Live fire exercice for U.S. and South Korean artillery troops near the Demilitarized Zone 11905163

Defence & Security News - South Korea
 
Live fire exercice for U.S. and South Korean artillery troops near the Demilitarized Zone.
May 10, 2016, U.S. Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, participated in a live fire exercise with Republic of Korea Army soldiers from several battalions of the 26th Mechanized Infantry Division Artillery near the Demilitarized Zone that separates North and South Korea.
     
May 10, 2016, U.S. Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, participated in a live fire exercise with Republic of Korea Army soldiers from several battalions of the 26th Mechanized Infantry Division Artillery near the Demilitarized Zone that separates North and South Korea. South Korean Soldiers in the 631st Field Artillery Battalion, 26th Mechanized Infantry Division Artillery, coordinate fires from a battery of six K9 Thunder 155 mm self-propelled howitzers May 10, 2016.
     

In six M109A6 Paladins, U.S. Soldiers fired with ROK soldiers in 24 heavy artillery vehicles -- the K55A1 155 mm self-propelled howitzer, and the K9 Thunder 155 mm self-propelled howitzer. A total of 30 "guns" occupied the firing point and simultaneously engaged targets in the St. Barbara's impact area approximately six kilometers away.

Both U.S. and South Korean observers called in fire missions, where all guns engaged a single target, and with all rounds within a battery impacting nearly simultaneously.

The exercise was the culmination of more than a month's worth of planning between U.S. and South Korean Soldiers, and critically important to the U.S. artillery mission in the Korean Peninsula.

It was the second major exercise with U.S. counterparts, and they plan to continue the joint exercises -- they partnered with 3rd Battalion, 16th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division last year.

The K9 is a South Korean self-propelled 155 mm howitzer developed by Samsung Techwin. The development program of this 155 mm/52-caliber self-propelled howitzer has been underway since 1989.

The main armament consists of a 155 mm/52 caliber ordnance with a maximum firing range of 40 km. The K9 Thunder has a maximum rate of fire of 6 rounds per minute and is capable of multiple-round simultaneous-impact firing. It is able to fire three rounds in 15 seconds, each in different trajectories, so that all of the shells arrive on target at the same time.

The M109A6 Paladin is a 155mm self-propelled howitzer which is inservice with the U.S. Army since 1994. Main armament consists of one 155mm M284 cannon, which is fitted with an M182 gun mount. It can fire at a maximum range of 30 km with standard rounds or 30km using assisted rounds.

The M109A6 has a maximum firing rate of up to eight rounds a minute or three rounds in 15 seconds, and a sustained firing rate of one round every three minutes. The gun is operated with an automatic fire control system with ballistic computer, fitted with an optical backup.
     
May 10, 2016, U.S. Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, participated in a live fire exercise with Republic of Korea Army soldiers from several battalions of the 26th Mechanized Infantry Division Artillery near the Demilitarized Zone that separates North and South Korea. U.S. Army Soldiers in the 1st Battalion "Dragons," 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, coordinate fires May 10 with South Korean artillery batteries from the 26th Mechanized Infantry Division Artillery. (Photo U.S. M109A6 Paladin)
     
The K55A1 is a South Korean variant of the American M109, originally based on M109A2 with additional domestic augmentations, license-produced by Samsung Techwin.

The main armament of the K55A1 consits of one 155mm 30 caliber cannon which has a maximum range of 25 km.
     
May 10, 2016, U.S. Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, participated in a live fire exercise with Republic of Korea Army soldiers from several battalions of the 26th Mechanized Infantry Division Artillery near the Demilitarized Zone that separates North and South Korea. South Korean Army K55A1 155mm self-propelled hwoitzer