The M-66 is a 160 mm mortar manufactured by Soltam of Israel. The weapon was based on an earlier 160 mm design, the M-58 mortar by Vammas of Finland. It can fire a 38 kg (84 lb) HE bomb out to a maximum range of 9,600 m (10,500 yd) and requires a crew of 6-8 to operate.
| Soltam M-66 | |
|---|---|
 Soltam M-66 in Beyt ha-Totchan Museum, Zikhron Ya'akov. | |
| Type | Mortar |
| Place of origin | Israel |
| Service history | |
| Used by | See operators |
| Wars | Six-Day War Yom Kippur War Lebanese Civil War 1978 South Lebanon conflict 1982 Lebanon War South Lebanon conflict (1985–2000) |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Vammas |
| Manufacturer | Soltam |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 225–341 kg (496–752 lb) |
| Crew | 6-8 |
| Caliber | 160 mm (6.3 in) |
| Elevation | 30° to 80° |
| Traverse | -20° to 20° |
| Effective firing range | 9,600 m (10,500 yd) |
In addition to the towed variant, the M-66 was mounted on a Sherman tank chassis, modified with an open-topped compartment with folding front plate, resulting in the Makmat 160 mm which was adopted in 1968.
Operators
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Current operators
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: Ecuadorian Army[1]
: Honduran Army[1]
: Indian Army[1]
: Israel Defense Forces (primary user)
Former operators
editSee also
edit- Makmat 160 mm - self-propelled artillery produced by mounting Soltam M-66 160 mm mortar on M4 Sherman tank chassis.
- Soltam M-65
- Weapons of the Lebanese Civil War
References
edit- ^ a b c "SIPRI arms transfer database". Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. 3 April 2014. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Soltam M-66 mortars.
- Sherman in israeli service
- Israeli-weapons.com
- Singapore Artillery Pieces
- Weapons of the Arab-Israeli Wars
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