Introduction

The L-33 is a Cold War era self-propelled howitzer of Israeli origin. It was developed to provide self-propelled artillery support which the Israeli army was lacking at the time. It is based on the chassis of the US World War 2 era Sherman tank. The name is derived from the barrel length of the ordnance, but it is also known under the nickname "Ro'em", which is Hebrew for "thunder maker".

Layout

The L-33 is based on the M4A3E8 Sherman tank chassis and is fitted with a very large welded casemate superstructure which provides the ordnance with limited traverse. The crew is relatively large, consisting of 8 members.

Firepower

The L-33 uses the 155mm 33-caliber ordnance of the indigenous M-68 towed gun. The maximum range is 21 km. The maximum rate of fire is about 6 rpm. A total of 60 round are carried of which 16 are ready to fire. A 7.62mm machine gun is mounted for self-defense.

Protection

The L-33 is operated from under full armor protection. The steel armor protects the crew from small arms fire and shell splinters. There are no NBC system, smoke grenade dischargers or fire extinguishing system.

Mobility

The Sherman chassis with HVSS suspension and new engine provides an all terrain mobility. The drawbacks of the Sherman chassis are a low speed and range. A Cummins 460 hp diesel engine provides propulsion.

Users

The L-33 was adopted by Israeli forces in 1973 and was immediately used during the Yom Kippur war. It was also used in subsequent conflicts. With the introduction of the US M109 howitzer it was quickly relegated to the reserve role. No L-33 have ever been exported.

The L-33 was produced only in one version. All models use the Sherman HVSS chassis with new diesel engine. The large casemate superstructure makes the L-33 very easy to identify. A variant called L-39 with 39-caliber ordnance was developed but never produced.