Design Overview & Tactical Role
Affectionately christened 'Zveroboy' ('Beast Slayer') by Soviet troops, the ISU-152 was constructed on the heavy IS tank chassis specifically to hunt Germany's 'menagerie' of armored beasts—the Tiger, Panther, and Elephant. Its massive 152.4 mm ML-20S gun-howitzer fired colossal 43.5 kg armor-piercing and high-explosive shells; a direct strike possessed such sheer concussive kinetic force that it regularly decapitated German tank turrets entirely from their mountings.
Combat History & Battle Records
Crucial during urban assaults on Konigsberg, Budapest, and Berlin, the ISU-152 decimated concrete pillboxes and apartment strongholds. Modernized variants continued serving with Soviet forces through the Cold War, and saw action in Egypt during the 1973 Yom Kippur War.
Related Armored Vehicles (World War II)
Cold War
1948
Cold War
1961
Cold War
1964
Cold War
1973