The agreement on the supply of M120K Rak self-propelled mortars was announced during a joint conference of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki in Warsaw, writes Militarnyi.
According to Polish Prime Minister Morawiecki, the agreements will cover the supply of three company-level sets of Polish Rak 120mm self-propelled mortars on wheeled chassis to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Typically, in the Polish Army, M120K Rak companies, which are part of mechanized brigades, have 8 mortars and 4 fire control vehicles. That is, 3 company-level sets are 24 self-propelled mortars and 12 control vehicles.
M120K Rak self-propelled wheel mortars are built on the KTO Rosomak chassis, that is, the Polish version of the Patria AMV. The Polish ground forces began receiving these vehicles in 2017 and currently have 82 M120K Rak mortars in their inventory.
The peculiarity of this weapon is quick deployment (30 seconds) and quick leaving of the combat position (15 seconds), which is very important in the conditions of modern anti-battery combat. The 120-mm mortar has a rate of fire of 6-8 rounds per minute, a stock of ammunition of 46 pieces, and a fire range of up to 12 km. According to military experts, the Armed Forces of Ukraine lacks such weapons for dynamic defense in difficult areas of the front.
During President Zelenskyi's visit to Poland, a number of documents on defense cooperation were signed. In particular, about the supply of Polish Rosomak wheeled armored personnel carriers, M120K Rak self-propelled mortars, Piorun MANPADS, MiG-29 fighter jets and other weapons.
In addition, the Polish Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa and the Ukrainian company Artem signed an agreement on the joint production of tank rounds.
Thank you for everything, Poland!
M120K Rak technical specifications
Crew – 4
Length – 7.7 m
Width - 2.8 m
Height - 2150 mm
Mass – 24.5 tons
Armor – ARMOX 500T 8 mm thickness, STANAG 4569A Level 1
Engine – Scania D1 12 56A03PE
Power – 490 hp.
Speed – 60/80 km/h
Operational range – 500 km
Armament – 120-mm mortar; 81-mm smoke grenade launchers
Rate of fire – 6-8 shots per minute
Stock of ammunition – 46 pieces
Maximum range – 12 km
Time to be ready to fire – 30 s
Time to leave the firing position – 15 s