The ZU-23-2 was a Soviet, towed, 23mm double-coupled anti-aircraft gun from the Cold War period. Its first prototypes were built in the late 1950s, and production probably started in 1960. It is estimated that as many as 140,000 guns of this type were produced in the Soviet Union alone! The initial velocity of the projectile fired from this gun was up to 970 m / s, and the effective vertical range was around 2,000 meters. The practical rate of fire was 400 rounds per minute.
The ZU-23-2 was created as the basic light anti-aircraft weapon of the land forces of the Soviet Army and the Warsaw Pact countries. Its main task is to destroy low-flying planes and helicopters at distances of up to 2,000 meters. It is also able to fight lightly armored vehicles and enemy infantry at a distance of up to 2,500 meters. The ZU-23-2 uses ammunition belts (separately for each gun) with 50 rounds each. It also uses two sights: the optical T-3 and the automatic ZAP-23. The ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun turned out to be a successful design, with a low own weight, high rate of fire, decent range, and above all cheap to produce and easy to use. The ZU-23-2 was mounted on many vehicles (e.g. on MT-LB transports), and it also became the basic armament of the ZSU-23 Shilka set. The ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun went to a very large number of recipients, including: Algeria, Bangladesh, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Finland, Gabon, Ghana, India, Iran, Iraq, Israel and Vietnam. It was also used by all the Warsaw Pact countries, except Czechoslovakia. From 1972, it was licensed in Poland. to this day, this weapon is used by many users, including by the Polish armed forces.