Proposed Army 1,000-Mile Supergun Could Be Ultimate Standoff Weapon
Jan 29, 2019 17:22:49 #
Does anyone besides me think that this is a colossal waste of money and one of the more insane ideas the military has come up with? pafret
Proposed Army 1,000-Mile Supergun Could Be Ultimate Standoff Weapon
U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to the 65th Field Artillery Brigade, fire their High Mobility Artillery Rocket System during a joint live-fire exercise with the Kuwait Land Forces, Jan. 8, 2019, near Camp Buehring, Kuwait. (U.S. Army/Sgt. Bill Boecker)
24 Jan 2019 Military.com | By Oriana Pawlyk
What is the real need behind the U.S. Army's proposed long-range cannon that can shoot out to 1,000 miles or more?
It could be used to conduct a strategic or tactical strike in support of the other military services, or to take out targets before service members get to the battlespace, according to the top civilian of the Army.
"On a tactical level, we need to be able to outrange our adversaries' guns with comparable caliber and organization," said Army Secretary Mark Esper.
Speaking during a media roundtable with reporters at the Pentagon, Esper compared the technological evolution to that of the spear and the sword.
"Why was the spear developed? Because the other guy had a sword. But a spear gives you range," the secretary said.
"You always want to have standoff where you can strike without being struck back," Esper said.
He added, "That's what extended-range cannon artillery gives us, case in point vis-à-vis the Russians."
Just as the stealthy fifth-generation F-35 Joint Strike Fighter can enter anti-access environments to soften targets for fourth-generation aircraft, the extended-range artillery cannon could help eliminate threats for ground troops and other military assets, Esper said.
"You can imagine a scenario where the Navy feels it cannot get into the South China Sea because of Chinese naval vessels, [but] we can from a fixed location," Esper said Thursday.
The 1,000-mile range cannon is part of the Army's larger effort to development long-range precision fires technology, one of the service's modernization priorities.
The commander of Army Futures Command told lawmakers in September that the newly established command was looking for smarter ways to acquire such technologies and streamline the acquisition process because of necessity.
That includes the procurement and fielding of a supergun that can fire 1,150 land miles.
"We are looking very hard and starting down the path of hypersonics and also looking at what we call the Strategic Long Range Cannon, which conceivably could have a range of up to 1,000 nautical miles," Gen. John "Mike" Murray said before the House Armed Services Committee's Subcommittee on Readiness.
Esper on Thursday did not give an estimate on when the new long-range cannon could be fielded.
-- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @oriana0214.
Proposed Army 1,000-Mile Supergun Could Be Ultimate Standoff Weapon
U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to the 65th Field Artillery Brigade, fire their High Mobility Artillery Rocket System during a joint live-fire exercise with the Kuwait Land Forces, Jan. 8, 2019, near Camp Buehring, Kuwait. (U.S. Army/Sgt. Bill Boecker)
24 Jan 2019 Military.com | By Oriana Pawlyk
What is the real need behind the U.S. Army's proposed long-range cannon that can shoot out to 1,000 miles or more?
It could be used to conduct a strategic or tactical strike in support of the other military services, or to take out targets before service members get to the battlespace, according to the top civilian of the Army.
"On a tactical level, we need to be able to outrange our adversaries' guns with comparable caliber and organization," said Army Secretary Mark Esper.
Speaking during a media roundtable with reporters at the Pentagon, Esper compared the technological evolution to that of the spear and the sword.
"Why was the spear developed? Because the other guy had a sword. But a spear gives you range," the secretary said.
"You always want to have standoff where you can strike without being struck back," Esper said.
He added, "That's what extended-range cannon artillery gives us, case in point vis-à-vis the Russians."
Just as the stealthy fifth-generation F-35 Joint Strike Fighter can enter anti-access environments to soften targets for fourth-generation aircraft, the extended-range artillery cannon could help eliminate threats for ground troops and other military assets, Esper said.
"You can imagine a scenario where the Navy feels it cannot get into the South China Sea because of Chinese naval vessels, [but] we can from a fixed location," Esper said Thursday.
The 1,000-mile range cannon is part of the Army's larger effort to development long-range precision fires technology, one of the service's modernization priorities.
The commander of Army Futures Command told lawmakers in September that the newly established command was looking for smarter ways to acquire such technologies and streamline the acquisition process because of necessity.
That includes the procurement and fielding of a supergun that can fire 1,150 land miles.
"We are looking very hard and starting down the path of hypersonics and also looking at what we call the Strategic Long Range Cannon, which conceivably could have a range of up to 1,000 nautical miles," Gen. John "Mike" Murray said before the House Armed Services Committee's Subcommittee on Readiness.
Esper on Thursday did not give an estimate on when the new long-range cannon could be fielded.
-- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @oriana0214.
Jan 29, 2019 17:58:59 #
pafret wrote:
i Does anyone besides me think that this is a c... (show quote)
I would much rather have it and not need it, than for my enemy to have it and actually use it.
Jan 29, 2019 18:09:29 #
Wolf counselor wrote:
I would much rather have it and not need it, than for my enemy to have it and actually use it.
why spend the money for a cannon that shoots 1000 miles?
we already have guided missiles that can hit targets precisely at much farther distances
Jan 29, 2019 18:31:28 #
Jan 29, 2019 18:48:39 #
Mikeyavelli wrote:
I want the concealed carry version.
Would you like that in an automatic or a revolver ?
Jan 29, 2019 18:53:47 #
Wolf counselor wrote:
Would you like that in an automatic or a revolver ?
Nope, those are fine. Just have to find a pair of big enough jeans.
Jan 29, 2019 18:58:03 #
pafret wrote:
i Does anyone besides me think that this is a c... (show quote)
Don't we have missiles that can go even further than that? I don't see the point.
Jan 29, 2019 20:22:57 #
Rose42 wrote:
Don't we have missiles that can go even further than that? I don't see the point.
Even better, where would you test it? Put it in Chicago and aim at New York City then Los Angeles and San Francisco. Take it to Dallas and aim for Chicago then turn it around and aim for Mexico City.
Jan 29, 2019 21:51:05 #
pafret wrote:
Even better, where would you test it? Put it in Chicago and aim at New York City then Los Angeles and San Francisco. Take it to Dallas and aim for Chicago then turn it around and aim for Mexico City.
Venezuela is good.
Jan 29, 2019 22:04:26 #
Mikeyavelli wrote:
Venezuela is good.
California could attack us any minute now.
This rocket gun could come in handy.
Jan 29, 2019 22:11:36 #
Wolf counselor wrote:
California could attack us any minute now.
This rocket gun could come in handy.
This rocket gun could come in handy.
Load the gun with San Francisco Street Mueller and lob it to Red States.
Jan 30, 2019 12:09:09 #
pafret wrote:
Even better, where would you test it? Put it in Chicago and aim at New York City then Los Angeles and San Francisco. Take it to Dallas and aim for Chicago then turn it around and aim for Mexico City.
LOL! I like that thinking.
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