SB-120 Type 84
| Type 84 120mm mortar (SB-120 Type 84) | |
|---|---|
 SB-120 Type 84 mortar deployed (left) and with a Chŏnsŏ G584 prime mover (right). | |
| Type | Mortar |
| Place of origin | Menghe |
| Service history | |
| Used by | See Users |
| Wars | Polvokian Civil War Ummayan Civil War Innominadan Crisis Innominadan Uprising |
| Production history | |
| Produced | 1984-present |
| Specifications | |
| Barrel length | 1,670 mm (66 in) |
| Crew | 5 |
| Elevation | 45° to 80° |
| Traverse | 10° (without bipod repositioning) |
| Rate of fire | 15 rounds/min (maximum) 4 rounds/min (sustained) |
| Effective firing range | 200 m (minimum) 7,100 m (maximum) |
| Sights | Telescopic sight |
The SB-120 Type 84 (formal designation: 84식 120밀리메테르 수류탄 발사기, pal-sal-sik baegisib millimeterŭ suryutan balsagi, "Type 84 120-millimeter mortar"; short designation: 수발-120/84 Subal baegisib-palsal) is a 120mm muzzle-loading mortar developed in the Democratic People's Republic of Menghe in the early 1980s. It was apparently influenced by the design of the 2S12 Sani, but developed without direct Letnian support. Today it is the main 120mm mortar of the Menghean Army, and is also used by many of Menghe's allies.
Design
The SB-120 Type 84 is a relatively lightweight 120mm smoothbore muzzle-loading mortar, closer to the 2B11 Sani or 120 KRH 92 than the heavier Sieuxerrian MO-120-RT. It has an adjustable bipod, a conical baseplate, and a 1,670mm barrel, which have a combined mass of 185 kilograms. For transport, the mortar is mounted on a wheeled metal frame. This frame can be pushed short distances by the mortar crew, but for long-distance travel it is towed behind a vehicle or loaded into the back of a vehicle. The wheeled mortar unit can also be transported by helicopter, either inside the cargo compartment or slung underneath.
SB-120 Type 03
The Type 03 version of the SB-120 mortar is a special 120mm mortar system for use in light vehicles. It uses the same barrel as the SB-120 Type 84, making it compatible with the same ammunition, firing tables, and machining equipment. Instead of a portable bipod and baseplate, however, the barrel is mounted in a special recoil-reducing frame on a rotating turntable. This allows the mortar to be mounted on an armored personnel carrier like the BSCh-7 without damaging the suspension when firing. The Type 03 mortar mount also has a computerized fire-control system which automatically sets the mortar's traverse and elevation in order to hit a given set of target coordinates.
Organization and employment
In the Menghean Army, 120mm mortars are usually organized into a battery at the battalion level. Towed mortar formations, still common in reservist divisions, use the baseline SB-120 Type 84, towing it behind a Chŏnsŏ G584 4×4 light utility lorry. The G584's extended cab accommodates the mortar crew, with the driver doubling as one of the mortar crew members. Mortar shells and charges are stored in the back of the lorry under a canvas tarp, and the mortar is towed behind on a wheeled frame. During the 1980s and 1990s, a typical motorized or mechanized battalion had six 120mm mortars, but in the late 2000s this number was increased to nine through the addition of a third firing platoon.
In the "Third Generation" divisional standard, all battalion-level 120mm mortars are mounted on self-propelled vehicles, typically custom versions of APCs or IFVs. These vehicles use the SB-120 Type 03 model, with automated gun-laying and a recoil reduction system. Self-propelled mortars of this type cannot fire from the move and are still manually loaded, but they offer faster reaction times when transitioning from a road march to a firing position, and they give the crew better protection against shrapnel and small-arms fire.
Militaries which were reorganized with the help of Menghean advisers, including the armed forces of Argentstan and the Republic of Innominada, also use the SB-120 Type 84 and SB-120 Type 03 as battalion-level weapons.
Users
Argentstan- Template:Country data Azbekistan
Dzhungestan
Republic of Innominada
Menghe
Polvokia- Template:Country data Ummayah