A labeled archival video identifies a 152 mm NORA howitzer firing in Kosovo in 1999; the row is limited to that visual identification rather than a broader order-of-battle or effects claim.
Artillery
NORA M-84
Also known as
- 152mm M84
- 152 mm M84
- M84 NORA
- M-84 NORA
- M-84 Nora-A
- NORA-A
- 152 mm M-84 Nora
- 152 mm M84 NORA-A
- Gun-howitzer M84 NORA
NORA M-84 is a Yugoslav-origin 152 mm towed gun-howitzer developed as a longer-range successor to the D-20 family. Its 39- to 40-caliber ordnance, split-trail carriage, semi-automatic breech, and compatibility with D-20 ammunition made it a bridge between legacy Soviet-caliber artillery and later Serbian NORA self-propelled systems, with limited open-source visual evidence identifying NORA fire during the 1999 Kosovo War / Operation Allied Force period.
Role in Conflicts
Profile / Specs
Profile
- Origin
- Yugoslavia / Serbia
- Type
- 152 mm towed gun-howitzer
- Service note
- Late Cold War Yugoslav design retained in Serbian service through the post-1999 period
- Designer
- Military Technical Institute, Belgrade
- Designed
- Development began in the mid-1970s; NORA-A accepted as M-84 in 1984
- Unit cost
- Not publicly established
- Produced
- 1984 onward
- Number built
- About 100 reported by WeaponSystems.net; Wikipedia-derived references commonly give 88 or more
- Developed from
- D-20 152 mm gun-howitzer lineage
Specifications
- Caliber
- 152 mm / 152.4 mm class
- Crew
- 8 in Yugoimport data; 9 in WeaponSystems.net summary
- Combat weight
- About 7,130 kg in Yugoimport data; WeaponSystems.net lists 7.08 t for M84 and 6.88 t for M84B2
- Ordnance
- 152 mm L/39 or L/40 gun-howitzer with double-baffle muzzle brake
- Breech
- Semi-automatic vertical sliding-wedge breech
- Maximum range
- 24 km to 24.2 km with M84 ammunition; 28.1 km or more with base-bleed ammunition in secondary references
- D-20 ammunition compatibility
- Yugoimport states the modernized design can also use all 152 mm D-20 gun ammunition
- Rate of fire
- 6 rounds per minute maximum in Yugoimport data; normal 4 rounds per minute
- Traverse and elevation
- 50 degrees total traverse; -5 to +63 degrees elevation in Yugoimport data
- Travel dimensions
- About 11.2 m long, 2.415 m wide, and 2.16 m high in travelling position
- Carriage
- Two-wheel split-trail towed carriage with gun shield
- Typical tow vehicle
- High-mobility 6x6 truck; Yugoimport lists KamAZ 43118 and WeaponSystems.net lists FAP 2026 as examples
- Emplacement time
- 3 to 5 minutes between travelling and firing positions in Yugoimport data
Design Notes
The M-84 NORA kept Soviet-caliber ammunition compatibility but moved the Yugoslav towed-howitzer design toward a longer-range artillery role. The public source trail is strongest for specifications, Serbian service training, and NORA-family lineage; conflict-use evidence is narrower and rests on labeled archival footage from Kosovo in 1999.
D-20 Compatibility
Yugoimport states the M84 can use all ammunition for the 152 mm D-20 while adding its own NORA ammunition family.
Source: Yugoimport 152 mm howitzer M84 brochure.
Fire Support Role
Serbia's Ministry of Defence describes the 152 mm M-84 Nora as long-range fire-support artillery used by the Mixed Artillery Brigade.
Source: 152 mm gun-howitzer training in Mixed Artillery Brigade.
NORA Family
The later NORA-B52 self-propelled system is presented by Serbia's Ministry of Defence as a new-generation NORA development with longer range, mobility, automation, and protection than the 152 mm M84.
Source: NORA-B52 M15 155mm Self-Propelled Gun-Howitzer.
Variants
The M-84 family kept the same 152 mm NORA identity while changing weight, chamber, loading assistance, or later derivative configuration.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| M84 | Original production model | WeaponSystems.net identifies the M84 as the original production model, produced in small quantity. Sources: 152mm M84 |
| M84B1 | Improved towed model | WeaponSystems.net describes the M84B1 as the reduced-weight and most common improved model. Sources: 152mm M84 |
| M84B2 | Pneumatic-loader version | WeaponSystems.net identifies the M84B2 as an M84B1 with a pneumatic loader. Sources: 152mm M84 |
| NORA-B52 | Later 155 mm self-propelled NORA development | Serbia's Ministry of Defence traces the NORA-B52 project back to the 1980s NORA idea and contrasts the newer 155 mm self-propelled system with the 152 mm M84 gun-howitzer. |
Artillery Lineage
The M-84 is best read as a Yugoslav long-barrel development from the D-20 ecosystem rather than a Soviet baseline D-20 copy.
| Compatible item | Item type | Compatibility evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Earlier 152 mm gun-howitzer family | Yugoimport says the M84 design was modernized compared with the 152 mm D-20 and can still use all D-20 ammunition, while Army Guide describes M84 as a Yugoslav long-barrel D-20 version. Sources: Yugoimport 152 mm howitzer M84 brochure, M84 (Towed howitzer) |
Timeline
NORA M-84 Key Events
Extended-range Yugoslav howitzer work begins
GlobalSecurity and VTI-derived summaries describe the Military Technical Institute beginning development of the 152 mm M84 towed gun-howitzer in the mid-1970s.
Sources: M84 Nora 152mm towed gun-howitzer
M-84 NORA accepted into service
Published NORA summaries describe the NORA-A towed gun-howitzer being accepted by the Yugoslav People's Army in 1984 under the M-84 designation.
Sources: Nora M-84 Baseline Reference, M84 Nora 152mm towed gun-howitzer
Kosovo-period NORA firing footage circulates
The selected archival YouTube upload identifies a 152 mm NORA howitzer firing in Kosovo in 1999; the clip is used only as limited visual conflict-use evidence.
Sources: Haubica NORA 152mm u dejstvu (Kosovo 1999)
Serbian M-84 Nora training documented
Serbia's Ministry of Defence reported Mixed Artillery Brigade training with 152 mm M-84 Nora gun-howitzers and described the system as long-range fire-support artillery.
Sources: 152 mm gun-howitzer training in Mixed Artillery Brigade
Media
NORA M-84 Videos
NORA M-84 Images
Related Weapon Systems
Sources
Yugoimport 152 mm howitzer M84 brochurePublisher: Yugoimport SDPR | Note: Supports current product identity, D-20 ammunition compatibility, design features, dimensions, weight, traverse/elevation, rate of fire, crew, transport, and emplacement time. | Accessed: 2026-07-06152mm M84Publisher: WeaponSystems.net | Note: Supports origin, type, reported production scale, variant distinctions, D-20 chassis and longer ordnance identification, dimensions, range, sights, carriage, towing, and mobility data. | Accessed: 2026-07-06M84 (Towed howitzer)Publisher: Army Guide | Note: Supports the M84 as a Yugoslav/Serbian towed howitzer and D-20 long-barrel derivative context. | Accessed: 2026-07-06M84 Nora 152mm towed gun-howitzerPublisher: GlobalSecurity.org | Note: Supports development background, Military Technical Institute development context, and baseline M84/NORA-A terminology. | Accessed: 2026-07-06152 mm gun-howitzer training in Mixed Artillery BrigadePublisher: Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Serbia | Note: Supports Serbian service context, Mixed Artillery Brigade training, and official description of the 152 mm M-84 Nora as long-range fire-support artillery. | Accessed: 2026-07-06Army training with towed gun howitzersPublisher: Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Serbia | Note: Supports current Serbian training and maintenance context for 152 mm M-84 Nora towed gun-howitzers. | Accessed: 2026-07-06NORA-B52 M15 155mm Self-Propelled Gun-HowitzerPublisher: Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Serbia | Note: Supports NORA-family lineage and official contrast between the 152 mm M84 gun-howitzer and later 155 mm NORA-B52 M15 self-propelled system. | Accessed: 2026-07-06Nora M-84 Baseline ReferencePublisher: Wikipedia | Note: Baseline terminology and lead reference for NORA M-84 aliases, design chronology, operators, and source leads; not used alone for conflict-use claims. | Accessed: 2026-07-06Haubica NORA 152mm u dejstvu (Kosovo 1999)Publisher: YouTube | Note: Supports 1999 Kosovo War / Operation Allied Force direct-use context only as limited visual evidence: the upload identifies a 152 mm NORA howitzer firing in Kosovo in 1999. | Accessed: 2026-07-06Nora M84 Serbian howitzer imagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports primary image provenance and licensing for a Serbian Army NORA M-84 howitzer photograph published under GFDL and Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike licenses. | Accessed: 2026-07-06M-84 Nora A imagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports gallery image provenance and CC BY-SA 4.0 licensing for an M-84 Nora-A howitzer displayed at Partner 2015. | Accessed: 2026-07-06NORA M84 VS1 imagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports gallery image provenance for an M-84 Nora image in Serbian service. | Accessed: 2026-07-06