Combat Footage of the Russian 🇷🇺 203mm Self Propelled Gun 2S7M "Malka"

The 2S7 Pion ("peony") or Malka is a Soviet self-propelled 203mm cannon. "2S7" is its GRAU designation. More than 250 units were built; some sources say 500, others up to 1,000. They were distributed around the former Soviet states in the dissolution of the Soviet Union after 1991.

The 2S7 Pion was identified for the first time in 1975 in the Soviet Army and was called M-1975 by NATO (the 2S4 Tyulpan also received the M-1975 designation), whereas its official designation is SO-203 (2S7). It used a new-design chassis, partly based on T-72 and T-80 design, carrying an externally mounted 2A44 203 mm gun on the hull rear.[citation needed] The vehicle is self-entrenching and has an overpressure CBRN defense system. It was reported that the 12-metre (39 ft) long gun weighs 14.6 tons and has a service life of 450 rounds.

There are several manufacturers: the chassis was made at the Kirov Factory, St. Petersburg, Russia, while the gun and mount were made at the Titan-Barrikady plant in Volgograd, Russia.

The Malka modernization process in the late 2010s involved substituting several of the Ukrainian-produced components, such as the gearbox and engine, with new components manufactured in Russia at the Uraltransmash plant in Yekaterinburg.

The 2S7 uses a tracked chassis that was designed specifically for this artillery system. It uses a number of automotive components from the T-72 and T-80 main battle tanks. It is powered by a V-46-I turbocharged liquid-cooled V12 diesel engine, developing 750 horsepower (or 840). It is also fitted with an auxiliary power unit, developing 24 hp and powering all systems when the main engine is shut down.

The 2S7 carries a crew of fourteen and eight rounds of ammunition; seven crewmembers and four rounds are carried by the Pion, with the remaining crew and rounds in an auxiliary vehicle.

It takes the crew about six minutes to set up and five minutes to dismantle. The vehicle carries four 203 mm projectiles for immediate use. The gun is capable of firing nuclear ammunition. The gun has a range of 37,500 metres (23.3 mi), but this can be extended to 55,500 metres (34.5 mi) by using a rocket-assisted projectile. One interesting feature of the Pion is the firing alarm. Because the blast of the weapon firing is so powerful – it can physically incapacitate an unprepared soldier or crew member near it from concussive force – the Pion is equipped with an audible firing alarm that emits a series of short warning tones for approximately five seconds prior to the charge being fired.