Self-propelled artillery has many advantages over towed artillery. These include better tactical mobility, increased crew protection, onboard ammunition and the ability to automate all firing functions
At the same time, automation, one way or another, contributes to an increase in the return on the other three components. By integrating inertial navigation technology and GPS (Global Positioning System), the platform receives accurate information about its location and direction of movement at any time. This information is directly and instantly sent to the computerized fire control system, thereby satisfying one of the three mandatory conditions for conducting high-precision indirect fire - the exact location of the firing gun. This, combined with the mobility of the self-propelled artillery unit (ACS), allows you to receive a fire call while moving, then quickly stop and complete a firing mission in a few seconds. Since the self-propelled guns can withdraw from the position immediately after the completion of the firing mission, it will be very difficult for the enemy to detect the location using the radar for determining the firing positions, which determines the position of the gun by the outgoing projectile. Thus, the survivability of the ACS is increased. The ammunition load on board and the power supply source make it possible to equip the ACS with an automated loading system. This further increases the reaction rate while increasing the rate of fire. The ability to deliver projectiles in less time between each shot increases their effectiveness. Several shells covering the enemy will inflict great losses and destruction, since the opponent has less time to take cover, disperse or leave the strike zone. All these tactical advantages of self-propelled artillery are quite obvious and such capabilities are more difficult (if not impossible) to achieve in towed artillery.
For these reasons, in recent years, much attention has been paid to the development and procurement of self-propelled artillery systems for the ground forces. This is especially true for armies where ground forces are paramount. ACS can also compensate for the numerical disadvantage to some extent, since fewer guns with the aforementioned capabilities can carry out fire support tasks that were previously performed by larger forces. The growth in the number of programs for the development and improvement of self-propelled guns based on wheeled trucks contributed to the fact that they began to displace towed systems from traditional areas of application, for example, supporting expeditionary, airborne and light combat forces. The reason is that the guns installed on trucks are lighter, they are easier to transport by air compared to traditional tracked self-propelled guns, they have acceptable driving performance, allowing you to quickly move, take and leave firing positions, and with all this, nothing prevents integration into there are many useful technologies. These innovative advantages are forcing some countries to redesign towed systems for truck chassis. In general, many new programs for the procurement, modernization and improvement of self-propelled artillery are being implemented today.
Caterpillars while on the move
Tracked self-propelled guns still remain the main means of providing mobile support with fire from closed positions in most of the world's army. As a result, much attention has been paid to modernizing and upgrading existing systems. BAE System's M109 Paladin howitzers are just one typical example. The M109 howitzer and its variants, including local projects based on it, are in service with almost forty armies. Although the development of this platform dates back to the 60s of the last century, it is still subject to modernization, refinement and integration of new technologies. Deepak Bazar, program manager for Bradley BMP and artillery weapons at BAE Systems, shared the latest information on the M109 PIM (Paladin Integrated Management) program, the implementation of which will increase the mobility, reliability and performance of the M109 howitzers of the American army and their M992 FAASV ammunition transport vehicles (Field Artillery Ammunition Support Vehicle). He explained that "although much attention is paid to the modernization of the chassis and power unit, its implementation is an indispensable prerequisite for the implementation in the future of any increase in firepower, for example, due to a gun with increased range." The platform in the final configuration M109A7, which will have increased power and improved suspension taken from the tracked infantry fighting vehicle M2 Bradley, as well as electric turret drives, will replace all howitzers in service with the army. The M109A7 howitzers of the initial batch are currently undergoing operational tests, and full-scale serial production is expected in the coming months.
Other operators of tracked self-propelled guns pay special attention to increasing the range of the system, improving the prompt response to fire calls and reducing the number of crews by increasing the level of automation.
Many companies are increasing the range of their products by replacing 39 caliber guns with 47, 49 or even 52 caliber barrels. Krauss-Mafei Wegmann (KMW) claims that the range of the new PzH-2000 ACS has been increased to 40 km due to the 52 caliber cannon, while the automatic loading system has increased the rate of fire to 10 rounds per minute and reduced the crew size from four to two. human. The PzH-2000 self-propelled howitzer makes the most of modern technologies to improve the system's capabilities and its efficiency. In addition to the 52 caliber cannon and automatic loading, the integrated digital fire control, navigation and guidance systems provide an excellent rate of fire of 3 rounds in 9 seconds and greater accuracy, including firing in MRSI (Multiple Round Simultaneous Impact; or Flurry of Fire mode) firing mode when several shells fired from one gun at different angles simultaneously reach the target). Using its experience in the development of the PzH-2000 howitzer, KMW also developed the AGM (Artillery Gun Module) artillery module. This lighter and cheaper gun mount is remotely controlled and fully automated. It can be mounted on a variety of tracked and wheeled chassis. For example, the AGM module was installed by General Dynamics on the tracked BMP ASCOD, after which the platform received the designation Donar.
The Polish army is making significant efforts to upgrade its towed artillery. At present, the KRAB ACS is entering service, which includes a 155-mm / 52 cal tower from the British AS90 Braveheart howitzer with Polish fire control equipment. The tower is installed on the K-9 tracked chassis manufactured by the Korean company Samsung Techwin. KRAB with an automatic loading system has a maximum range of 30 km. It is planned to deploy a total of 120 systems in the Polish army.
We put on the truck
According to Benjamin Gaultier, lead project engineer for the CAESAR self-propelled howitzer at Nexter, “The reasons for creating a howitzer on a truck chassis are to obtain a less expensive, simpler and lighter, and therefore more suitable for airlifting artillery system while maintaining tactical mobility and speed of return fire”. The successful deployment of the CAESAR howitzer in Mali and Afghanistan has shown that this can be achieved. To some extent, thanks to this, a number of other armies and companies took notice and demonstrated their solutions for installing howitzers on truck chassis. The Thai army, operating six CAESAR systems, has signed an agreement for the local production of a 155-mm self-propelled gun, which is a three-axle Tatra truck with an installed artillery unit from Elbit Systems. Six systems have already been deployed in the army, and another twelve have been ordered. The Thai Marine Corps is currently considering purchasing this system to replace its towed howitzers.
The attractiveness and practicality of the vehicle chassis solution is further enhanced by a number of industry initiatives to develop such systems. In May 2016, the Egyptian Ministry of Defense announced the deployment of 122-mm D-30 and 130-mm M-46 howitzers, mounted on the chassis of an American truck, among the troops. Like many other models, they are equipped with hydraulic stabilizers. The Egyptian company Abu Zaabal Engineering Industries carried out all the necessary improvements and modifications within the framework of this project. Most recently, the Turkish company Aselsan presented its 155th KMO system on a six-wheeled chassis. Some of the KMO systems are taken from the MKEK Panter towed howitzer, developed by the company in the 90s. The new ACS integrates not only loading and guidance systems, but also a digital fire control system from Aselsan, connected to an inertial navigation system. It is clear that the company is interested in fulfilling the future requirements of the Turkish army, which are currently in the process of being negotiated.
Although the vast majority of self-propelled systems based on truck chassis have a caliber of 155 mm, one cannot fail to note the efforts aimed at creating 105 mm self-propelled howitzers. For example, in 2017, the South Korean company Samsung Techwin began delivering EVO-105 self-propelled howitzers to its country's army. When developing the EVO-105, the barrel assembly, the recoil mechanisms and the breech of the M-101 towed howitzer were used. These subsystems are installed on the modified three-axle Kia KM-500 truck. Due to the use of existing stocks of M-101 howitzers and tactical trucks already in operation, the manufacturing cost is minimized, this also applies to training and logistics. In addition, the design of the EVO-105 system (video below) allows you to fire and leave position four times faster than towed guns. The South Korean army has a potential need for 800 such systems.
Hybrid artillery
The concept of a modular artillery system in a "functionally complete package" is gaining more and more popularity and is becoming one of the directions for the development of artillery. Being a fully integrated and largely autonomous design, such an artillery system can be installed on any suitable platform, which provides certain advantages. The cannon, fire control system, guidance, loading and ammunition are integrated into the turret as a closed system. This approach provides flexibility, allowing the operator to use any self-propelled chassis of the appropriate payload capacity that best suits his needs, be it wheeled or tracked. This simplifies system integration, thus significantly lowering labor and deployment costs. As already mentioned, the AGM developed by KMW applies this principle, since this module can be installed on chassis ranging from a main battle tank to an 8x8 armored vehicle.
KMW has also prepared an AGM variant that can be transported by truck and then unloaded and deployed on the ground as an autonomous firing unit. In particular, this configuration is well suited for protecting operational bases and providing fire support in local hostilities. Being autonomous and largely automated, the module requires a minimum number of crews and a minimum amount of maintenance compared to a conventional artillery system. In addition, it can be easily delivered to and installed on the site. The adaptability of the AGM is perfectly demonstrated by the MONARC variant configured for installation on warships.
In close cooperation with several potential customers, including the UAE Navy, the Finnish company Patria has developed a container version of its 120mm NEMO mortar tower and presented it at IDEX. “We started working on this system over 10 years ago and even received a patent for it. This concept is currently in line with customer needs,”said Vice President of Armaments at Patria.
The Patria NEMO container is a standard 20x8x8 foot container that houses a 120mm NEMO mortar, about 100 rounds, an air conditioning system, a power supply, a crew of three and two loaders. The container can be transported by truck or ship to any location and, if necessary, fire can be opened from these platforms. This is a very useful means of providing protection for forward bases or coastal defenses.
The 120-mm smooth-bore mortar can fire a variety of ammunition, including high-explosive fragmentation, smoke and lighting, at a maximum range of 10 km. The turret rotates 360 °, vertical guidance angles are -3 / + 85 °. The 120mm NEMO mortar also has very useful direct fire capabilities. The rate of fire, including in the "Flurry of fire" mode, is 7 rounds per minute. If necessary, the NEMO container can be equipped with a system of protection against weapons of mass destruction and bullet protection. In the second case, it can be ceramic tiles or steel plates with a thickness of 8-10 mm, but then the mass of the system increases by about three tons.
For its new role, the standard ISO container can be reinforced with an additional support frame between the outer and inner skin to absorb rollback forces. When transporting a 120 mm NEMO mortar, it is not visible behind a special transport cover. When deployed for firing, the tower rotates 180 ° so that the muzzle is located outside the edge of the container in order to avoid unnecessary loads on the container when fired. The container itself is manufactured by Nokian Metallirakenne, and Patria installs a NEMO mortar, calculation workstations with computers, controls, cables and seats in it.
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Trends
The general trend in the development of self-propelled artillery is to increase its combat effectiveness while reducing the number of crews required to service the system. This is facilitated by the combination of automation systems for handling and loading ammunition and gun guidance with integrated navigation / positioning systems and computerized fire control systems. This solution allows you to remove the crew from the gun and place it in the hull or cockpit. The same technologies allow, after stopping, for a few seconds to open fire, which gives a significant reduction in the response time to a fire call without reducing accuracy. In addition, these capabilities contribute to increasing the survivability of artillery systems due to faster position changes. An additional operational advantage of these new integrated capabilities is that fewer and fewer firepower is required to perform the same fire missions.
The Swedish army goes further with its Archer artillery complex developed by BAE Systems. This "system" is positioned as a fully automatic 155-mm cannon, to which an ammunition resupply vehicle and a support vehicle are nominally attached. All of these vehicles are based on one modified Volvo A30D articulated three-axle truck. This made it possible to obtain a self-sufficient firing unit that can move and fire to some extent independently, which maximizes tactical flexibility and the ability to adapt to rapidly changing situations.
This shift to a more distributed use of firepower, combined with bursting of one or two guns (eg the German army operates its PzH-2000 howitzers in pairs) firing multiple rounds in rapid succession, forces developers to pay attention to ammunition replenishment. For example, back in 1982, the howitzers of the M109 family of the American army received their own M992A2 FAASV (Field Artillery Ammunition Supply Vehicle) ammunition delivery vehicles, carrying 92 shells (in the updated version, they are known as the M992AZ CAT). However, the shells are manually transferred to the howitzer. This is normal for traditional battery operation, but less efficient if the focus is on the “shoot and drive” principle, plus the hard physical work requires human resources. The South Korean company Hanwha Techwin produces the M992A2 ammunition delivery vehicle under license under the designation K-10; it has automated the ammunition handling functions, and also increased the number of shells to 104. The machine, modified by the Koreans, with the help of a mechanical system, can transfer up to 12 rounds per minute to the self-propelled 155-mm howitzer K-9. The work is carried out under the cover of armor, even in the dark and bad weather, while the movement of each shot is taken into account and tracked. The Turkish company Aselsan has also developed an ammunition replenishment vehicle for its FIRTINA self-propelled guns. The problem of ensuring the availability of the necessary stock of ammunition in combat conditions has always existed, but, most likely, it will only get worse with the growth of the mobility of combat operations with a greater dispersion of forces and means.
The tactical advantage afforded by the ability to move its artillery quickly is of paramount importance to most armies. Towed guns gave such an advantage when the emphasis was primarily on operational deployment, especially with transport aviation. However, the increasingly successful introduction of howitzers based on wheeled chassis of trucks, for example, CAESAR, may change this. As for tracked platforms, many of them still have advantages in terms of crew protection and the duration of the fire mission associated with automatic or mechanized loading. Thanks to technological progress and industry efforts aimed at improving self-propelled artillery systems, in the near future, we can expect that military science will be replenished with new tactical drawings that the god of war, Artillery, will bring on its tracks and wheels.
