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ARTILLERY: The Best Towed Artillery
Strategy Page ^ | July 1, 2005 | Harold C. Hutchison

Posted on 07/01/2005 11:51:18 AM PDT by spetznaz

The original artillery was towed, primarily by horses. Towed guns bring some advantages as opposed to self-propelled guns. They are lighter, which makes it easier to deploy them via aircraft (thus ensuring that a light division will have support). They are cheaper, which makes the bean-counters happy. They are also simpler, which means much less can go wrong. That said, the low price, light weight, and simplicity comes with a trade-off in tactical mobility. Towed howitzers, which rely these days on trucks to move them, have a harder time keeping up with mobile units (like armor and mechanized infantry) than self-propelled artillery. That said, there are a number of good towed artillery pieces in the world.

Russia has a variety of these guns. One of the most common around the world is the D-30 howitzer. This 122mm gun has a range of 21.9 kilometers and fires a range of ammunition – to include chemical, incendiary and HEAT rounds. Another common gun in the world from Russia is the D-20, a 152mm gun that was also used as the basis of the 2S3 howitzer. Russia did the same with the 2A65 – which became the basis of the 2S5 self-propelled gun. Russia has a new 152mm towed gun in service, the 2A36 Giatsint. It has a range of 28.5 kilometers firing conventional shells or 44 kilometers with extended range shells. Its ammunition system is incompatible with previous 152mm howitzers.

The United States has a 105mm howitzer, the M119, that was built in the U.S. as a licensed copy of the L118, a British howitzer that was proven in the 1982 Falklands War. This two-ton howitzer can fire shells as far as 19 kilometers away. The M198 is the standard towed 155mm howitzer. It weighs 8 tons, and can fire conventional rounds as far as 22.4 kilometers (for rocket-assisted projectiles, the range is 30 kilometers). The M198 is slated to be replaced by the XM777, which will have a weight of about 5 tons (about 37 percent less than the M198). The XM777, which is going to be the basis of the NLOS-C self-propelled gun, can fire conventional shells up to 30 kilometers, while rocket-assisted projectiles will be able to travel 40 kilometers.

Europe also has a collection of towed 155mm howitzers. Sweden’s Bofors FH 77 not only comes in a towed version, but also a self-propelled version. It can fire shells as far as 40 kilometers. The FH 70 is in service with the United Kingdom and Japan. It fires conventional shells 24 kilometers, and rocket-assisted projectiles 30 kilometers. Germany’s FH 155-1 weighs about 10 tons, and can fire its shells 24 kilometers away. France has the TRF-1, which weighs 19 tons, and can fire conventional shells 24 kilometers, with rocket-assisted projectiles going as far as 30 kilometers.

However, the best of the towed guns – at least on paper - is from South Africa. The original G5 was developed by Dr. Gerald Bull (a real genius with guns, who was killed by an Israeli hit squad after he went to work for Saddam Hussein). Weighing in at 14 tons, it can reach out with conventional shells and hit targets as far as 39 kilometers away. The newer G5-52 extends this guns reach to just over 55 kilometers. Like the Russians, South Africa created a self-propelled version of this gun, the G6 (with the newer version being the G6-52). These guns reach even further (the extended-range version can fire “velocity-enhanced” projectiles as far as 67 kilometers). That said, the long range can be a handicap, since the G5 and G6 are reliant upon good target acquisition systems (South Africa has designed a UAV, the Seeker II, for use with the G6-52) and secure command and control facilities (it should be noted that command and control is something the United States has had a history of going after from the Revolutionary War on – just ask the British). In Desert Storm, when Iraq’s target acquisition systems and command and control facilities were taken out by Coalition air strikes, the G5s were unable to hit the targets that they could not locate. Many ended up destroyed by either air strikes (aircraft and helicopters can fly further than the G6-52 can fire its shells) or MLRS counter-battery fire. When countries have been able to acquire targets and protect command and control, the G5 has been devastating – as Israel proved in 1986. The G5’s potential can only be achieved when the soldiers using it are well-trained. The same, of course, can be said for any of these artillery systems.


TOPICS: Editorial; Foreign Affairs; Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: artillery; geraldbull; shells
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I wonder just how viable the gun Gerald Bull was trying to finagle together for Saddam would have been. And what made him (and Saddam) think the gun wouldn't have been a big defined target in the desert for Israeli strikes? (Or was Bull simply trying to hoodwink Saddam, get his paycheck, and high-tail it out of Baghdad).
1 posted on 07/01/2005 11:51:19 AM PDT by spetznaz
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To: spetznaz

Is this OUR "Harold Hutchinson," the Freeper?


2 posted on 07/01/2005 12:00:54 PM PDT by LS (CNN is the Amtrak of news)
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To: spetznaz

Is this OUR "Harold Hutchinson," the Freeper?


3 posted on 07/01/2005 12:02:24 PM PDT by LS (CNN is the Amtrak of news)
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To: spetznaz

In modern warfare, towed artillery is a one shot weapon, then it becomes the target of counter battery fire.


4 posted on 07/01/2005 12:02:37 PM PDT by USNBandit (sarcasm engaged at all times)
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To: spetznaz

Q: What's the most commonly used word in and Artillery unit?
A: "WHAT?"


5 posted on 07/01/2005 12:05:30 PM PDT by Turbo Pig (...to close with and destroy the enemy...)
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To: spetznaz
XM-777. Cool!


6 posted on 07/01/2005 12:14:35 PM PDT by FormerACLUmember (Honoring Saint Jude's assistance every day.)
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To: USNBandit
In modern warfare, towed artillery is a one shot weapon, then it becomes the target of counter battery fire.

In Operation Anaconda, our troops were shelled by a D30 howitzer for a day and a half. We had complete air supremacy, but not a single artillery tube of our own. And obviously no fire-finder radar. As a result, we were unable to effectively suppress enemy air defense & got a bunch of helos shot up. We were also not able to hit identifed Al Qaeda outside the range of small arms except with air power which was not always available, timely, or able to hit the target.

We did that to ourselves with the goofy decision not to bring arty into Afghanistan. But the point is that there are a great many situations in which towed/air transportable artillery can be very useful. Unlike things that fly, it is available 24 hours per day, in any weather, can adjust fire in real time and provide sustained steel on target.

7 posted on 07/01/2005 12:26:50 PM PDT by mark502inf
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To: spetznaz

Both towed and self-propelled have their place.


8 posted on 07/01/2005 12:31:33 PM PDT by R. Scott (Humanity i love you because when you're hard up you pawn your Intelligence to buy a drink.)
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To: spetznaz

There is a book out there on Gerald Bull. Very interesting. The gun for Saddam was detailed pretty well. Very powerful (remember that this guy originally wanted to get into space with a big gun).

Interestingly, there were small bulbs placed on each side of the barrel that were packed with gunpowder. As the shell passed the connection, the flame would ignite the new powder in the bulb and give it even more of a push. It was a clever attempt to keep the pressure up as the shell passed down the barrel.

HOWEVER, it was a joke. The entire gun was so large that it was being placed in a hole in the ground. It was bolted to the rock. It could not swivel. It was aimed right at Israel (shooting right over Jordan). According to the book, it was supposed to be able to shoot at different targets a few degrees on each side of the centerline of the bore (guidance located in the shell). This was enough to strike at most Israeli population centers. However, it was fixed. I wouldn't give it very long before the Israelis bombed it. Of course, killing Bull did the job easier and cheaper.

That was not the only thing that Bull did, though. He designed several advanced field weapons for countries that could (and may) use them against us. For that reason alone, I don't mourn his death. Bull was a genius, but when it decided not to work within the system, he sold out to whoever would pay him. And it was usually not people that like the US.


9 posted on 07/01/2005 12:34:26 PM PDT by jim_trent
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To: spetznaz
Being able to fire long ranges is one thing, having the accuracy to hit a target at those ranges is quite another thing.
10 posted on 07/01/2005 12:36:37 PM PDT by fso301
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Comment #11 Removed by Moderator

To: spetznaz
COOL!

You turned me blue and centered me.
I'm, < valley girl >like, < / valley > so at peace>

12 posted on 07/01/2005 12:38:52 PM PDT by KC Burke (Men of intemperate minds can never be free....)
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To: spetznaz

my above comment was because the first time the thread loaded something in the HTML formatting made all posts in blue text and made them with centered formatting....by the time I posted, it no longer displayed that way in my browser.....oh well, its hard to make a joke


13 posted on 07/01/2005 12:40:47 PM PDT by KC Burke (Men of intemperate minds can never be free....)
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To: jim_trent

IIRC the gun used a manifold system in conjunction with the extra charges, also that platform tore up the barrel, so Bull developed a "liner" that could be replaced.

I can't remember if our paladin & crusader were cut under Army Transformation or just the Paladin, -man they both would be applicable/ useful in Iraq right about now.


14 posted on 07/01/2005 12:48:20 PM PDT by Capn TrVth
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To: jim_trent

IIRC, Bull was canadian, and royaly screwed over by the USA when he was sent to jail...


15 posted on 07/01/2005 12:55:22 PM PDT by Chode (American Hedonist ©®)
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To: spetznaz

IMHO, the best piece of towed artillery was the German 88-and I was a tanker.


16 posted on 07/01/2005 12:56:48 PM PDT by PzLdr ("The Emperor is not as forgiving as I am" - Darth Vader)
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To: Chode

Bull was Canadian, but he spent his early years working in the US. I don't remember all the details in the book, but I got the impression he got screwed at the same time he was screwing us. Neither side came out looking very good on that one. After that, he went over to the dark side pretty fast.


17 posted on 07/01/2005 1:09:33 PM PDT by jim_trent
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To: PzLdr

The German 88 is the only anti-tank gun I have ever heard of...probably with good reason.


18 posted on 07/01/2005 1:18:49 PM PDT by doggieboy (Bush's exit strategy for Iraq is through Iran.)
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To: PzLdr

That was a bada** piece of machinery. Anti-vehicle and anti-aircraft (flak) gun. Germany made great equipment.


19 posted on 07/01/2005 1:20:20 PM PDT by MIT-Elephant ("Armed with what? Spitballs?")
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To: USNBandit
USMC Artillery, all towed, did quite well in OIF.

US Army Artillery, mostly SP, did even better.

Our SP crews did not have to as much manual labor. I have been both, SP and Towed, not the Marines fault. You can only exert yourself so much and then you get tired.

Its not the range of your guns but whether you hit the target.

The last paragraph gets it right. Fire control/targeting is more important than range.
20 posted on 07/01/2005 1:21:20 PM PDT by fireforeffect (A kind word and a 2x4, gets you more than just a kind word.)
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