laststandonzombieisland

U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Donald Holbert

Soldiers, assigned to 1st Armored Division, Task Force Al Taqaddum, fire an M109A6 Paladin howitzer during a fire mission at Al Taqaddum Air Base, Iraq, June 27, 2016. The strikes were conducted in support of Operation Inherent Resolve and aimed at eliminating the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

The Alpha 6 (Paladin) variant is mega sweet as far as 155mm SP guns go and only about a sixth of all M109s operational in the world got the upgrade which includes the longer 39-caliber 155 mm M284 cannon (which gives a max range of over 30,000m with RAP rounds) in a more advanced M182A1 mount, an increased 39 shell internal mag, beefier engine and an integrated fire direction center which moves well beyond the 1960s tech the gun originally carried, allowing it to be fed data in real time from brigade level and pop off a round in seconds after moving if doing “shoot-and-scoot” artillery fire, which is the only way to ensure survival on the modern combined armed battlefield.

Then of course there are hyper velocity projectiles (HVP) in the testing phase for Paladin that could hit Mach 3 and enable larger caliber guns to launch HVPs at air and missile threats over medium ranges (10–30 nautical miles) turning the howitzer into a very capable surface to air defense weapon if needed.