The Russian army has the most powerful in the world mortars M-240, "The ability to destroy a city", says the publication The National Interest.
The main objective is the destruction of mortars fortified enemy targets. There are no such weapons in the West, since they prefer to use aviation for these purposes, explains the publication's columnist Sebastien Roblen.
According to him, a number of NATO mechanized units use only 120 mm mortars, mounted on wheeled platforms.
The Russian army also has self-propelled 120-mm mortars – S9 “Nona”, however, along with them there are unique 2S4 “Tulpan” installations with a 240 mm mortar.
The author clarifies, that the M-240 is loaded from the breech. The mortar can fire F864 high-explosive ammunition, whose weight is comparable to a small aerial bomb, at a distance of about 9 km. The rate of fire is 1 rounds per minute. Unlike a howitzer shell, mortar ammunition reaches the target along an almost vertical trajectory, which is a more effective way to destroy bunkers and other fortified objects, as well as troops in mountainous areas.
The M-240 can also fire Saida incendiary mines and, most importantly, tactical nuclear weapons, He writes journalist.
Special place, according to him, occupies the laser-guided "Daredevil" warhead. In Afghanistan, this ammunition made it possible to undermine fortifications with high accuracy, built by militants at the entrance to the caves.
Also, these mortar systems played a significant role in Chechnya, when they were used to destroy terrorist strongholds.
Author notes, that, unlike other weapons, "Tulips" were not exported. A small number of them were briefly in service only with the Czech army.. Regarding the towed M-240, then they are still preserved in the Egyptian army. They are also used by Syrian troops.
Despite, that the West uses aviation to solve similar problems, ground systems have clear advantages. One of them is the ability to conduct long-term continuous shelling of the enemy, second, the M-240 can successfully work there, where the use of aviation is impossible or very risky, the author concludes.
