M198 howitzer vs SPG-9: Specs Compared

M198 howitzer — licensed reference photograph

AArtillery

M198 howitzer

Towed howitzer

Credit

Staff Sgt. Vance · Public domain · Resized · Public domain · Source ↗ · Modified

BArtillery

SPG-9

Recoilless gun Anti-tank gun

Credit

Polanksy kolbe · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Resized · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source ↗ · Modified

First system

Second system

At a glance

Side by side

Length comparisonOne shared metre scale

M198 howitzerTravel

12.3 m

Length source ↗

SPG-9Length

2.11 m

Length source ↗

Lengths retain their source configuration and measurement scope.

M198 howitzerlarger figure on 2 of 2

Mass+14961%
Muzzle velocity+100%

SPG-9larger figure on 0 of 2

None

Counts only measures both sources give with the same scope. A larger figure is not a better system.

Measured figures

Head to head

20 of 64 rows sourced on both sides

12.3mTravel

2.11m

Length

All recorded figures & sources

11 m

Combat

Single source

12.3 m

Travel

Single source

Combat: 11 m (36 ft 2 in) Travel: 12.3 m (40 ft 6 in)^[source]

2.11 m

Length

Single source

2.11 m (6 ft 11 in)^[source]

2.8mTravel

990mmallowing full traverse

WidthScopes differ

All recorded figures & sources

2.8 m

Travel

Single source

Travel: 2.8 m (9 ft 2 in)^[source]

0.99 m

allowing full traverse

Single source

99 cm (3 ft 3 in) allowing full traverse^[source]

2.9mTravel

800mm

Height

All recorded figures & sources

2.9 m

Travel

Single source

Travel: 2.9 m (9 ft 6 in)^[source]

0.8 m

Height

Single source

80 cm (2 ft 7 in)^[source]

7.2t

47.5kg

Mass+14961%

All recorded figures & sources

7,154 kg

Mass

Single source

7,154 kg (15,772 lb)^[source]

47.5 kg

Mass

Single source

59.5 kg

with tripod

Single source

47.5 kg (105 lb) 59.5 kg (131 lb) with tripod^[source]

9enlisted men

21 gunner, 1 loader

CrewScopes differ

All recorded figures & sources

9 people

enlisted men

Single source

9 enlisted men^[source]

2 people

1 gunner, 1 loader

Single source

2 (1 gunner, 1 loader)^[source]

40kmMaximum; RAP and L/52 barrel

1.2–6.5kmMaximum; Maximum firing range

RangeScopes differ

All recorded figures & sources

22.4 km

Maximum; Conventional

Single source

30 km

Maximum; RAP

Single source

40 km

Maximum; RAP and L/52 barrel

Single source

Conventional: 22.4km (14 mi), RAP : 30km (18.6 mi), RAP and L/52 barrel: 40km (25 mi)^[source]

0.8 km

Effective; Effective firing range

Single source

1.2–6.5 km

Maximum; Maximum firing range

Single source

800 m (870 yd)^[source]

1,200–6,500 m (1,300–7,100 yd)^[source]

6.09mL/39

Длина ствола , мм 1850

Barrel length

All recorded figures & sources

6.09 m

L/39

Single source

6.09 m (19.98 ft) L/39^[source]

Длина ствола , мм 1850^[source]

155mmCaliber

73mmsmoothbore

CalibreScopes differ

All recorded figures & sources

155 mm

Caliber

Single source

155 mm (6.1 inch)^[source]

73 mm

smoothbore

Single source

73 mm (2.9 in) smoothbore^[source]

4rpmMaximum

5–6rounds/min

Rate of fire

All recorded figures & sources

4 rounds/min

Maximum

Single source

2 rounds/min

Sustained

Single source

Maximum: 4 rpm Sustained: 2 rpm^[source]

5–6 rounds/min

Rate of fire

Single source

5–6 rounds per minute^[source]

684m/s

250–435m/s

Muzzle velocity

All recorded figures & sources

684 m/s

Muzzle velocity

Single source

684 m/s (2,240 ft/s)^[source]

250–435 m/s

Muzzle velocity

Single source

250–435 m/s (820–1,430 ft/s)^[source]

Bars compare reported quantities only. A larger figure does not make a system better; configurations and test conditions differ.

Configuration

Details

M198 howitzer and SPG-9 configuration
Specification	M198 howitzer	SPG-9
Type	Towed howitzer^[source]	Recoilless gun Anti-tank gun^[source]
Place of origin	United States^[source]	Soviet Union^[source]
In service	1979–present^[source]	1962–present^[source]
Used by	See Operators^[source]	—
Wars	Lebanese Civil War Gulf War Somali Civil War War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Iraq War War in Iraq (2013-2017) Syrian Civil War 2025 Cambodia‒Thailand conflict 2026 Afghanistan-Pakistan war^[source]	Vietnam War Iran–Iraq War Salvadoran Civil War Lord's Resistance Army insurgency Gulf War Lebanese Civil War Iraq War Second Sudanese Civil War Third Sudanese Civil War Libyan Civil Wars Northern Mali conflict Syrian Civil War War in Iraq (2013-2017) War in Donbas Yemeni Civil War (2014–present) Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen 2022 Kyrgyzstan–Tajikistan clashes Russo-Ukraine War Gaza war^[source]
Designed	1968–1977^[source]	—
Manufacturer	Rock Island Arsenal (US)^[source]	—
Unit cost	US$ 527,337^[source]	—
Produced	1978–1992^[source]	—
No. built	1,600+^[source]	—
Shell	Separate loading charge and projectile^[source]	—
Breech	Interrupted screw^[source]	Interrupted screw^[source]
Recoil	Hydro-pneumatic^[source]	None^[source]
Carriage	Split trail^[source]	Tripod^[source]
Elevation	−5° to +72°^[source]	+7°/−3°^[source]
Traverse	45°^[source]	30° total^[source]
Feed system	—	Manually breech-loaded^[source]
Sights	—	PGO-9 optical 4× sight or PGN-9 IR and passive night sight^[source]
Reported operators	Reported operator · Bahrain Reported operator · Ecuador Reported operator · El Salvador Reported operator · Honduras Reported operator · Iraq Reported operator · Kurdistan Reported operator · Lebanon Reported operator · Morocco Reported operator · Pakistan Reported operator · Saudi Arabia Reported operator · Tunisia Reported operator · Thailand	Reported operator · Iraq Reported operator · Afghanistan Reported operator · Bulgaria Reported operator · Central African Republic Reported operator · Cambodia Reported operator · Democratic Republic of the Congo Reported operator · Egypt Reported operator · Georgia Reported operator · East Germany Reported operator · Iran Reported operator · Kyrgyzstan Reported operator · Libya Reported operator · Mali Reported operator · Moldova Reported operator · Poland Reported operator · Romania Reported operator · Russia Reported operator · Rwanda Reported operator · Sudan Reported operator · South Sudan Reported operator · Ba'athist Syria Reported operator · Syria Reported operator · Ukraine Reported operator · Vietnam Reported operator · Turkmenistan

FORCETALLY

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M198 howitzer

SPG-9

Type

Towed howitzer^[source]

Recoilless gun Anti-tank gun^[source]

Place of origin

United States^[source]

Soviet Union^[source]

In service

1979–present^[source]

1962–present^[source]

Used by

See Operators^[source]

—

Wars

Lebanese Civil War Gulf War Somali Civil War War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Iraq War War in Iraq (2013-2017) Syrian Civil War 2025 Cambodia‒Thailand conflict 2026 Afghanistan-Pakistan war^[source]

Vietnam War Iran–Iraq War Salvadoran Civil War Lord's Resistance Army insurgency Gulf War Lebanese Civil War Iraq War Second Sudanese Civil War Third Sudanese Civil War Libyan Civil Wars Northern Mali conflict Syrian Civil War War in Iraq (2013-2017) War in Donbas Yemeni Civil War (2014–present) Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen 2022 Kyrgyzstan–Tajikistan clashes Russo-Ukraine War Gaza war^[source]

Designed

1968–1977^[source]

—

Manufacturer

Rock Island Arsenal (US)^[source]

—

Unit cost

US$ 527,337^[source]

—

Produced

1978–1992^[source]

—

No. built

1,600+^[source]

—

Shell

Separate loading charge and projectile^[source]

—

Breech

Interrupted screw^[source]

Recoil

Hydro-pneumatic^[source]

None^[source]

Carriage

Split trail^[source]

Tripod^[source]

Elevation

−5° to +72°^[source]

+7°/−3°^[source]

Traverse

45°^[source]

30° total^[source]

Feed system

—

Manually breech-loaded^[source]

Sights

—

PGO-9 optical 4× sight or PGN-9 IR and passive night sight^[source]

Reported operators

Reported operator · Bahrain
Reported operator · Ecuador
Reported operator · El Salvador
Reported operator · Honduras
Reported operator · Iraq
Reported operator · Kurdistan
Reported operator · Lebanon
Reported operator · Morocco
Reported operator · Pakistan
Reported operator · Saudi Arabia
Reported operator · Tunisia
Reported operator · Thailand

Reported operator · Iraq
Reported operator · Afghanistan
Reported operator · Bulgaria
Reported operator · Central African Republic
Reported operator · Cambodia
Reported operator · Democratic Republic of the Congo
Reported operator · Egypt
Reported operator · Georgia
Reported operator · East Germany
Reported operator · Iran
Reported operator · Kyrgyzstan
Reported operator · Libya
Reported operator · Mali
Reported operator · Moldova
Reported operator · Poland
Reported operator · Romania
Reported operator · Russia
Reported operator · Rwanda
Reported operator · Sudan
Reported operator · South Sudan
Reported operator · Ba'athist Syria
Reported operator · Syria
Reported operator · Ukraine
Reported operator · Vietnam
Reported operator · Turkmenistan