Quote:
Originally posted by chris vickery
Here's a question for our arty types. I was just reading an article in an industrial magazine regarding a new 155mm howitzer purchased by the Canadian Forces. It carries a designation of M77 and we ordered 6 of them. From what the article said, they are an American product, the USMC ordering several hundred and I guess we either tagged along or have bought some for trials???
The jist of the article was that they are made of a high percentage of titanium and aluminum to make them strong yet lightweight. Any insights???
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Chris et al...for a flip-side opinion about the 777s, check out Vol 12, Issue 12 of Esprit de Corps, p.18...
"Several years ago Defence Department bureaucrats in the policy office determined there was no longer a place for heavy artillery on the modern battlefield, so Canada scrapped all of its existing self-propelled M109 155mm howitzers. To replace them, the army invested in some light 105mm towed howitzers capable of being moved about the battlefield by heavy-lift helicopters (which we don't have) [further side bar...we sold our heavy hook assets to the Dutch who are using them to fine advantage, thank you very much]. However, the recent guerilla warfare experience of coalition troops operating in Afghanistan and the Iraq war have shown the necessity to employ precision-guided munitions in order to minimize collateral damage and maximize effectiveness. Since no one bothered to develop a precision-guided 105mm shell, Canadian planners had to scramble to fill this niche. Their solution is to "borrow" the six M777 howitzers from the Marines-light towed guns capable of being moved about the battlefield by heavy lift helicopters (which, er, we don't have).
In the meantime, the policy and procurement bureaucrats have begun a competition to see which cannons will fulfill our artillery's long-term requirements. With the six 777s entering temporary service with the Canadians, their manufacturer-BAE Systems-figures that it has a leg up on its nearest competitor. However, a close comparison of the Giat-Caesar howitzer system shows that the M777 comes up short in some key categories. For instance, the Caesar can unleash two shells in just eight seconds, while the M777 requires 30 seconds to perform the same feat. The time required for a battery of Caesar guns to set up and fire its first round is approximately one minute, while a M777 detachment would need closer to four minutes. (Note: This is despite the fact that the Caesar requires just five gunners, while the M777 needs eight personnel.)
As for considered mobility, the Caesar has its own integrated truck and is therefore self-propelled as opposed to the towed M777s, which require separate tractors. Despite this, the Caesar unit can be moved in six separate C-130 loads, while the M777 needs up to nine planeloads to deploy."