Mortars big and small

[buglerbilly]

US Army Wants 120mm Guided Mortars for the Front Lines

29-Apr-2010 18:06 EDT


ATK’s PGM

The US Army is pushing to get precision mortars developed and deployed to the field in Afghanistan as soon as possible. Mortars are lighter and can be towed by a HMMWV or MRAP, or carried and fired from inside M113 or Stryker APCs, making them easier to deploy than heavier cannon artillery.

When indirect fire support is needed against enemies who are dug in along mountain ridgelines and other high positions, or in an urban area where which building you hit matters a great deal, getting the job done requires precision artillery. That capability has already come to MLRS rockets (M30/31 GMLRS, ATACMS), and 155mm artillery shells (Excalibur), and has been deployed to great effect on the front lines by American forces and their allies. Now it is coming to the USA’s 120mm mortars as well.


M120 in Afghanistan

The US army has been experimenting with guided mortar development efforts since the 1980s, but the technologies required have only recently become small enough and reliable enough for use. An effort to field a laser-guided mortar began in earnest in 2004, but eventually the Army decided to change its guidance focus.

The Army’s Operational Needs Statement from Afghanistan specifies a GPS-guided 120mm mortar, with a circular error probable (CEP) of 16.4 feet or less and a 4.3 mile range, said Maj. Jeffrey Hilt, the APMI program lead for the Army, in an interview with Greg Grant of DoD Buzz. The mortar must also be compatible with existing fire control systems, such as the Lightweight Hand-held Mortar Ballistic Computer, be compatible with Soltam’s M120/M121 fin-stabilized smoothbore system, and have the same multi-option fuze as the current M734A1 fuze.

Maj. Hilt told DoD Buzz that GPS guidance is preferable to laser guidance because insurgents in Afghanistan frequently duck down behind ridges and rock outcroppings; laser guidance would require a laser marker almost on top of them, buts a soldier on the ground can accurately target a GPS round against an enemy taking cover behind obstacles, or in dead ground.

Three companies were competing to develop a 120mm precision mortar compatible with the M120 system under the Accelerated Precision Mortar Initiative (APMI): Raytheon, General Dynamics, and Alliant Techsystems (ATK). The 3 companies tested GPS guided versions of the precision mortar in May 2009. The first phase would conclude with flight tests and a competitive “shoot off” amongst industry designs in January 2010, after which the Army would select the winning design.

In April 2010, ATK’s design won.

ATK explains that its Mortar Guidance Kit converts mortar bodies into precision mortar rounds by replacing standard fuzes in the mortar’s fuze well with a guidance kit that includes fins, guidance, and fuze. The design owes much to the firm’s Precision Guidance Kit for 155mm artillery. While PGK lost out to Raytheon’s Excalibur in the USA, Alliant Techsystems also has 105mm offerings, and MGK has more than 90% commonality with PGK. ATK’s MGK has demonstrated its ability to accurately and reliably guide a 120mm mortar to within 10 meter CEP at ranges in excess of 6,500 meters.

Their offering will join a growing list of global competitors, including the Russian Gran system, and Raytheon/ Israeli Military Industries’ 120GM DAGGER.

Edited article from DiD...........

[buglerbilly]

Elbit Systems of America Announces Successful Installation and Transition of First Fire Control Systems to the U.S. Army

19:34 GMT, May 25, 2010 FORT WORTH, TEXAS



Elbit Systems of America, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ and TASE:ESLT) announced the successful installation and handoff of the first production units of the M150/M151 Mortar Fire Control System – Dismounted (MFCS-D) to the U.S. Army.

The initial installations of the MFCS-D kits were performed in April 2010 at the 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT), 25th Infantry Division. These installation kits consist of ruggedized computers, battery power supplies, displays, navigation and pointing hardware, and associated mounting hardware and cabling that are installed with the M326 Mortar Stowage Kit in the M1101 light tactical trailer. The M150/M151 MFCS-D system will greatly enhance the accuracy of the M120A1 120mm Towed Mortar System; enable the digital coordination of multiple systems and Fire Support network; and significantly reduce the time required to emplace, fire and displace the weapon. This not only increases the accuracy of the weapon in the battlefield, but also sharply reduces the amount of time in which our forces are potentially exposed to return enemy fire.

Elbit Systems of America was awarded a systems integration contract in April 2009 to take an innovative U.S. Army designed fire control system for the 120mm towed mortar and manufacture, procure and integrate all of the components into a complete kit and install these kits at both CONUS and OCONUS locations. Since contract award, Elbit Systems of America has worked closely with representatives of the U.S. Army Product Manager for Mortar Systems and RDECOM-ARDEC located at Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey to refine the final system design for production and delivery.

Elbit Systems of America, President and Chief Executive Officer, Raanan Horowitz commented, “The first delivery and installation of the mortar fire control system was accomplished on-time and on-budget through a collaborative effort with our U.S. Army customer. We are pleased to be able to play a key role in transitioning this cutting edge technology to the soldiers in the field.”

[buglerbilly]

News from SA via Defence Web...........

Special Forces want Scorpion's sting

Written by Leon Engelbrecht

Tuesday, 28 September 2010 06:17



The South African Special Forces will shortly receive a Thales Defence Systems (TDS) Scorpion automated weapons platform for testing and evaluation. At present just one system has been ordered but officials say they are “waiting for a production order soon.” The system has also already been demonstrated in the Middle East.

The Scorpion is a self-contained direct and indirect automated mortar and rocket fire control system mounted on a palletised platform that can be fired from the back of a vehicle in less than 15 seconds from stopping versus 15 minutes with a conventional system. Company literature available at the Africa Aerospace & Defence exhibition in Cape Town last week noted this was made possible through “ballistic calculations,orientation methods and recoil absorbsion.” The system can fit a range of 60mm, 81mm and 82mm mortar tubes as well as rocket systems such as the Chinese 12-barrel Type 63 107mm multiple rocket launcher system.

The system consists of a motorised mortar and rocket platform providing automated tube laying and correction twinned with an observer sighting system. This includes an angle measurement pedestal to sense the position and attitude of the vehicle. Position sensing is by inertial means supplemented by a global positioning system and distance information.

The pedestal also carries an observer payload that includes the Thales Sophie binocular/thermal imager with laser rangefinder, camera, dismountable digital magnetic compass and a The system can also share target and situational data between observer and launcher vehicles via a datalink or radio or receive such data from “other sources”.

“By combining precision [knowledge of one's] own position with good target data, the fire solution and mortar laying data can easily be computed. The computed values are then used to control the motorised platform to lay the mortar/rocket tubes accurately. This can be done without relying on external (traditional) survey methods. The system can effective shoot-and-shift during an engagement and attack again from a different position without the need to survey the new position. The fire solution and mortar laying data updates automatically in the background.”

[buglerbilly]

Mortar System Goes to War, Fires First Combat Rounds

(Source: US Marine Corps; issued Feb. 14, 2011)


An Expeditionary Fire Support System (EFSS) towed by a MRAP All-Terrain Vehicle. This is the first time that EFSS has been employed in Afghanistan. (USMC photo)

COMBAT OUTPOST OUELLETTE, Afghanistan --- U.S. Marines fired the first rounds using the Expeditionary Fire Support System during combat operations, Jan. 29. In support of the International Security Assistance Force, Marines with F Battery, Battalion Landing Team 3/8, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Regimental Combat Team 2, fired the new 120mm mortar system from Combat Outpost Ouellette, Helmand province, Afghanistan.

"I've got a good group of guys," said Sgt. Jason McIlwain, section chief with F Battery who was part of the team that fired the first round. The four-man team also included Cpl. Donald Schaeffer, recorder with Gun 2, Cpl. Kent Smith, gunner with Gun 2, and Lance Cpl. Gavin King, the number 1 man.

The first rounds fired from EFSS in support of combat operations was a M1105 illumination projectile, used to light an area occupied by snipers attached to Company I, BLT 3/8. Illumination denies any enemy concealment in darkness and deters nighttime emplacement of improvised explosive devices.

"We stood this battery up in March of 2009," said Gunnery Sgt. Jeremey Black, battery gunnery sergeant. Black explained that his Marines have refined their skills in the time since. "Once they get the mission on the gunline, they can fire six rounds a minute; one about every 10 or 15 seconds."

EFSS is the third leg in a triad of land-based fire support for expeditionary operations that also includes the lightweight 155mm Howitzer and high mobility artillery rocket system. The highly-mobile EFSS can be towed by ground vehicles or transported by MV-22 Osprey Tiltrotor Aircraft and CH-53E Super Stallion Helicopters, allowing expeditionary Marines with a Marine Air Ground Task Force to quickly establish supporting fires in a variety of situations.

BLT 3/8 deployed to Helmand province to establish and maintain security in support of the International Security Assistance Force. The security the Marines provide will neutralize insurgent networks and support development projects, allowing the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to foster socio-economic development in the area.

"It felt good," said McIlwain. "I'm excited to be part of history, being the first to shoot the EFSS system in combat is a good feeling."

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Marines Finally Fire Their Osprey Mortar

by christian on February 20, 2011



For the first time in combat, the Marine Corps fired a round in anger through the 120mm mortar system dubbed the Expeditionary Fire Support System, or EFSS.

In support of the International Security Assistance Force, Marines with F Battery, Battalion Landing Team 3/8, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Regimental Combat Team 2, fired the new 120mm mortar system from Combat Outpost Ouellette, Helmand province, Afghanistan.

The first rounds fired from EFSS in support of combat operations was a M1105 illumination projectile, used to light an area occupied by snipers attached to Company I, BLT 3/8. Illumination denies any enemy concealment in darkness and deters nighttime emplacement of improvised explosive devices.

I’ve been covering the Marine Corps long enough to remember the genesis of this program back in 2001 when the Corps’ 15th MEU established the first FOB in Afghanistan at Camp Rhino. At the time, and for a long time after that, Marine planner complained that they had no substantial expeditionary heavy artillery. Thus the EFSS was born — a compromise between a 155mm Howitzer and a 60mm mortar.

But then the poobahs took control and tied the future of the EFSS with the then-troubled MV-22, requiring that the mortar system be part of this whole trailer doohicky that attached to little jeep like thing that could all fit in the belly of an MV-22. So the delays began.

Nearly a decade later, the Corps finally has its 120 mortar in Afghanistan — three years before we’re supposed to be out of there. Meanwhile the Army has had a 120 as their primary combat outpost artillery support weapon for years. They’ve had the simple, lightweight M120 since 1991.

Well, better late than never, huh?

Read more: http://kitup.military.com/#ixzz1EZHRSz10

[buglerbilly]

Soldiers to Receive New Precision Mortar Round

(Source: US Army; dated Feb. 23, web-posted Feb. 28, 2011)

ARLINGTON, Va. --- Early next month U.S. Soldiers in Afghanistan will receive a first-of-its kind, GPS-guided 120mm mortar munition that can pinpoint targets at ranges up to 6,300 meters, service officials said.

The program, called Accelerated Precision Mortar Initiative, or APMI, emerged out of a request from the field commander in Afghanistan in Feb. 2009; the precision rounds were recently test-fired at Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz.

"The testing involved a significant amount of firing and safety requirements. The overall reliability of the round is meeting its requirement of greater than 90 percent. The testing, which has been going on since last fall, has gone extremely well," said Bruce Kay, Department of the Army systems coordinator, Mortar Systems. "This provides the commander with immediate response precision indirect- fire capability."

Overall, the Army plans to deliver 5,480 APMI rounds.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Joes Soon to Get Precision 120 Mortar Round

by christian on March 30, 2011



Talk about a game changer…

Picatinny Arsenal announced yesterday it had begun fielding the Accelerated Precision Mortar Initiative 120mm GPS-guided mortar rounds to an infantry BCT in Afghanistan and is set to field mortars to all IBCTs in The Stan within six months.


“APMI is a 120 mm GPS-guided mortar cartridge that provides the infantry commander precision-strike capability, which he has never had before,” said Peter Burke, PEO Ammunition’s Deputy Product Manager, Guided Precision Munitions and Mortar Systems.

The APMI cartridge has a requirement of 10 meters CEP, or Circular Error Probable, but Burke said the program is exceeding this requirement. Ten meters CEP means that if you drew a circle around a target at 10 meters radius, the rounds have to fall inside the circle 50 percent of the time.

Current CEP for 120 mm mortars at their maximum range is 136 meters. Mortars with the most advanced features, such as precision position and pointing systems, can achieve a 76 meter CEP, which still makes APMI more than seven times more accurate than any formerly fielded mortar.

The APMI cartridge has a requirement of 10 meters CEP, or Circular Error Probable, but Burke said the program is exceeding this requirement. Ten meters CEP means that if you drew a circle around a target at 10 meters radius, the rounds have to fall inside the circle 50 percent of the time.

Current CEP for 120 mm mortars at their maximum range is 136 meters. Mortars with the most advanced features, such as precision position and pointing systems, can achieve a 76 meter CEP, which still makes APMI more than seven times more accurate than any formerly fielded mortar.

Anyone reading this blog with experience in The Stan knows how huge a deal this is (at least for Soldiers) since the 120 is the primary indirect fire support asset for the remotest of FOBs. We also know that with extremely restrictive ROEs nowadays — with air assets relegated to “shows of force” for all but the most dire circumstances — even employing the 120 is a tough sell.

But with the GPS guidance kit and a 10 meter CEP, the risk of friendly fire or collateral damage is greatly reduced, making the decision process for employment a little easier. Of all the things the Army has done lately to contribute to Soldier sruvivability in Afghanistan, Kit Up! believes this might be one of the service’s best achievements so far.

Inside the APMI:

■The APMI XM395, cartridge uses a standard M934 high-explosive 120mm projectile body. In the nose, a GPS receiver and computer controlled aerodynamic directional fins keep the round on its programmed trajectory. Folding fins in the tail provide stability.
■APMI also has a multi-functional fuze, which allows the round to be programmed to explode in the air, once it hits a hard surface or after it penetrates inside a target.
■In order for the autonomous flight and fuze control to function properly, operators must input mission and GPS data from a fire control computer into the round using a setting device.

Read more: http://kitup.military.com/#ixzz1I8N2RaKM

[buglerbilly]

Picatinny Fields First Precision-Guided Mortars to Troops in Afghanistan

(Source: U.S Army; issued March 29, 2011)

PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. --- This month, U.S. Soldiers in Afghanistan received 120mm GPS-guided mortar precision capability.

The Program Executive Office for Ammunition fielded Accelerated Precision Mortar Initiative cartridges, or APMI, to one Infantry Brigade Combat Team, or IBCT, earlier this month, and is scheduled to field cartridges to the seven other IBCTs in Afghanistan within six months.

"APMI is a 120mm GPS-guided mortar cartridge that provides the infantry commander precision-strike capability, which he has never had before," said Peter Burke, PEO Ammunition's deputy product manager, Guided Precision Munitions and Mortar Systems.

Mortars are an indirect firing capability used to defeat enemy troops, materiel, bunkers and other infantry-type targets.

"Typically mortars are fired in volleys against an area target because of their inherent inaccuracy, but with APMI, you have the potential to destroy a target with only one or two rounds," Burke said.

The APMI cartridge has a requirement of 10 meters CEP, or Circular Error Probable, but Burke said the program is exceeding this requirement. Ten meters CEP means that if you drew a circle around a target at 10 meters radius, the rounds have to fall inside the circle 50 percent of the time.

Current CEP for 120 mm mortars at their maximum range is 136 meters. Mortars with the most advanced features, such as precision position and pointing systems, can achieve a 76 meter CEP, which still makes APMI seven times more accurate than any formerly fielded mortar.

While APMI will not replace standard 120mm mortars, its accuracy will allow a commander the ability to defeat a target with precision if there is danger of collateral damage, Burke explained.

Insurgents deliberately plan attacks in populated areas in the hope that opposing forces don't want to retaliate and risk accidental harm to civilians or damage to non-military property.

"Sometimes, if the risk of collateral damage is too high, you might not be able to fire (a standard 120mm) at all," Burke said of enemy engagements. "In that case, instead of firing a mortar from a protected position, you would have to send troops in to engage with direct-fire weapons, exposing them to more risk."

But because of APMI's GPS-technology, which provides an accurate, first-round fire-for-effect capability, troops will have opportunities to employ APMI's precision where they previously would not, such as nearer to friendly forces or in urban areas.

Besides reducing risk to the local population and keeping U.S. servicemembers out of harm's way, APMI reduces the logistical burden of ammunition resupply.

A mortar unit typically carries 25 High-Explosive, or HE, rounds with them, Burke said, and they will now carry a mixture of standard and APMI rounds. Instead of firing large quantities of HE rounds, troops can fire one or two APMI and eliminate the target, so their resupply needs should be reduced.

The APMI, Inside and Out

The APMI XM395, cartridge uses a standard M934 high-explosive 120mm projectile body. In the nose, a GPS receiver and computer controlled aerodynamic directional fins keep the round on its programmed trajectory. Folding fins in the tail provide stability.

APMI also has a multi-functional fuse, which allows the round to be programmed to explode in the air, once it hits a hard surface or after it penetrates inside a target.

In order for the autonomous flight and fuse control to function properly, operators must input mission and GPS data from a fire control computer into the round using a setting device.

Earlier PEO Ammunition program investments contributed to APMI's development by providing technological building blocks and by paving inroads, including the 155mm Excalibur round and the Precision Guidance Kit, referred to as PGK. PGK is a low-cost, GPS-guided fuse kit that improves the accuracy of existing 155mm artillery rounds.

The Armament Research Development and Engineering Center, or ARDEC, co-located here, develops advanced fire control systems that help mortar operators improve the speed of their operations and the accuracy of their fires. These include the Lightweight Hand-held Mortar Ballistic Computer and the Dismounted 120mm Mortar Fire Control System, which were modified for the APMI fielding to ensure mortar operations remain streamlined.

"There were many difficult technological hurdles we crossed previously during our development of digital fire control systems requiring interface with smart projectiles that culminated in the APMI," said Patti Alameda competency manager, of ARDEC's Mortar and Common Fire Control Systems Division. "The ability of people to work as a team and integrate all of the sophisticated technology in a way that reduces the burden on the Soldier is really how we achieve this leap forward in capability."

The APMI cartridge is fired from the M120 mortar system, which is compatible with the M326 Mortar Stowage Kit. Also developed at ARDEC, M326 Mortar Stowage Kits are now in full scale production and will be fielded to IBCTs over the next several years.

As of right now, Burke said there is no requirement for precision capability for 81mm and 60mm mortars.

The Army's requirements for larger caliber precision munitions allow technology to be more easily adapted to these larger rounds, he said.

"The 120 gives you a lot more room to work with," Burke said. "To fit all the electronics into smaller cartridges, with today's technology, is not feasible. They started with the biggest size to give us the most room to work with. Plus, you're getting the lethality of a 120, which is leaps and bounds above what a 60mm HE round can do."

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Soldiers Fire 1st Precision-Guided Mortar in Afghanistan


Source / copyright : US Army

Paktika Province, Afghanistan - Soldiers at Forward Operating Base Kushamond March 26 fired a 120mm Precision Guided Mortar Munitions round for the first time in Afghanistan.

Mortarmen from Company C, 1-506th Infantry, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, fired the round which hit within four meters of its target.

"It is exciting to be chosen to field this round ...for the first time; this brigade has the history of being first in the fire support area," said U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class John Kohne, the 4th Brigade Fire Support Operations noncommissioned officer-in-charge, a native of San Diego. "We were the first to fire the Excalibur (precision guided Howitzer round) with our last rendezvous with destiny in our last tour here in 2008; it is humbling that the Army would entrust us with this."

A mortar is an indirect fire weapon system infantrymen at the battalion-level use for immediate fire missions. Normally a mortar fires a "dumb" round - one that does not have an on-board guidance system.

"The 120mm precision guided munitions will allow Task Force Red Currahee to provide even more effective fires with increased lethality," said U.S. Army Lt. Col. David Womack, commander of the 1st Bn., 506th Inf., and a native of Roanoke, Va. "The accuracy of the 120 mm PGMM also reduces the potential risk of any collateral damage, (and) as a commander I have another tool available to fight the enemy."

"A 120 mm mortar is a fairly accurate weapons system (with the dumb round), it is however not as accurate as the Howitzers," said U.S. Army Maj. Gary Pina, brigade fire support coordinator, 4th BCT,101st Airborne Div., and a native of Lawton, Okla. "It was built for immediate fire suppression or support for the infantry battalions."

He said the Howitzers are a brigade-level asset. The 120 mm PGMM mortar round offers a more capable weapon system at the battalion level, said Pina.

"It gives that infantry battalion commander a PGM capability at his disposal, he has the Excalibur to use but that is a brigade asset," said Pina. "But with this 120mm PGM he has that asset at his disposal."

Unlike the regular mortar round, the 120 mm PGMM has a Global Positioning System and can hit a target location within 10 meters or less. This will help mitigate collateral damage and offer greater accuracy and first round fire-for-effect helps to reduce the number of rounds required to successfully defeat high value targets.

"Our Soldiers on the ground have capabilities that were unimaginable when the war on terror started," said Womack. "I am pleased how quickly our Soldiers and NCOs trained and employed the new system which is a tribute to our incredible NCO Corps. It is not lost on our Soldiers that there is nothing our Army cannot accomplish."

Read more: http://www.asdnews.com/news/34689/Soldiers_Fire_1st_Precision-Guided_Mortar_in_Afghanistan.htm#ixzz1IypwW7yq

[buglerbilly]

50M Ammunition Contract for US Marine Corps

(Source: Thales; issued April 15, 2011)

Thales is today announcing the award of a $50M contract from General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems of Saint Petersburg, Florida USA to TDA Armements S.A.S (TDA), a 100% owned subsidiary of Thales S.A, for the supply of 120mm rifled mortar ammunition.

The award is in support of General Dynamics’ contract to supply the US Marine Corps (USMC) with 120 mm rounds for the Expeditionary Fire Support System (EFSS) programme.

The EFSS programme, initially started in 2004, provides the USMC with fire support capable of being deployed from amphibious ships or aircraft such as their CH-53 helicopters and MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft. The EFSS system has recently been deployed to Afghanistan to support US Marine Corps combat operations.

Guy Lefebvre, CEO of TDA said ”This contract award is the result of an outstanding relationship which has been built with General Dynamics to provide the most appropriate solution to the USMC for their EFSS programme. It is a privilege for TDA to have the USMC as an end user and underlines the quality and effectiveness of our 120 mm rifled mortar ammunition”.

Michael S. Wilson, president of General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems said “General Dynamics and TDA have developed a strong and successful partnership. We look forward to continuing our work with them in supporting the USMC Corps’ EFSS program”.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Nice but brief video of the first shoots...............



http://player.theplatform.com/ps/player/pds/GbvL4E_KCd?pid=YcQ3g7ftgVRzq_xlK1Fzv53TdEEEUdCu

[buglerbilly]

Lightweight Mortar Bipod Soon to Hit Afghan Hills

by christian on April 22, 2011

Kit Up! had the chance to speak with Rafael Correa, President of MaTech in Salisbury, MD, yesterday about a hot new piece of kit he’s just shipped off to Aberdeen for testing.

It’s a lightweight mortar bipod that takes advantage of aluminum and titanium to make a super strong, super light bipod that Correa says lops off over 30 pounds in the mortar load.

He’s also got one for the 81mm mortar and is due to ship some test articles to Aberdeen by the end of April. Soldiers should begin seeing these within months…and let me tell you from first hand, these thinks are feather weight…

Thanks to Glenn Anderson for putting together such a good video.......

http://www.military.com/video/forces/active-duty/kit-up-original-video-largest-weight-reduction-ever/914289771001/

Read more: http://kitup.military.com/2011/04/lightweight-mortar-bipod-soon-to-hit-afghan-hills.html#ixzz1KPKtI4A1
Kit Up!

[buglerbilly]

General Dynamics demonstrates tactical RCGM

May 02, 2011

General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics, announced today that it has successfully demonstrated a tactical version of the company's 120mm Roll Control Guided Mortar (RCGM) at Yuma Proving Grounds, Ariz. The testing was conducted under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the US Army Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center (ARDEC), Picatinny Arsenal, N.J.

The 120mm RCGM is a low-cost, guided mortar that provides precision-strike capability using standard M934A1 mortar components, GPS guidance, M734A1 fuze components and patented Roll-Controlled Fix Canard (RCFC) technology.

Live, tactical 120mm RCGM rounds where used in the demonstration and all of the rounds were successfully guided to within 10 meters of their target at ranges of 1,000 to 5,000 meters. The test demonstrated the RCGM capability in height-of-burst, point detonation and delay fuze modes, and demonstrated the rounds' ability to perform at hot, ambient and cold temperatures.

Michael S. Wilson, president of General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems, said, "These tests fully demonstrate the viability of our system with respect to accuracy, fuze reliability and enhanced lethality for the warfighter. By using existing warheads and fuzing, in concert with our innovative low-cost control and guidance system, we can offer a truly affordable precision mortar round for less than $10,000 per unit.

"This demonstration proves that the General Dynamics low-cost guided mortar is a viable competitive alternative which meets the Army's requirements for affordable precision munitions," Wilson said.

Source: General Dynamics

[buglerbilly]

Keshet – the IDF New Automated Mortar

By tamir_eshel on May 9, 2011 11:53 pm



The Cardom mortar system displayed at the Ares stand in LAAD 2011 exhibition in Brazil last month. Two types of mortar bombs provided by the company are also displayed, a standard 120mm bomb and the LG2MK laser guided kit for 120mm mortar bombs. The Cardom is providing the centerpiece of the IDF Keshet self propelled system, as well as the Stryker mortar carrier, employed by the U.S. Army. Photo: Tamir Eshel, defense Update

Precision munitions are used in situations where accurate target coordinates can be obtained, and the type of target can be pinpointed for the attack. Furthermore, the trajectory correction maneuvers and increased drag reduce the effective range of guided munitions below the maximum range of unguided bombs. Therefore, for different combat situations, unguided mortar bombs still offer an advantage, in covering a larger area, deploying smoke or illumination, or use suppressive fire in support of friendly forces. Dramatically accelerating the rate of fire, both first-round and volleys, Elbit Systems has developed an ‘automated version’ of the advanced mortar system known as Cardom, developed by Soltam, one of the recent acquisitions of Elbit Systems.

Cardom provides the baseline weapon-kit for the fire support vehicles of the U.S. Army Stryker Brigades. In the Israeli Army, Cardom was utilized with a new, self-propelled mortar carrier based on the BAE Systems M-113A3 platform. The system, known by its IDF designation ‘Keshet’, has been integrated with a fully automatic mortar, aiming and fire control system, reducing the mortar CEP below 33 meters, while increasing the effective range beyond 7,000 meters.

Associated with advanced fire support and target acquisition systems, both linked to the IDF digital Army system ‘Zayad’ the ‘Keshet’ is now fielded with IDF infantry brigades and will soon deploy with the IDF reserve component. The effectiveness and accuracy of the system was praised by members of the IDF experienced with the system, although the deployment was not bug free, since the association of automated targeting and indirect fire, while dramatically reducing response rate, and increasing hit accuracy, thus enabling mortars to aim closer to the supported troops.

On the far end, reducing safety margins increases the risk of fratricide, due to navigation or orientation errors by the supported unit, or other errors associated with faulty position reporting, as reflected in a fatal fratricide event earlier this year.


The Israeli Keshet 'automated mortar' introduces full and network-centric practices to the battalion fire support teams. Photo: IDFautomation to

Copyright © 2011 Defense Update. All Rights Reserved.

[buglerbilly]

Denel Land Systems' New M6 Integrated Long Range Mortar System Enters Service



Denel Land Systems has introduced a new, innovative and flexible 60mm Long Range Mortar System - the M6 -- into the market. The first production units of the M6 have been delivered to the South African National Defence Force Infantry.

The complete Level 5 product system consists of Long Range Mortar Weapons, with:

-- Weapon Mortar Fire Control Computers (MFCC);
-- Long Range Mortar Bombs;
-- an Observation Post with Laser Range Finder (LRF) coupled to the Observer Mortar Fire Control Computer (MFCC) and;
-- a Mobile Command post (also with a LRF and MFCC).

The Product System further includes Logistics, Technical Support Equipment (Special Tools, Carry harnesses & 1st line spares) and Training Equipment (complete with a Training Simulator).

This development has been based on a handheld Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) with built-in GPS. The system uses a Laser Range Finder (LRF) with a built-in compass to fulfil target-acquisition and fire-adjustment tasks. The bearing accuracy is based on this magnetic compass and magnetic declination is automatically taken into account.

The Observer MFCC, Weapon MFCC and the Mobile Command Post MFCC make use of the same PDA, role selectable, fitted with a serial communication port adapter for external interfaces.

The Mortar Fire Control System enhances reaction time with a high 1st and 2nd shot hit probability. The Command post (CP) is in control of the mission. Missions can however also be controlled by the Observation Post (OP) with Command Post approval. The OP determines target range and sets up a target list. Fire mission permission is granted by the CP and within seconds the target info is automatically converted into mortar sight-settings at the Weapon and MFCC.

The advantages of the new system are: a light weapon; large area coverage; faster into action times; situational awareness; safety boundaries (including own forces); ballistic calculations; co-ordinated illumination; pre-calculated targets; line bombardment; point bombardment; high shot hit probability; logistical requests and navigation.

This new development offers the user full flexibility to select engagement of several targets and to prioritise the targets in different fire missions using different ammunition when applicable. It gives the user the capability to do route planning, deployment planning, target acquisition, target characteristics, safety, text messages and ammunition inventory.



Source : Denel Land Systems

Published on ASDNews: Sep 7, 2011

Read more: http://www.asdnews.com/news/37941/Denel_Land_Systems__New_M6_Integrated_Long_Range_M ortar_System_Enters_Service.htm#ixzz1XGqpyp4L

[buglerbilly]

Elbit Systems to supply Israeli MoD with Cardom Systems

September 19, 2011



See post #14 above for more info on Cardom systems..............

Elbit Systems Ltd., announced today that it was awarded a contract by the Israeli Ministry of Defense (IMOD) in the amount of approximately $40 million to supply Cardom systems to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). Manufactured by Elbit Systems' subsidiary Soltam Systems Ltd., Cardom systems were initially supplied to the IDF in 2007 and are considered among the most advanced of their kind in the world. The systems are to be supplied over a period of four years.

The Cardom systems integrate a 120mm mortar with innovative fire control, navigation, automatic aiming and propulsion systems.

The Cardom mortars are operational by various IDF infantry units, as well as various armies around the world, including the US Army.

Source: Elbit Systems

[buglerbilly]

ATK, General Dynamics team to offer PERM for USMC

October 04, 2011

ATK and General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems have signed a teaming agreement to offer a full-up solution for the United States Marine Corps' requirements for the rifled, 120mm Precision Extended Range Mortar (PERM).

PERM is integral to the USMC's Ship-to-Objective-Maneuver (STOM) contingency operations, which support Marine infantry units with precision, long-range (16 - 20km) mortars fired from the Expeditionary Fire Support System (EFSS) towed-mortar platform.

Under the terms of the teaming agreement, ATK will be the prime contractor to the USMC for the PERM Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) program, providing guidance fuze technology combined with General Dynamics' propulsion and warhead subsystems.

"By combining our proven mortar guidance capability with General Dynamics' propulsion technology and EFSS experience, we stand to offer the Marine Corps a low-risk, capabilities-based solution that will fulfill their requirements in the shortest time possible," said Bruce DeWitt, Vice President and General Manager for ATK's Advanced Weapons division.

The Expeditionary Fire Support System is a light, mobile, and vertically transportable indirect fire support system designed for missions requiring tactical versatility, speed, and close-in fire support. The system is composed of a pair of Prime Mover vehicles, a 120mm M327 mortar weapon, the four-round family of munitions and an ammunition trailer. The EFSS is designed to be internally transportable in the MV-22B Osprey and the CH-53 helicopter and has been in fielded with the Marine Corps since 2009.

Source: ATK

[buglerbilly]

This is the Dinky Toy super-expensive micro-"jeep" originally proposed with EFSS but the ones I've seen images of in Afghanistan are being towed by M-ATV's and similar................NOT sure IF any of the micro-jeeps are actually there?

[buglerbilly]

General Dynamics to bid for USMC PERM

October 07, 2011

General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics, announced today that it will bid on the US Marine Corps' Precision Extended Range Mortar (PERM) program as a prime contractor.

General Dynamics has successfully demonstrated key PERM-enabling technologies, including its 120mm Roll Control Guided Mortar (RCGM) and a 17 km extended-range rocket-assisted mortar. These combined technologies will meet the Marine Corps' requirement for a 16 km extended range GPS guided mortar fired from the M327 weapon system. As the long-time incumbent EFSS ammunition contractor, General Dynamics is uniquely qualified to integrate critical subsystems and guidance technologies for an EFSS PERM solution.

Michael Wilson, president of General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems, said, "Our approach leverages our successful RCGM technology, our expertise in warhead technology and our extended-range rocket-assisted mortar development work. We are confident that we can provide the lowest-risk approach while offering a mature system that is an effective, reliable and truly affordable precision mortar."

The 120mm RCGM is a low-cost guided mortar that employs a standard M934A1 mortar warhead and M734A1 fuze components, and patented Roll-Controlled Fix Canard (RCFC) technology. It uses GPS guidance to provide an effective, truly affordable precision-strike capability. In March 2011, General Dynamics successfully guided 120mm mortar rounds to less than 10 m CEP (a measure of a weapon system's precision) at both minimum and maximum range in test firings at the Yuma Proving Grounds, Arizona. All live test rounds detonated successfully and were demonstrated in proximity, point detonate and delay fuze modes. In October 2009, the company also successfully demonstrated 120mm rocket-assisted mortars fired from the M327 rifled mortar at ranges from 17 to 18 km.

Source: General Dynamics

[buglerbilly]

Monday, October 31, 2011, 10:06 AM

Elbit Systems won contract to supply CARDOM 81 mm autonomous recoil mortar for Spanish Army.

Haifa, Israel, October 31, 2011 – Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ and TASE:ESLT) ("Elbit Systems") announced today that it has won contract to supply mortars to the Spanish Army. The project, valued at $8.5 million, will be implemented over a 12-month period.


Video CARDOM 81mm 120mm autonomous recoil mortar system

The Spanish Army's decision to equip its forces with mortars provided by Elbit Systems was made after a series of successful tests in both Spain and in Israel.

Elbit Systems will be the lead contractor for the project, which will include the installation of CARDOM autonomous recoil 81mm mortars mounted on the back of VAMTAC 4x4 vehicles produced in Spain by UROVESA. The Spanish companies GMV and Spain's General Dynamics Santa Barbara, will also participate in the project.

Bezhalel (Butzi) Machlis, Elbit Systems Land and C4I General Manager, noted: "We are very proud of the Spanish Army's decision to acquire our mortars, following advanced armies like the Israel Defense Forces, the U.S. Army and others." Machlis added:"The selection attests to Elbit Systems' leadership in the field of advanced mortars and we hope, in light of Spain's important role in Europe and within NATO, that other armies will also acquire mortars produced by Elbit Systems."


URO VAMTAC 4x4 light wheeled tactical vehicle

[buglerbilly]

Picatinny provides Soldiers with quicker, safer mortar fire control system

December 1, 2011

By Audra Calloway

Story Highlights

• The M150/M151 Mortar Fire Control System - Dismounted, or MFCS-D, provides mortarmen with increased speed and effectiveness previously only available to the mounted mortar systems using fire control.
• Ensures the light brigades have the same capability as the heavy brigades.
• The dismounted fire control system makes dismounted 120mm mortars easier to fire and keep Soldiers safer.


The dismounted fire control system offers Soldiers various benefits.

PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. (Dec. 1, 2011) -- Picatinny Arsenal recently received kudos from Soldiers by developing six out of 10 2010 Army Greatest Inventions. One of the inventions recognized was a dismounted fire control system that will make dismounted 120mm mortars easier to fire and keep Soldiers safer.

The M150/M151 Mortar Fire Control System - Dismounted, or MFCS-D, provides mortarmen with increased speed and effectiveness previously only available to the mounted mortar systems using fire control.

"We have a similar system that's used on 120mm mounted mortars -- the M1064 Self-Propelled mortar and the Stryker mortar carrier," said Bob Beck, branch chief of mounted mortar systems at the Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center, or ARDEC. "Both are big heavy platforms, and issued to guys in Heavy Brigade Combat Teams or Stryker Brigade Combat Teams. These guys are mobile and on vehicles, not huffing stuff as much."

"The challenge was that when you put a fire control system on a vehicle, weight is not as much of a concern because you've got a vehicle to carry it around with," Beck said. "If you have a dismounted system like the Infantry Brigade Combat Teams have, they don't have the luxury of the vehicle at all times."

"The idea was to develop a fire control system that could be implemented onto the dismounted system to give those guys the same capability of increased survivability, increased accuracy and increased responsiveness," Beck added. "We proved the concept on the heavy platforms, so we needed to tweak it so that it's able to survive not in a vehicle, but out on the ground."

To ensure the light brigades had the same capability as the heavy brigades, ARDEC engineers created the MFCS-D, M150/M151.

QUICKER FIRING TIME

The MFCS-D Improves the Army standard for first mortar round fired from eight minutes (day) and 12 minutes (night) to less than two minutes for both day and night operations.

In addition, it improves Circular Error Probable, or CEP, from 136 meters to 75 meters.

Seventy-five meters CEP means that if you drew a circle around a target at 75 meters radius, the rounds have to fall inside the circle 50 percent of the time.

"With the MFCS-D the standard (firing time) is less than two minutes because there isn't any time spent setting up auxiliary equipment or aiming stakes," Beck said. "Once you've emplaced the new system it already knows where it is and where it's pointing."

The reason is that the MFCS-D has a GPS-aided Inertial Navigation Unit, or INU, so that the system knows where it is at all times.

"The MFCS-D also has a computer that calculates the ballistic computations for Soldiers, which makes the mortar system more accurate by eliminating human error," said Bob Ucci, chief, Weapons and Fire Control Branch; Office of the Product Manager, Guided Precision Munitions and Mortar Systems; PEO Ammunition.

"The Soldier doesn't have to do any calculations," explained Ucci. "They're done automatically by the fire control system because the inertial navigation unit mounted on the gun tube allows for the computer to know the exact orientation of the weapon."

"The INU mounts on the mortar tube to give the accuracy for laying the weapon (pointing and position)," added Ucci.

"So when a fire mission comes in the computer will automatically compute the required elevation and azimuth for the weapon to hit the target, and display it on the gunners display.

"As he cranks the gun he'll see the numbers change real time until the numbers reach zero. That tells him that the gun is laid and he can be confident that the gun is pointing where the solution told you. At that point it's just a matter of dropping the round down the tube.

"You know where you are, where your firing, and with the ballistic fire solutions in the computer you know where the rounds going to land," Ucci said.

In the past, to drop rounds on target, the Fire Direction Center translated coordinates provided by forward observers into mortar tube deflection and elevation adjustments.

Aiming points were marked on a plotting board to generate the azimuth. Paper firing tables listed the elevation needed to achieve the desired range with a given type of ammunition.

To establish azimuth reference lines, mortar crews left the protection of armored vehicles to place aiming stakes 50 and 100 meters away.

Then the crew used ballistic computations to calculate the azimuth and elevation and fire.

"There was a lot of time spent using the optical sights and surveying," Beck said.

STOWAGE KIT ADDS SPEED

The speed of fire is also increased because the MFCS-D is being fielded with the M326 Mortar Stowage Kit. The kit uses a hydraulic lift to remove the entire mortar system from the trailer and place the entire mortar system on the ground in less than a minute.

It can then quickly raise the system back into the trailer.

"The Mortar Stowage Kits help because the weapon doesn't need to be disassembled to be put back on the trailer for transportation," Ucci said.

The MFCS-D components and Mortar Stowage Kit sit inside a M1101 trailer towed with a HMMWV, which is the primary means of moving the equipment.

SPEED CONTRIBUTES TO SAFETY

The increased firing speed of the mortar systems will help keep the mortar crew safer because it allows them the ability to "shoot and scoot."

"We're able to get the mission, stop the vehicle, emplace the mortar on the ground, fire the mission and within a minute you're able to lift the weapon off the ground and leave. You can get rounds down range in a minute and displace the weapon in another minute," Beck said.

This attribute helps the mortar crews to evade incoming counter-fire.

The MFCS-D also eliminates the need to send Soldiers out to set up aiming stakes.

"When you set up aiming stakes you've got to send a guy out in a field and he has to set up survey stakes at 50 and 100 meters out," Beck said.

"So you're sending him out in an open field where he's vulnerable to attack. Because the MFCS-D knows where it is at all times, you don't have to set up aiming stakes because the system already knows where it's aiming."

SOFTWARE REDUNDANCY

For mortar crews, there are many similarities between the mounted and dismounted systems.

"A lot of the software was reused for commonality. You don't necessarily want to start from scratch," Beck said of the MFCS-D development process. "You want them to be as common as possible. There are, however, some specific things that were integrated specifically for the MFCS-D, just because it was a dismounted system and the differences in platforms."

Technology has also advanced since the legacy system was fielded, so it was challenging to integrate the new developments into the MFCS-D system.

For instance, the MFCS-D uses a touch-screen instead of the keyboard found in the mounted systems.

"Everyone before had used a keyboard for the computer, but to maximize display size and minimize the size of the computer you can't really get a full-size keyboard that guys can use with arctic gloves," Beck noted.

"A touch screen was the logical choice. But the common software for the mounted and dismounted systems has to be capable of taking input from either, whether you're using the keyboard or the touch screen."

The MFCS-D is also compatible with the Accelerated Precision Mortar Initiative, or APMI. APMI is the world's first fielded 120mm GPS-guided mortar round, which was fielded in March 2011.

The MFCS-D was first fielded to the 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, in April 2010.

It will eventually be fielded to all U.S. Army Dismounted 120mm Mortar teams.

PEO Ammo is fielding one brigade a month and, to date, the equipment has been fielded to ten IBCTs and four National Guard battalions.

They expect all Infantry Brigade Combat Teams to have been fielded and trained on the equipment by 2016.

[buglerbilly]

BAE Mortar Combines GPS, Canards

Feb. 1, 2012 - 02:02PM

By ANDREW CHUTER



LONDON — BAE Systems is offering land forces a precision 81mm mortar round in a development that has tapped into General Dynamics technology using GPS guidance and canards offering the military an almost direct-hit capability using a standard mortar tube.

Company executives who unveiled the weapon Jan. 31 at the new munitions factory at Washington, in northeast England, said the development gave front-line infantry a portable “one-shot, one-kill” precision weapon at an affordable cost. They wouldn’t be specific about likely costs.

The two land systems rivals have been quietly working for more than 12 months to develop and produce a precision-guided weapon marrying the current U.K. L41 bomb and U.S. M734A1 fuze from a conventional mortar round with GPS guidance and General Dynamics roll-controlled fixed canard technology.

Trials of the roll-controlled weapon at the U.S. Army’s Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona last week saw five of the live bombs travel 3.7 kilometers and strike within two and five meters of the target, BAE representatives said at a briefing in the U.K.

Government representatives from Australia, Britain, Canada, the Netherlands, Sweden and the U.S. Army and Marine Corps witnessed the trials.

BAE followed up the demonstration the next day with tests on several inert bombs fitted with a slightly longer tail unit allowing the weapon to travel four kilometers and striking between four and six meters of the target.

By comparison, a conventional round fired from the same standard 81mm mortar tube supplied by BAE to more than 40 nations around the globe, including the U.S., is capable of traveling about 5.6 kilometers with a circular error of probability of 40 meters.

Kelvyn Grimes, the business development manager at BAE’s Global Combat Systems Munitions business, said if the company started qualification of the weapon midyear, they could be in production by the end of 2013.

The weapon can be programmed within 10 seconds and BAE estimates it could cut the logistics tail by 30 percent because fewer rounds would be needed to complete a mission, he said.

Britain’s Col Chris Sanderson, the Ministry of Defence’s defense munitions deputy team leader at the Defence Equipment and Support Organisation, said DESO was interested in the weapon, but there is no current requirement, and “whether it ends up in our arsenal remains to be seen.”

The new program is a return to the precision-guided mortar market for BAE. The company spent large amounts of its own money in the 1990s developing the Merlin terminally guided 81mm mortar bomb. The program was shut down when it failed to attract any customers.

The General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems business unit has already successfully demonstrated its roll-controlled canard technology on a 120mm mortar using GPS guidance.