Al-Fao is a self-propelled artillery system designed for the former Iraqi Army by the late Canadian weapons engineer, Gerald Bull. It is one of the world's most powerful artillery pieces, with a caliber of and a range of . The Al-Fao system weighs 48 tons and can drive on roads with a top speed of about . Its gun is claimed to be able to fire four rounds a minute. The projectiles could be filled with chemical weapons such as sarin, mustard gas or phosgene, or with conventional high explosives. The weapon is named after the Al-Faw peninsula in southern Iraq, which was the scene of heavy fighting during the Iran–Iraq War in the 1980s. (The difference in spelling is due to differing transliterations of the Arabic name.) The Al-Fao was designed and built in Europe. It was similar in design to the South African G6 howitzer, with which Bull was also involved as a designer, and appears to have been directly inspired by that system. See also List of artillery References 210 mm artillery Wheeled self-propelled howitzers Artillery of Iraq