Kalashnikov to Present Lotos SPAS for the First Time at Abu Dhabi Exhibition
The 120 mm Lotos self-propelled artillery system (SPAS), developed by the Central Scientific Research Institute for Precision Machine Engineering (TsNIITochMash JSC, Kalashnikov Concern), will be showcased to international specialists for the first time at the IDEX 2025 exhibition in the UAE on February 17–21.
In November 2024, Alan Lushnikov, General Director of Kalashnikov Concern JSC, announced to Russian federal media the commencement of state trials for the Lotos. The testing program will evaluate all operational capabilities of the SPAS, including the use of aerosol-generating munitions designed for effective electro-optical countermeasures against enemy precision-guided weaponry. Current state trials have confirmed that the system meets all declared performance specifications.
The Lotos is designed for airborne deployment with its full crew inside, landing in a combat-ready state via military transport aircraft using airborne parachute systems. It is capable of firing both conventional and precision-guided munitions from prepared, unprepared, and enclosed firing positions, as well as engaging targets using direct or semi-direct fire. The full 360-degree rotating turret allows for firing in any horizontal direction.
The Lotos was developed as a successor to the Nona SPAS, which has been in service since 1981 and was also developed with direct involvement from TsNIITochMash. Initial trials revealed that the Lotos was 1.5 times more effective than the Nona-SM SPAS in terms of ordnance payload, the standard HE/fragmentation projectile firing range, and the integral shell power of the primary HE/fragmentation projectile. The new design also features a higher level of armor protection for the crew, a 360-degree rotating turret, automated guidance drives that speed up gun direction and make it more accurate, mechanized ordnance racks that facilitate and accelerate the loader’s work, and a number of other important advantages compared to the previous model.