2B9 Vasilek Explained

The 2B9 Vasilek (2Б9 "Василёк" - Cornflower) also known as Vasilyek,^[2] AM 289 Vasilyek^[3] or AM 2B9 Vasilyek, is an automatic 82 mm gun-mortar developed in the Soviet Union in 1967 and fielded with the Soviet Army in 1970.

Description

It was based on the F-82 automatic mortar. The 2B9 is a semiautomatic breechloader that makes use of 4-round clips or is loaded with individual rounds.^[4] Rounds can be loaded from either the muzzle or the breech. Because of its wheeled carriage, the 2B9 resembles a light artillery piece more than a conventional mortar.

The 2B9 was used in Afghanistan^[5] by Soviet units and is still found in Russian airmobile infantry units. In the fighting in Afghanistan, Soviet units found the 2B9 to be a versatile and useful weapon.^[6] The 2B9 can fire high-explosive, armor-piercing, smoke, and illumination rounds. The armor-piercing projectile, which weighs 3.1kg (06.8lb), has a 75g warhead that can penetrate 100mm of armor.^[7] Upon blast, the high-explosive shell produces 400 to 600 fragments.

The 2B9 can be towed but is usually carried on a modified GAZ-66 military truck.^[8] By 1988, the 2B9 was also deployed as a self-propelled weapon by mounting the gun-mortar in the rear of an MT-LB armored personnel carrier.^[9]

During the Syrian Civil War, the 2B9M Vasilek was used by the Syrian Armed Forces, Kurdish People's Protection Units, and the Islamist group Ansar al-Sham. The latter used a 2B9M automatic mortar near Mount Chalma, Kesab district.^[10]

Variants

• 2B9 Vasilek – Basic model
  • 2B9M Vasilek – Modernised version introduced in 1982, and adopted in 1983.^[10]
• DE-82 − upgraded Hungarian version developed in 1987.^[8]
• Type W99 – 2B9 Vasilek produced in the People's Republic of China by Norinco.^[11]
• Scorpion − In 2004, the US Army with the assistance of Picatinny Arsenal engineers, fitted a Hungarian-supplied 2B9 Vasilek into the rear of a Humvee chassis as a proof of concept for the Army and Marine Corps. It can carry 191 rounds and the armoured cab provides ballistic and blast overpressure protection for the crew. Ultimately, it wasn't adopted by the Army.

Operators

Current

• ^[12]
  • ^[13]
• ^[8]
  • • • ^[8]
• – Used by both government and rebel forces in the Syrian Civil War^[10]
  • – Used by both government and Donetsk People's Republic, Luhansk People's Republic forces in the war in Donbas^{[14] [15]}

Former

• − Also used by Army of Republika Srpska
• − Also used by the HVO
  • Northern Alliance − Reported
• Poland^[16]
  • – Passed down to successor states.

Evaluation-only

• − A HMMWV fitted with a 2B9 Vasilek entered trials in 2004 for the US Army and Marine Corps, but it wasn't accepted for service

Notes

Citations

References

• Book: Foss . Christopher F . Christopher F Foss . Jane's Armour and Artillery 2011–2012 . Janes Information Group . Surrey . 2011 . 978-0-71062-960-9 . 32nd .
• Book: Jones . Richard D. Ness . Leland S . Jane's Infantry Weapons 2010-2011 . 2010 . Jane's Information Group . 978-0-7106-2908-1 . en.
• Book: Kinard, Jeff . 2007 . Artillery: An Illustrated History of Its Impact . Weapons and Warfare. Santa Barbara . ABC-CLIO. 9781851095612.

External links

• www.janes.com
• armamentresearch.com/soviet-2b9m-vasilek-self-loading-mortar/

Notes and References

1. Kinard (2007), p. 481.
2. Web site: ODIN - OE Data Integration Network . 2024-08-26 . odin.tradoc.army.mil.
3. Book: Jalali, Ali Ahmad . The Other Side of the Mountain: Mujahideen Tactics in the Soviet-Afghan War . Grau . Lester . January 20, 2010 . Military Bookshop . 978-1907521058 . English.
4. Kinard (2007), p. 306.
5. Book: Campbell, David . Soviet Paratrooper vs Mujahideen Fighter: Afghanistan 1979–89. Combat 29. Osprey Publishing. 30 Nov 2017. 9781472817648. 19.
6. Web site: fmso.leavenworth.army.mil . 27 November 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111105224121/http://fmso.leavenworth.army.mil/documents/arty/arty.htm . 5 November 2011 . dead.
7. Leland Ness (ed.), Jane's Infantry Weapons 2007–2008, pp. 556–557, Surrey: Jane's Information Group, 2007
8. Web site: Lovass . Ernő . Jenzen-Jones . N.R. . September 3, 2018 . Soviet 2B9M Vasilek self-loading mortar . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20181007225453/http://armamentresearch.com/soviet-2b9m-vasilek-self-loading-mortar/ . 7 October 2018 . 21 July 2019 . armamentresearch.com.
9. Web site: sill-www.army.mil . 26 November 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110617021426/http://sill-www.army.mil/famag/1988/JUN_1988/JUN_1988_PAGES_43_45.pdf . 17 June 2011 . live.
10. Web site: 2B9M Vasilek automatic mortar in service with Ansar al-Sham in Syria. June 18, 2014. N.R.. Jenzen-Jones. Yuri. Lyamin. armamentresearch.com. 15 November 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20150116132629/http://www.armamentresearch.com/2b9m-vasilek-automatic-mortar-in-service-with-ansar-al-sham-in-syria/. 16 January 2015. live.
11. Book: Blasko, Dennis J. . 2013 . The Chinese Army Today: Tradition and Transformation for the 21st Century . Routledge . 140 . 9781136519970.
12. Web site: The Fight For Nagorno-Karabakh: Documenting Losses On The Sides Of Armenia And Azerbaijan . Oryx Blog . 19 June 2022.
13. Web site: It Became Known What the belarusian Territorial Defense is Armed With, Which the Wagnerians Will Train . 17 July 2023 . Defense Express . 20 April 2024 . en.
14. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwyFCWmpiUk How the "Cornflower" fires 13/11/14.
15. Web site: Vídeo of DPR militia using 2B9 Vasilek . . 29 September 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160307093044/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fT50bMnbnPw . 7 March 2016 . live.
16. Web site: Niecodzienne historie - Ostre strzelanie . 2024-08-25 . TVP rekonstrukcja . pl.