Posted on 07/25/2019 3:14:30 PM PDT by PROCON
U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground conducts developmental testing of multiple facets of the Extended Range Cannon Artillery project, from artillery shells to the longer cannon tube and larger firing chamber the improved howitzer will need to accommodate them on November 18, 2018 (U.S. Army photo)
The future of Army long-range precision officially has a name.
The Army confirmed on Monday that it plan on designating the Extended Range Cannon Artillery (ERCA) program's brand new 155mm self-propelled howitzer as the M1299, Army Recognition reports.
Developed in response to increasing concerns of near-peer adversaries like Russia and China, the ERCA gun nailed targets with pinpoint accuracy at a range of 62 kilometers during testing at the Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona in March, far outstripping the range of both the M109A7 Paladin (30km) and M777 (40km with the M982 Excalibur guided artillery shell) howitzers.
Compared to those systems, the M1299 will receive two "leading-edge technologies," as Army Recognition reports: the experimental new XM1113 rocket-assisted artillery shell, and a longer 58 caliber tube designed to boost the conventional howitzer range from 38km to 70km and, eventually, an eye-popping 100 km "within the forthcoming four years."
Extended Range Cannon Artillery, or ERCA, will be an improvement to the latest version of the Paladin self-propelled howitzer that provides indirect fires for the brigade combat team and division-level fight (U.S. Army photo)
"We know we need the range in order to maintain overmatch," Col. John Rafferty, head of the long-range precision fire cross-functional team, told Defense News. "We need 70 to 80 kilometers because that's the start, and then we will be able to get farther. Right now we are on a path to 70 kilometers with ERCA."
Extended range is only one element of the Army's never-ending pursuit of lethality. The M1299 will incorporate a fully automated ammo loading system to boost the howitzer's rate of fire from 3 rpm to 10rpm, although Defense News reported in March that the Army doesn't plan on fully incorporating the system "beyond the first iteration" until 2024.
Soldier may not need to wait that long to get their hands on the ERCA program's new tech, though: the official M1299 designation comes just weeks after the Army awarded a $45 million contract to BAE Systems to integrate various elements of the ERCA system into the service's existing and future Paladin howitzers.
Anyway, congrats to the M1299 on its induction into the world of alpha-numeric military designations. We hope your upcoming baptism is a baptism by fire.
South Africa pioneered the concept when they ran out of air support spares
Navy referred to battleship cannons as 5, 14, 16 etc, inchers. Different nomenclature. Way back in the day they referred to artillery pieces in terms of “pounds”. Of course I’m not telling you anything you don’t know.
The G loads things had to hold up to were insane.
How is this NOT the Paladin 2.0?
Many years ago when I worked at Aberdeen Proving Ground there was vertical fire testing where the piece would be elevated to 89-90 degrees (or even past 90 depending on the high altitude winds) to allow recovery of the projectile which would impact a 1/2 mile or so away.
Obviously, the FAA would close off air traffic overhead.
It may be apocryphal, but the story was north bound air traffic would be routed east of APG over Delaware while southbound traffic would be west over PA and central MD. In effect, APG was the Jersey wall between these lanes.
The German Gustav had a crew of 500 men, commanded by a general officer. ( I bet the FR ladies can smell the testosterone emanating from this entire post.)
Could this be mounted in the Zumwalt? They need a big gun.
40 miles is an incredible range. That like a naval gun.
Any suggestions on a name for this new gun?
Bigly ? covfefe?
Thank you.
When I was training at Aberdeen, I marched my men into a puddle filled field for PT one drizzly but clearing afternoon shortly after the snow melted.
Positioning the men in a puddle (and myself in a deeper puddle) we proceeded to warm up with calisthenics for maybe twelve or twenty minutes to much grousing although I explained that I would replace any PT uniforms that were ruined. I then produced a football and set a young man (playing enlisted before going back to complete his cadet training at Quantico) with experience playing college ball as referee.
Sides were chosen and we began to play in the mud as football should be played and after time to secure the game continued until we found it to be getting to dark to see.
Not a problem I thought as it was a Friday and the training unit had liberty on weekends. The barracks command, however did see a problem, and my troops were not allowed to enter the barracks until they were hosed down.
It had been my hope that our game and the enthusiasm it generated in the Marine students might inspire a friendly competitive pigskin competition with the classes on the Army side.
But they were having none of it.
In fact, the whole rest of the base didn't want to form an intramural league.
John Madden would have been sad had he been there; that man knew good football.
It was then I truly understood that Marine Electro-optic Ordnance Technicians and our Army counterparts truly see things in different lights.
Yow baby. Git some.
My bad, bro! Shoot me now! :(
Range shouldn’t be a factor. lol
IronJack ~ Uh ... is that right? I mean, .45 caliber is a pistol cartridge, roughly .41 inches. A 58 caliber would then be 58 inches. And yeah, that's one big gun, but I doubt the projectile is almost 6 feet in diameter.
Not caliber, which is bore diameter, but calibers, which is barrel length measured in bore diameters. 58 calibers would be 58 times as long as the bore is wide. If the bore is 155 mm it is 8990mm long (about 29 1/2 ft)
When is the last time we ever used artillary and tanks? We keep building them and then send them off to remote, dry, desert storage locations.
pinpoint accuracy at a range of 62 kilometers
= = =
pinpoint? very vague
62 km = about 39 miles. Dang, that IS a long ways.
The 16 inch naval guns of WWII battleships had just about the same accuracy as a good rifle. About a minute of angle which is pretty good.
I assume we can do much better now.
Tanks were used extensively in the W invasion of Iraq. Arty - not so much.
“I wonder what accuracy is at that range with so many variables on that length/arc of a flight path. Some serious number crunching in there.”
*
It’s not a dumb projectile. It’s basically a smart bomb but instead of dropped from a plane it’s shot out of an arty tube.
With women in artillery units, I’m sure there will be no problem loading the heavy shells, fixing the tracks when they break, doing all the dirty, heavy tasks required in a weapon like this..........
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