Wheeled Self Propelled Artillery is all the rage today. The US Army has even proposed a version of the Stryker to fulfill the mobile howitzer requirement. What follows is what I consider the top 5 vehicles. I'm basing this off mobility, armor protection, IED protection, firepower and fire control systems.
5. 155mm SpGH ZUZANA
The Warsaw Pact are the fathers (at least in modern times) of the wheeled self propelled artillery concept. This vehicle was an original and would prove devastating. Luckily allied forces never faced its firepower.
4. Archer.
This is possibly the most advanced wheeled system in the world. It has an armored cab to protect against small arms fire, shell splinters and IEDs, and a very sophisticated fire control system. Its greatest threat? Artillery dies to pay for the F-35. Don't believe me? Ask the Norwegian Army why the Archer was cancelled for "late delivery" but the F-35, NH-90 still continue. Artillery is and will remain the greatest killer on a modern battlefield.
3. Caesar.
The Caesar is always lauded as the new breed of artillery systems. I remain unimpressed. Quite honestly if BAE married a few M-777's with MTVR's we'd have the same thing only better. Don't get me wrong---the Caesar is good. It has strategic and tactical mobility. It fires the full range of ammunition, it only falls short in protection. Its main claim to fame would be that it mounted a howitzer on a truck instead of towing it and the truck uses standard automotive components reducing operating costs.
2. Donar.
If the USMC wasn't having trouble finding money to take care of basic needs...and if the US govt was running a budget surplus, I'd be screaming for the Marines to at least evaluate the DONAR autonomous howitzer. This is a howitzer that fulfills the dream that was DRAGON FIRE (the original 120mm mortar concept)....only in a bigger package. Click on the link and read more about it yourself. This is a winner that KMW just can't seem to sell.
So what is the best wheeled self propelled artillery system? Drum roll please.....
The G6.
It has a big gun, outstanding mobility...including cross country, fires all modern ammo, was capable of dealing with IEDs before it was cool and is battle proven in some of the most inhospitable terrain found on this planet. The G6 is without a doubt the best wheeled self propelled artillery system on this planet.
5. 155mm SpGH ZUZANA
The Warsaw Pact are the fathers (at least in modern times) of the wheeled self propelled artillery concept. This vehicle was an original and would prove devastating. Luckily allied forces never faced its firepower.
4. Archer.
This is possibly the most advanced wheeled system in the world. It has an armored cab to protect against small arms fire, shell splinters and IEDs, and a very sophisticated fire control system. Its greatest threat? Artillery dies to pay for the F-35. Don't believe me? Ask the Norwegian Army why the Archer was cancelled for "late delivery" but the F-35, NH-90 still continue. Artillery is and will remain the greatest killer on a modern battlefield.
3. Caesar.
The Caesar is always lauded as the new breed of artillery systems. I remain unimpressed. Quite honestly if BAE married a few M-777's with MTVR's we'd have the same thing only better. Don't get me wrong---the Caesar is good. It has strategic and tactical mobility. It fires the full range of ammunition, it only falls short in protection. Its main claim to fame would be that it mounted a howitzer on a truck instead of towing it and the truck uses standard automotive components reducing operating costs.
2. Donar.
If the USMC wasn't having trouble finding money to take care of basic needs...and if the US govt was running a budget surplus, I'd be screaming for the Marines to at least evaluate the DONAR autonomous howitzer. This is a howitzer that fulfills the dream that was DRAGON FIRE (the original 120mm mortar concept)....only in a bigger package. Click on the link and read more about it yourself. This is a winner that KMW just can't seem to sell.
So what is the best wheeled self propelled artillery system? Drum roll please.....
The G6.
It has a big gun, outstanding mobility...including cross country, fires all modern ammo, was capable of dealing with IEDs before it was cool and is battle proven in some of the most inhospitable terrain found on this planet. The G6 is without a doubt the best wheeled self propelled artillery system on this planet.
Sol, you might like this
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzCjU1-1S3s
ummm....not really. in US talk we'd label it just another type of prime mover. the problem with the M777 is that the humvee was suppose to be able to tow it without problem but once again we see larger trucks doing the job...either the MTVR in USMC or the 2.5 truck (don't remember what they call it) in the Army.
DeleteMy personal opinion is that the wheeled self propelled pieces are the best for a "middle weight" force. They have mobility, basic armor (or not buyers choice), better maintenance and operating cost vs. tracked, and they can have the latest and greatest electronics packages without any electronics worries.
ReplyDeleteThere is the M777A2 Portee http://defense-update.com/20050801_portee.html it never went anywhere but there is your M777A2 mounted on a truck.
Talibans and other bandit groups receive some warm 152mm hospitality from Polish DANA's in Afganistan. DANA is an older sister of ZUZANA, five of them support coalition forces in Ghazni Province.
ReplyDeleteSolomon, the Norwegians decided that their current systems were good until 2020, and that the Archer didn't meet their requirements back in JUNE.
ReplyDeletehttp://translate.google.com/translate?sl=no&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=no&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.regjeringen.no%2Fen%2Fdep%2Ffd%2Fpress-centre%2FPress-releases%2F2013%2Fnorge-avslutter-kontrakten-om-artilleris.html%3Fid%3D747473
besides, Norway has enough cash to buy 500 F-35s, and hundreds of Archers if it wanted. They have loads of oil money.
South African G6 is not the only platform in your list that's "combat proven". Archer was predominantly used during the Kargil "excursion", to much effect, by the Indian armed forces.
ReplyDeleteArcher didn't exist in the Kargil excursion, just the Bofors cannon.
DeleteIf you need to deploy urgently a wheeled armored brigade like in Mali, you need a piece of artillery light enough to be transported by plane like the rest of the brigade and fast and light to run at the same speed and for the same routes and bridges as the rest of the team. France did an excellent job in Mali with ther 14Tn Caesars and Sagales this year
ReplyDeletewww.youtube.com/watch?v=ap4_yFqN2PI&feature=youtube_gdata_player
it has to be about more than COIN or low intensity combat. if wheeled self propelled guns are to be taken seriously then they need to be able to deal with the possibility of counter battery fire. the Caesar fails badly in that regard. its easy to fight primitives that don't have artillery. show me what the system can do against a peer competitor.
DeleteIf you receive 155mm artillery shells doesn't matter if you are in a tank, you are done. The strength of Caesar is it's agility, interconectivity and easy deployment by air sea or land. It can send 6 rounds per minute and run after the shells arrive to the target. It's the same debate between middle weight wheeled brigades and heavy brigades. I think Caesar is a post cold war artillery system that goes at the same pace as the hundred of thousands of light armored vehicles deployed all over the world today, specially Afganistan and Africa.
ReplyDeleteyou don't know that. we don't know if the Caesar can keep up with an advance or not. we do know that towed artillery caught hell keeping up with the mechanized force on the march to baghdad. we do know that wheeled vehicles had trouble keeping up with tracked Bradley's and Abrams....what we think is that we've developed wheeled vehicles that have solved the mobility problem.
Deletei'm not convinced but i'll give it a chance.
In 2002 the Netherlands decided against the G6, AS90 and M109A6 Paladin and did choose the PzH2000. The tracked PzH2000 just weights 7 tonnes more than the G6. The wheeled G6 is faster on streets but the tracked PzH2000 is faster off-road with 3 m (10 ft) trench passability. The only self propelled artillery suitable for C-130 is wheeled CAESAR. The DONAR tracked on an ASCOD 2 weights 35 t with a total crew of 2 men.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.kmweg.com/home/artillery/autonoumus-howitzer/donar/video.html
Here a light (< 5 t) but expensive kind of dragon fire:
http://www.army-guide.com/eng/product1848.html
Why wheels?
why wheels? because its a type of mechanized artillery. try doing a best self propelled artillery list and mix tracks with wheels. its too broad. you have to break this stuff down by some type of metric.
Deletefor that matter try this for size. artillery. what does that include? towed, tracked, wheeled, cannon, rocket, air defense, air defense guns, air defense missiles, conventional, nuclear
For me the question is what kind of unit the artillery is going to accompany. For tanks heavily armored tracked artillery would be appropriate. For a Stryker brigade wheeled artillery could stick together with the Stryker in the mud. For sandy beaches or snow: tracks.
DeleteThe modern wheeled APC started with Swiss MOWAG- Piranha. No Swiss vehicle exceeds 4 tonnes per axel. Switzerland has roads that could bear such loads even to the smallest alp.
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOWAG_Piranha_4x4_IB
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOWAG_Piranha_6x6_IB
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sch%C3%BCtzenpanzer_93
These Swiss vehicles are built for roads a normal tractor could use. The problem now is General Dynamics sells heavier vehicles for operations in countries where the standard highways are worse than a Swiss cart track.
The G6 may work on dry South African terrain with more than 15 tonnes per axle.
If US Military ever decides to go with a wheeled Triple 7, I would like to see a longer 52 cal. barrel gun.
ReplyDeleteUS artillery systems are pathetic using 39 cal. cannon. Just about everybodyelse out guns us now days. The Chinese Type05 155 SPH sports a monster 56 cal gun. It claims up to 100 km(!) range with rocket assisted GPS projectile. Paladin is a piece of junk. We should have never abandon Crusader
I think the M777 portee is the best because if we ever get into the wheeled arty business that's what we'll get. As for counter battery I'd put a lot more stock in jets and HIMARS than cannon based artys. I do like the 155 mm's range over the 105 mm though for the overlapping over watches it can provide without needing tons of cannons and cannon movements to get it.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it´s a little bit off topic but I wanted to shared with you. I also speak french but I didn´t check if the translation is correct, but I think is the best and most extense video about the French operation in Mali.
ReplyDeleteThere is an small reference to the Caesar.It´s very interesting how fast the elite forces and the French and African soldiers react to save Mali.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAFnuVGYNcY