arcade | 55 | 9 | 28 | 739 | 992 | 26.39 | 35.43 |
| Realistic | 51 | 8 | 460 | 520 | 16.43 | 18.57 | |
The ZSU-57-2's mobility is rather good. It is faster than most medium tanks, while weighing 28 tons and having a 520 hp engine at 2,000 RPM. Manoeuvrability is good at all speeds, as its a relatively light tank with a powerful engine. It bleeds a lot of speed while turning, but the turning is fast and responsive and does not have neutral steering. The maximum speed is limited by the transmission to 51 km/h forwards and -8 km/h in reverse for RB, and 55/-9 km/h for AB.
Modifications and economy
| Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Armaments
Main armament
Although this is an AA vehicle, its twin 57 mm cannons are still equally deadly against ground units. When stock, their accuracy isn't good so the shells fly all over the place as the distance increases, and the belt is made up of half AP, half HE, meaning it is not efficient when dealing with either planes or tanks. Therefore the best tactic for a fully stock ZSU-57-2 is to shoot the enemies' side up close or to target low-flying helicopters.
When the BR-281SP belt (full AP) is available, the player can go into full anti-tank mode as this shell packs quite a punch, and it can penetrate pretty much any tank's side armour (excluding the Maus, in which case retreat is in order) and some tanks frontal armour. In a flank the ZSU-57-2 can finish off a group of opponents at an unbelievable speed. When unlocking BR-281U (full APHE), two shells will slice through enemy side armour and also explode, so theoretically one clip is enough to wipe out four tanks in a row (aiming at the crew compartment only, of course) and a few seconds later, another clip will be loaded, ready to hunt more prey. AP-based shells also perform alright in the AA role since its calibre is quite large for planes, and a direct hit usually critically damages the plane, if not tearing it in half instantly.
HE shells of this SPAA are also worth paying attention to, as they are big enough to overpressure open topped tanks and on direct hits they can crush other SPAA or even some light tanks without having to swap belts. When they hit any attackers or bombers, they explode and fall apart, so only issue is actually hitting them. Unfortunately, unlike SPAA's Chinese brother WZ305, the ZSU-57-2 does not have access to any VT shells, so it is always beneficial to lead with extra care and only open fire if the plane is close enough.
Each cannon has its own gunner. Losing one gunner does not prevent another cannon from firing, but will block the turret from turning, which must be compensated by turning the hull.
Be aware that each clip only contains 8 rounds (4 for each of the two cannons), so do not waste shots when waiting for target's move. When holding "fire" button for too long,the cannons also desynchronize and start firing out of order, causing the belts to have different amount of shells and possibly letting enemy slip through.
| 57 mm S-68 (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 | 296 (4) | 120 | -5°/+85° | ±180° | N/A | 52.8 | 73.1 | 88.8 | 98.2 | 104.5 | 2.60 | 2.30 | 2.12 | 2.00 |
| Realistic | 35.7 | 42.0 | 51.0 | 56.4 | 60.0 | |||||||||
Ammunition
- Default: HE* · APCBC - Half the rounds in this belt are useless against tanks or planes. However, against other SPAA this belt can reliably take out crew, armament, ammo and engine. Having one belt in reserve can help.
- BR-281SP: APCBC - An anti-tank belt, it is comprised of APCBC shells that can penetrate most tanks from the side. However, the shells do not contain any explosive filler, so it is recommended to upgrade to the BR-281U belt when possible.
- OR-281U: HE* - For use against planes. One or two hits usually gets the job done. Heavy armoured attackers and bombers may require more though.
- BR-281U: APCBC - Very similar to the preceding BR-281SP belt; however, the shells now have a small amount of explosive filler, making them slightly more efficient against ground vehicles. It doesn't really perform like usual APHE (getting stuck inside engines, etc), so using AP over it is generally not necessary.
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | |||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | ||
| BR-281SP | APCBC | 151 | 147 | 132 | 114 | 100 | 87 |
| OR-281U | HE* | 17 | 17 | 15 | 13 | 11 | 10 |
| BR-281U | APCBC | 151 | 147 | 132 | 114 | 100 | 87 |
| Shell 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% | ||||||||||
| BR-281SP | APCBC | 1,000 | 2.8 | - | - | - | 48° | 63° | 71° | |||
| OR-281U | HE* | 1,000 | 2.8 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 235.62 | 79° | 80° | 81° | |||
| BR-281U | APCBC | 1,000 | 2.8 | 1.2 | 9 | 20.02 | 48° | 63° | 71° | |||
Ammo racks
| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
3rd rack empty |
4th rack empty |
5th rack empty |
6th rack empty |
7th rack empty |
8th rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 74 | 74 (+0) | 70 (+4) | 38 (+36) | 32 (+42) | 28 (+46) | 24 (+50) | 18 (+56) | N/A | Yes |
Notes:
- Visual discrepancy: the 8th ammo rack never empties, even with all ammunition spent.
Usage in battles
Versatile in the anti-aircraft and anti-tank role this heavily modified T-54 chassis delivers two heavy 57 mm punches. The ZSU-57-2 can be used for two roles.
- Anti-air role
Even though the ZSU-57-2 was designed as an SPAA, it is not very good at destroying planes compared to other SPAA vehicles at similar battle ratings, which often have a significantly higher rate of fire or even radar. However, this is compensated for by its comparatively massive firepower compared to similar SPAA platforms. The large 57 mm cannons will often disable, or more likely destroy a plane with its first hit. It is also extremely effective in an anti-helicopter role, as helicopters are much slower than planes.
- Tank Destroyer
Using the 57 mm cannons in an anti-tank role is possible and have been exploited by many players. Using BR-281 ammo, the guns can effectively pierce the sides and rear of any tank (excluding the Maus). Remember the ZSU-57-2's armour does not compare to other tanks armour so one shot could be the end of the SPAA, particularly if the opponent is angry and pre-loads explosive shells.
Play cat-and-mouse and wait for the enemy to go into an engagement with another target and then jump out into the open and fire upon them while they are distracted. If you are not extremely sure of your aim, it is recommended to the first aim for their rear to disable their engine and cause a fire, they might just stop what they are doing and try to put it out first. During firefighting they won't be able to move or fire upon the ZSU-57-2, allowing a chance to finish off the crewmen inside by unloading the 57 mm cannons into the side of the enemy tank. Any shot from the 57 mm cannons into an enemies' ammo load will also instantly kill them. Almost all european tanks have very weak side armour, and your BR-281 ammo will easily rip through even at an angle. Aim for the front portion of their tank, where their driver is. Their ammo rack is located right next to the driver, meaning that you can easily ammo rack them.
If some other SPAA or lightly armoured artillery tank is bothering you, a burst of HE can remove them by hitting them just about anywhere, but pay attention to what exactly you are trying to overpressure, as some tanks like the VIDAR do not care about overpressure damage. Hitting them as directly into weakspots as possible might also help.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Multi-role weaponry able to fight both planes and tanks
- Excellent turret rotation speed
- 57 mm guns will destroy or cripple aircraft with one hit, and can easily take out tanks from the sides too
- Very high penetration for an SPAA at 151 mm, very effective against lightly armoured vehicles like the Leopard 1 or AMX-30
- Even HE belt is powerful enough to overpressure a lot of light ground vehicles
Cons:
- Large vehicle size
- Very vulnerable turret (ammo on all sides of turret + very thin armour)
- Crew is very crowded in the turret (1 shot has the potential to knock out 5 crew members with ease)
- Shells have bad accuracy after consecutive shots
- Sub-par anti-air capability due to low rate of fire and poor stock accuracy
History
Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).
Media
- Skins
See also
- Related development
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- other literature.
| Italy anti-aircraft vehicles | |
|---|---|
| R3 Capraia | R3 T20 FA-HS |
| SIDAM 25 | SIDAM 25 · SIDAM 25 (Mistral) |
| Wheeled | AS 42 · CM52 |
| Tracked | M42 Contraereo · Leopard 40/70 · OTOMATIC |
| Hungary | ◔ZSU-57-2 · ◔ZSU-23-4 |
