ZU-23-2
Twin 23 mm anti-aircraft gun, towed or vehicle-mounted — short range
Towed twin 23 mm anti-aircraft gun (1960) and one of the most widespread air-defence weapons in the world, with some 60 users. Mounted on trailers, trucks, MT-LBs, ships and pickups. In Ukraine it forms, together with machine guns and MANPADS, the core of the mobile fire groups that intercept Shahed drones. Upgraded versions (ZU-23M1) carry Igla-S missiles.
Learn more in the AirDefense Academy →Dimensionsfor imagery analysis
- Travel (L × W × H)
- 4.57 × 1.83 × 1.87 m
- Firing (L × W × H)
- 4.60 × 2.41–2.88 × 1.22–1.28 m
- Weight
- 0.95 t
- Barrel
- 2.1 m
- Dimension source
- Wikipedia; US Army TRADOC Worldwide Equipment Guide (ODIN)
General
- Role
- Anti-aircraft gun, towed or vehicle-mounted — short range
- Designation
- GRAU 2A13, guns 2A14
- In service
- 1960
- Crew
- 2–6 (sources differ)
- Platforms
- Trailer, GAZ-66 / ZIL-131, MT-LB, BTR-D (BTR-ZD), ships, pickups
- Variants
- ZU-23M1 (+ 2 Igla-S), ZU-23/ZOM1 (+ Strela-10), Jodek-G / ZUR-23-2KG (PL, Grom)
- Users
- incl. Russia, Ukraine, Finland (1,100), Poland, Egypt, Iran, Belarus
Weapon
- Gun
- 2 × 23 mm 2A14 (23 × 152 mm)
- Rate of fire
- ≈ 2,000 rds/min per barrel cyclic, ≈ 400 practical
- Range
- Effective ≈ 1.3 NM (2.5 km)
- Altitude
- Effective ≈ 4,900–6,600 ft (1.5–2 km)
- Elevation
- −10° to +90°, 360° traverse
Threat
- RWR
- No — optically aimed (ZU-23M1: electro-optical)
- Combat record
- Lebanon, Gulf War, Georgia (Su-25, 1993), Libya, Syria, India–Pakistan 2025 (against drones)
- Ukraine
- Core weapon of the mobile fire groups against Shaheds; the National Guard reports > 300 Shaheds downed in the first two months of 2025 (all weapons of its groups combined)
- Countermeasure
- Stay above ≈ 6,600 ft; IR and radar countermeasures do not work
- Threat level
- Medium — everywhere, cheap and effective against slow drones
News archive 3
Analysed reports from the RU Mil Tracker about this system, newest first. Archive since 2026-07-17.
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«Здавалося, зараз сяде нам на голову»: мобільна група збила реактивну «Герань-4» із ЗУ-23-2 (ArmyInform: '"It seemed it was about to land on our heads": mobile group downs a jet Geran-4 with a ZU-23-2')
A mobile fire group of Ukraine's Lviv Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade, named after Ivan Vyhovsky, says it shot down a Russian jet-powered Geran-4 one-way attack drone that was heading for the site the group was protecting. According to ArmyInform, the target appeared at around six in the morning and dropped sharply just before reaching the group; the crew com…
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«Российские реактивные «Герани» начали летать ещё быстрее» (Topwar: 'Russian jet Gerans have started flying even faster')
The Russian military news portal Topwar (author Vladimir Lytkin) writes that, according to the monitoring resource AMK Mapping, Russian kamikaze drones reached speeds of about 800 km/h during strikes on western Ukraine. No specific strike date is given. The article names the jet-powered Geran-4 and Geran-5 and puts their speed at roughly 600 km/h. It adds t…
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Russian milbloggers push for networking mobile fire groups (MOG) as frontline counter-drone air defence
MILBLOGGER — this rests on two personal/editorial pro-Russian Telegram channels (Rybar and WarGonzo), not an official Russian MoD position. Milbloggers routinely contradict each other and the ministry, inflate claimed results, and pursue their own agendas (Rybar openly promotes allied channels and a named manufacturer); the figures below are not independent…