GameTalk - An Otherwise Vulgar Brawl

Even before the advent of high-explosives, artillery was one of the most telling weapons on the battlefield.  Most casualties in WWI were caused by high-explosive, and the very term "shell-shock" refers to the effect that constant bombardment has on spirit of the fighting man.  But do wargames provide an adequate representation of the effect of classic and modern artillery?  How many games turn on the effective (or ineffective) use of artillery?  What are some examples of artillery done well...and not so well?



By: Jack Nastyface

Indian Deal for US-Made Howitzers

The Indians are upgrading their artillery, to the tune of $560 mil.

India has agreed a $560-million deal to buy 145 howitzer guns from BAE Systems of the United States as it upgrades its antiquated military hardware, an official said Saturday.
India is updating its military capabilities with hardware worth tens of billions of dollars in the face of long-standing tensions with regional rivals China and Pakistan.
"The contract for the ultra-light howitzers was awarded on Friday to BAE Systems Inc" of the United States, a unit of Britain-based BAE Systems Plc, a senior defence ministry official told AFP on condition of anonymity..
The government will spend 30 billion rupees ($560 million) on the field guns, the official said.
The howitzers, with a maximum range of 30 kilometres (17 miles), will be used by the army's mountain artillery divisions along India's high-altitude frontiers.

They're the M777 howitzers.

By: Brant

UN Observers in Syria Welcomed With Artillery Salute

Oh, uh... never mind.

An advance team of U.N. observers was negotiating the ground rules with Syrian authorities Monday for monitoring the country's 5-day-old cease-fire, which appeared to be rapidly unraveling as regime forces pounded the opposition stronghold of Homs with artillery shells and mortars, activists said.
Even though the overall level of violence across Syria has dropped significantly since the truce took effect, government attacks over the weekend raised new doubts about President Bashar Assad's commitment to special envoy Kofi Annan's plan to end 13 months of violence and launch talks on the country's political future.
The advance team of six U.N. monitors arrived in Damascus Sunday night. Annan's spokesman said the team, led by Moroccan Col. Ahmed Himmiche, met Monday with Syrian Foreign Ministry officials to discuss ground rules, including what freedom of movement the observers would have. Ahmad Fawzi said the remaining 25 observers are expected to arrive in the coming days.

By: Brant

Navy Railgun Make Big BOOM! OOGA OOGA

Something about big guns blowing shit up just brings out the caveman in all of us.

The first weapon-scale prototype of a futuristic Navy railgun began undergoing firing tests last week, the next big step toward putting the electromagnetic superweapon on U.S. warships by 2020. The Navy envisions using railguns to destroy enemy ships, defend against enemy missiles, or bombard land targets in support of Marines hitting the beaches.
Newly released video shows the prototype railgun using an electric-powered launcher rather than gunpowder to fire a huge hypersonic bullet in a cloud of flame and smoke. The Office of Naval Research hopes its new test phase — scheduled to last until 2017 — leads to a Navy weapon capable of hurling 40-pound projectiles at speeds of 4,500 mph to 5,600 mph over 50 to 100 miles (7,240 to 9,010 kilometers per hour over 80 to 161 kilometers).

The full-size prototype, made by BAE Systems, "looks like a real gun," said Roger Ellis, program manager for the railgun at the Office of Naval Research, during a media teleconference today (Feb. 28). Previous tests involved clunky laboratory prototypes that would never see action aboard a Navy warship.

Here's the video, courtesy of Military.com




By: Brant

UK In Action: RHA FST

A Fire Support Team from The 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery, radio back to headquarters following an air insertion operation with soldiers from D Company of The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland. They were accompanied by Afghan National Police (ANP) , on an operation re-establishing government control in an area of Helmand province previously under heavy Taleban influence. Operation ZAMARY KARGHA (‘Lion Falcon’ in English) saw soldiers from D Company of The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, and officers from the Afghan National Police win over the local population and drive out insurgents in the area of Hoorzai. This image was a winner for Sgt Rupert Frere RLC in the Army Photographic Competition 2011.

img from UK MoD

By: Widow 6-7

Order Of Battle: US IBCT Howitzer Battery

By: Brant

Norks Lobbing Rounds Again; Southies Shoot Back!

Unlike the exchange fire last year when, y'know, people died, this time the South Koreans shot back .

North Korea test fired artillery shells into waters near a disputed border on Wednesday, provoking a South Korean volley of warning shots, raising tensions between the rivals as they inch toward disarmament talks.
South Korea issued a verbal warning after three shots landed near their tense maritime border at around 1 p.m., and then in a tit-for-tat, the South returned three artillery rounds toward the same area about an hour later.
The South's response came after the government was heavily criticized for failing to react with force last year when North Korea shelled one of its islands, Yeonpyeong, in the same area.

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By: Brant

UK In Action: Royal Horse Artillery

ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) soldiers with 7 Parachute Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery fire their 105mm Light Gun at Taliban positions. The action was in support of patrols from the 3rd Battalion the Parachute Regiment's deploying from FOB Zeebrugge, Kajaki, Afghanistan.

Image: UK MoD

By: Widow 6-7

South Korean Guns Fire For 90 Minutes

More details on the recently completed South Korean live-fire exercise.

South Korea conducted a live-fire drill from Yeonpyeong Island in the Yellow Sea starting at 2:30 p.m. yesterday for about an hour and half, which ended with no apparent retaliation from the North.

The drill was delayed three times from its scheduled start at 11:00 a.m. apparently due to fog that blanketed the area from early yesterday morning.

“Our troops are still on alert for any emergencies that may occur and we are maintaining a status of direct response while observing the movements of the North’s military,” said a Joint Chiefs of Staff official after the drill. “Our military will keep defending the border islands in the northwest.”

According to the official, there were no unusual movements by the North Korean military except for troops on the western shoreline adopting a battle posture.

In the late afternoon, North Korea’s official news service said the drill wasn’t worth reacting to.

[snip...]

The Ministry of National Defense said the troops on Yeonpyeong utilized all the firepower they had, including K9 howitzers, 105-millimeter towed field guns, Vulcan guns and 81 millimeter- and 60 millimeter-mortar guns.

South Korean military officials pointed out that shells fired in exercises usually fall 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) south of the de facto maritime border between the two Koreas.

Yesterday’s exercise employed guns pointed southwest from Yeonpyeong Island toward an area in the sea that measures 40 by 20 kilometers.

The Defense Ministry said the Marine base on the island would fire roughly 2,000 shells leftover from the firing exercise on Nov. 23, which sparked the North’s bombardment of Yeonpyeong. In that drill, the military had planned to fire 3,657 shells with 11 types of guns but was forced to halt when North Korea started firing at the island.

Preparations against a North Korean retaliation or a possible exchange of fire were also made on a large scale.

South Korean military forces put F-15K fighter jets on standby in midair. And the Navy sent 10 ships to the waters around the island, including the 7,600 ton-Aegis class destroyer King Sejong the Great.

By: Shelldrake

Norks Threaten "Unpredictable Self-Defensive Strikes"

Tensions are high on the Korean peninsula today as North Korea threatens retaliation unless planned artillery drills by South Korea are cancelled.

North Korea warned South Korea to stop planned artillery drills on an island the North bombed last month, saying its retaliation for the manoeuvers would be even more intense than its original attack that killed four South Koreans.

South Korea has said it plans one-day, live-fire drills sometime between Saturday and Tuesday on Yeonpyeong Island, depending on weather and other factors.

The North, which claims nearby waters and has said it considers such drills an infringement of its territory, responded to similar firing exercises on Nov. 23 by raining artillery shells on the tiny island, which is home to a fishing community and military bases and is near the Koreas' disputed sea border.

If South Korea goes ahead with more drills on Yeonpyeong Island, "despite our military's prior warnings, second and third unpredictable self-defensive strikes will be made," an unnamed senior North Korean military official said in comments carried by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency.

The retaliation would be made "to safeguard our republic's sacred territorial waters," the North said in the notice that was sent to South Korean military officials Friday. "The intensity and scope of the strike will be more serious than the Nov. 23 [shelling]."

The South has said its planned drills are part of "routine, justified" exercises and has warned that it is prepared to deal with any North Korean attack. Representatives of the American-led United Nations Command that oversees the armistice that ended the Korean War will observe the drills.

By: Shelldrake

GrogNews Daily Headlines

Danger Room takes a quick swim through the latest WikiLeaks data dump as the State Department condemns the release and goes into
goes into full-on damage control. I gotta wonder tho - was an E3 really privy to State Department cables? Really?
Oh yeah, and Israel warned the US that engagement with Iran was pointless. We needed WikiLeaks to tell us that? Maybe they know who offed a nuclear scientist with a car bomb and wounded another.

The Brazilian favela shootout apparently netted a huge drugs haul, and at least one Justin Bieber mural.

A Mexican gang boss has admitted to a whole passel of murders. And isn't it cool that "passel" doesn't set off the spellchecker?

The South Koreans are vowing retaliation against any further attack. Hello? How many further attacks do you need? At least they're starting artillery drills - let's hope it's practicing counter-battery fire - against what Seoul has called an "inhumane crime".

The Japanese are still trying to move the US base off of Okinawa.

And how close have we gotten to capping al Qaeda's #2?

By: Brant

GrogNews Daily Headlines

Even before the shelling starting, South Korea's President Lee was threatening to strike the Nork's missile base. Is this the provocation the Norks were going to claim? South Korea has reported 2 civilian deaths caused by the Nork artillery barrage. The US is sending the USS George Washington to Korean waters. Exactly why are the Norks this crazy? Is it because military leverage is the only leverage they have?

With a lesbian discharged under DADT be reinstated to the Air Force Reserve?

Afghan poll results in. Violent protests erupt. Just like New York City, eh? Oh, wait...

Want to un-nerve the TSA? Wear a kilt to security screening - the traditional way, and then opt out of scanning.

Is the DHS going to do away with color-coded terror alerts? No more Sesame Street levels?

If we start shooting with Iran, we might need the B1 bomber back in action.

Did Al Qaeda just denounce Iran? Really?

By: Brant

Norks Shell South Korean Border Island

The Norks continue to act in an unpredictable and very dangerous manner, this time shelling the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong causing property damage and a number of casualties. Sooner or later someone is going to have to take care of this mad dog!

South Korea says it has returned fire after North Korea fired dozens of artillery shells at one of its border islands, killing two marines. The South's military was placed on its highest non-wartime alert after the shells landed on Yeonpyeong island. There is confusion about what triggered the shelling, with the North's military insisting it did not open fire first. Analysts say this is one of the most serious clashes since the Korean War ended without a peace treaty in 1953.

[snip...]

A spokesman for South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said North Korean shells had started falling in the waters off the island of Yeonpyeong at 1434 local time (0534 GMT). At least 50 landed directly on the island, most hitting a South Korean military base there. The South's military immediately fired back some 80 shells in self-defence, Col Lee Bung-woo added. At least 16 South Korean marines and three civilians were injured in the clashes.

A resident on the island told the AFP news agency that dozens of houses were damaged by the barrage, while television pictures showed plumes of smoke rising above the island.

"Houses and mountains are on fire and people are evacuating. You can't see very well because of plumes of smoke," a witness on the island told YTN television station. "People are frightened to death."

Local government spokesman Yoon Kwan-seok said the shelling lasted for about an hour and then stopped abruptly.

"The whole of Yeonpyeong island was blacked out following the North Korean attacks," he was quoted as saying by the Yonhap news agency. "All of the island's 1,600-odd residents were evacuated to shelters."

The South Korean military has also deployed fighter jets to Yeonpyeong, which lies about 3km (1.8 miles) south of the disputed inter-Korean maritime border and 100km (60 miles) west of the Korean Peninsula. It said the "inhumane" attack on civilian areas violated the 1953 armistice halting the Korean War. Later, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak warned North Korea that his country would "sternly retaliate against any further provocations".

"North Korea's shelling of Yeonpyeong island constitutes a clear armed provocation. Furthermore, its reckless shelling of civilian targets is unpardonable," his office said in a statement.

"North Korean authorities must take responsibility."

But North Korea's supreme military command blamed South Korea for the incident.

"The South Korean enemy, despite our repeated warnings, committed reckless military provocations of firing artillery shells into our maritime territory near Yeonpyeong island beginning 1300 (0400 GMT)," the state-run KCNA news agency quoted it as saying.

The North would "continue to make merciless military attacks with no hesitation if the South Korean enemy dares to invade our sea territory by 0.001mm", it warned.

"It is our military's traditional response to quell provocative actions with a merciless thunderbolt."

It did not say whether North Korea suffered any casualties or damage. A South Korean military official later told the Reuters news agency that it had been conducting regular military drills in the sea off Yeonpyeong before the incident, but that no fire was aimed towards North Korea.

"We were conducting usual military drills and our test shots were aimed toward the west, not the north," he said.

By: Shelldrake

Housing Changes Afoot at Ft Sill, OK

The Army is building a 432-unit housing addition at Ft Sill, OK.

Work has started on a new 432-unit housing addition at Fort Sill that will be named in honor the original Buffalo Soldiers.

Post officials marked the official beginning of the development on Thursday. Some homes in Fort Sill's Artillery Village housing area already have been demolished to make room for Buffalo Soldiers Acres, which will include 30 single-family homes and 402 duplexes.

Why is this relevant, you ask? I used to live in the house at the top left of the circle, from 77-80. That's my childhood you're tearing down!


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By: Brant

GrogNews (Sorta-)Morning Headlines

On the heels of the birthday party massacre in Mexico comes a 15-fatality shootout at a carwash. Seriously folks, there's a war on our southern border and we can't be bothered to secure it?

I was just on the Metro for a good chunk of yesterday, and now we find out that the feds have arrested a man in a plot to bomb the system. Apparently he thought the metro offered a target-rich environment to target US troops.

A boatload of weapons (literally!) was seized in Nigeria, including artillery.

According to one of the UK's top intel officers, nukes pose a wider threat than just terrorism.

By: Brant

BUB: Afternoon Headlines

The DADT tango is back in full swing, as the courts have frozen the elimination of DADT pending a government appeal.

How hard is it to prosecute battlefield crimes? Incredibly hard, according to The New York Times.

Is the Taliban on the run in Afghanistan? They might be, and the HIMARS rockets might have helped.

Running gun battles along the Mexican border continue to make American wonder why we can't close it.

Activity detected near the Nork nuke site is causing analysts to wonder if another 'test' is in the offing, maybe to 'celebrate' the 'young general' and his ascendency?

By: Brant

Bronze Cannon Are Rare Examples Of Gun Founding

The wreck of HMS Victory is proving to be a gold mine for naval historians interested in 18th century gun founding.

The 41 bronze cannon discovered with the HMS Victory shipwreck in the English Channel are "extremely rare examples", an expert has said.

The ship, the predecessor to Lord Nelson's Victory, sank in a storm on 5 October 1744 with all hands.

Charles Trollope, a historical expert, said the ship was built at a "seminal moment in the history of gun founding".

The fate of the ship and the remains of the more than 1,000 crew are the subject of a UK public consultation.

Mr Trollope made the comments after examining the two cannon brought to the surface by Odyssey Marine Exploration, the company that found the wreck in May 2008, to establish the identity of the shipwreck.

He said: "As a result of the normal practice of melting brass guns down for re-use, very few cannon from this pivotal era survive for study.

"[Admiral Sir John] Balchin's Victory is thus a highly unique site in the history of naval ordnance: the only wreck site of a First Rate Royal Navy warship with an intact collection of cannon known in the world."

Mr Trollope said changes in the top naval personnel, naval tactics and the move from casting in brass to iron made the snapshot of history uniquely important.

His research found the Victory was the last British naval vessel fitted with a full complement of purpose-made brass cannon.

The finding of the ship 100km away from Les Casquets rocks meant the blame for the ship's loss could not necessarily be due to an error by the crew or its commander, Admiral Sir John Balchin.

Mr Trollope said putting heavier and longer guns on board the ship would have added up to an additional 18 tonnes of weight above the water-line, which may have caused it to be unbalanced and contributed to its loss after just five months at sea.

By: Shelldrake

UK In Action: Horseplay

A group of horses and soldiers from The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery are pictured enjoying a break from the rigours of ceremonial duties, during a week in Blackpool. 30 horses and 30 gunners were at Penny Farm, a World Horse Welfare Centre, where half of the horses have been turned out to grass with the other half exercising daily on the beach.

Image: UK MoD

By: Widow 6-7

More Iranian Arms Claims

Oh yeah, the test-fired a new missile. Yawn.

Iran said Wednesday that it has successfully test-fired an upgraded version of a short-range surface-to-surface missile.
Defense Minister Gen. Ahmad Vahidi said the third generation of the Fateh-110, which means "conqueror" in Farsi and Arabic, is equipped with a high accuracy guidance control system. He said the solid-fuel missile was developed domestically by Iran's Aerospace Industries Organization and tested Wednesday.
The new version of the missile increases the weapon's range from earlier generations, Vahidi said without providing any further details. Earlier versions of the Fateh-110, which Iran has had for several years, could strike targets up to 120 miles (193 kilometers) away.
"Employing a highly accurate guidance and control system has enabled the missile to hit its targets with great precision," Vahidi was quoted by state TV as saying Wednesday.
Tehran frequently makes announcements about new advances in military technology that cannot be independently verified.

You see - there's the kicker, buried all the way down in paragraph 5; should've been in paragraph 2.

By: Brant

BUB: Israeli Happenings

This evening's BUB looks at recent news in Israel.

Did the blockade runners fire first when the Israelis raided the flotilla?

Israel's top general on Wednesday accused passengers on board a Gaza-bound aid ship of firing the first shots of a deadly confrontation which ended with the deaths of nine Turkish nationals.
Giving sworn testimony to a five-member Israeli commission of inquiry, Gabi Ashkenazi admitted the military establishment had failed to foresee the level of violence which would be directed at the navy commandos landing on the deck of the Mavi Marmara passenger ferry.
"The first shots fired on the Marmara were by the people on board and not by IDF (Israel Defence Forces) soldiers," he told the panel, referring to the Turkish passenger ship leading a six-ship flotilla headed for the Palestinian territory.
"This is unequivocably clear," he said, pointing out that right from the outset, troops had faced live fire, with the second commando who tried to reach the deck being shot in the stomach.
"We had underestimated the intensity of the resistance we would encounter on board the ship," he said, adding that the shooting was "a by-product of (the passengers') decision to attack the soldiers."

+++

Whatever your opinions of Israeli raids into Gaza, the bottom line is this: rocket attacks are down dramatically this year.

The number of rockets and mortars launched at Israel from the Gaza Strip has dramatically reduced after Operation Cast Lead from December 2008-January 2009, during which the IDF acted to prevent Hamas and other terrorist groups from firing rockets at Israel. In 2008 and during Operation Cast Lead, 3,684 projectiles were fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip. That number was reduced to 302 for the entire year of 2009 following the Gaza operation. Despite this sharp reduction, rockets from the Gaza Strip continue to be fired at Israel.

Since the beginning of 2010 until the end of July, 120 projectiles were launched at Israel from the Gaza Strip. The months with the highest incidences of rocket fire this year were March and January, with 29 and 27 rockets and mortars launched at Israel, respectively. The IDF holds the Hamas terrorist organization, as the governing body of the Gaza Strip, solely responsible for these and future rocket attacks emanating from the region and will continue to act in self-defense to prevent future rocket attacks from being carried out.

+++

Was Israel lining up a counterattack into Lebanon following the tree-cutting incident?

French sources told Asharq Alawsat newspaper that the Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak told French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner in a telephone conversation after the deadly clash in southern Lebanon, that Israel was "intending to carry out a major military operation to discipline the Lebanese army and to "retaliate for the killing of a senior Israeli officer."
According to these sources, these contacts were made at the highest levels, including French President Nicolas Sarkozy and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
According to the sources in Paris, the fact that Hizbullah was not part of the confrontation prevented new war. The sources in France told the newspaper that Israel "has no interest in launching war against the Lebanese army" because its is the only side that can "solve the problem of southern Lebanon and impose the state authority in this area."

By: Brant