They have probably been waiting for his patents to expire so their cronies in the defense industry don’t have to pay royalties to Bull’s heirs.
John should be Gerald.
Can't speak to the "actual" reason, but that one was certainly true.
Gerald Bull’s ‘supergun’ designs are more complex, a lot less mobile (as in, they’re fixed position guns that can neither traverse nor elevate) and require a lot more by way of logistics support. The more conventional guns he designed for South Africa only achieved their ranges with Swedish base-bleed technology on the projectiles, which can be fired from existing US guns. The actual GC-45 and resulting G5 howitzers aren’t actually that special. The larger G6/Al-Fao guns turned out to be impractical in reality and never entered service.
Okay, when I was in the Army, I never had to fight anything more dangerous than a typewriter (Chairborne Ranger all the way, buddy, hooah!), so perhaps my lack of understanding is... understandable... but isn’t this what airpower is for, particularly when you find yourself in combat with a turd-world country?
The premise of the article is bogus. The enemy who launched rockets at the fire base were well within the range of those howitzers, keeping the enemy outside a 43 mile diameter circle is impossible.
The biggest issue of the extended range howitzers is the sustained rate of fire. Unfortunately no one in the current force can remember when volume of indirect fire was essential. We have other weapons systems that can reach out and touch the long range targets, the purpose of the guns are to mass fires at the decisive place and decisive time. Ask the Wehrmacht what they thought of American artillery.
All of this will mean nothing when the railgun technology is perfected. Distances will be immaterial and accuracy will be measured in inches and centimeters.
I want one.
Are they on Gun Broker yet?
How about an AC-130 Gunship... That can increase your artillery range...by a lot.
Never heard a peep about either one since, must have been too effective or the right lobby was not involved.
What frosted me about the establishment attack on Gerald Bull was that he showed a way that likely could have cut the cost of space exploration by 90%.
We could be putting supplies to the space station, and building materials with super-guns.
He already demonstrated sub-orbital capabilities.
I suspect NASA sabotaged his efforts, or more likely the State Department, because his guns did not fit into their stupid “arms control” games.
Bull was a full bore genius, and our insane government set him up and wasted a great man.