PLA Eastern Theater Command PCL-181 self-propelled howitzers tests new tactic in coastal region.

The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theater Command recently dispatched some of its most advanced artillery pieces to a coastal region and practiced the indirect fire tactic, which analysts said on June 7 can reach longer ranges and is more flexible than previous approaches. Liu Xuanzun reports in Global Times.
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More than a dozen PCL-181 self-propelled howitzers are being delivered to the Chinese People's Liberation Army Eastern Theater Command (Picture source: screenshot from China Central Television)

An artillery brigade affiliated with the 71st Group Army under the PLA Eastern Theater Command was recently mobilized to a coastal region and held an all-elements, long-range live-fire tactical exercise with multiple types of munitions, using the indirect fire method for the first time, after being newly equipped with the PCL-181 self-propelled howitzers, China Central Television (CCTV) reported on June 7.

Compared with direct and semi-indirect fire, indirect fire can reach longer ranges and enables artillery pieces to be deployed in a more scattered, flexible pattern. It completes missions more efficiently with a higher rate of survival, Captain Zhou Chiyu, a company commander at the brigade, was quoted as saying. Indirect fire is a tactic used by artillery troops who do not have direct lines of fire. Instead, they use calculated trajectories based on targeting data provided by other reconnaissance units to guide projectiles to hit targets, a Chinese military expert who requested anonymity explained further to the Global Times.

In the exercise, the self-propelled howitzers established firing positions behind a dam, which blocked the line of sight between the troops and their targets. A fixed-wing drone was then launched, and it conducted reconnaissance and positioning on hostile targets, which were apparently on some islands, the CCTV report showed. After receiving, processing and synchronizing the targeting data, the howitzers fired in unison.

The PCL-181 is PLA's most advanced 155mm self-propelled howitzer. It can be airlifted by Y-9 tactical transport aircraft. The Y-8 and Y-9 family aircraft are frequently used in the PLA's routine exercises.