LONG-RANGE PARTNERSHIP


Balancer System Upgrades Allows for increase in system pressure and safety. Minor modification to load tray bracket to allow for full temperature compensation in equilibration system.


55-Caliber Extended Range Tube 155 mm 55-caliber length XM351 towed variant tube using the M776 breech.


R3C Muzzle Brake More efficient muzzle brake minimizes blast overpressure on the crew.


Reinforced Yoke


Thickened and reinforced recoil yoke for extended-range loads.


Upgraded Recoil System Strengthened and optimized recoil system for extended range charges.


KITTED UP


Multinational agreements in place since 2012 have provided the Army with new avenues for improving and evaluating the M777, which will receive several upgrades to improve range and accuracy. The components, known collectively as the ER Kit, can be quickly retrofitted onto existing howitzers. (Image courtesy of the authors)


Extended-Range Road Arms Compensates for increased tube length on tipping points and adds new commercial off-the-shelf brakes for better braking.


LEVERAGING EXISTING TECHNOLOGIES Te genesis of the Long Range Cannon project was the M777 Extended Range (ER) Howitzer project, a 2014 prototyp- ing initiative to significantly extend the range of the currently fielded M777A2 variant. Tat effort involved the incorporation of a longer cannon tube for extended-range firing; a more efficient muzzle brake to minimize blast overpressure on the gun crew; a reinforced recoil yoke for higher firing loads; longer road arms to compensate for the increased tube length; an upgraded recoil system for extended-range charges; and upgrades to the balancer system. In all, no structural changes are needed, as all of these are bolt-on assemblies. Dubbed the ER Kit, the prototype compo- nents can quickly be retrofitted onto existing howitzers.


In 2018, Army leadership prioritized the M777ER for accelera- tion and expanded the scope of the effort by adding the condition of improved accuracy at extended ranges. Tat, in turn, called


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for a new name—the Long Range Cannon. To achieve the dual goals of expanded range and improved accuracy as expeditiously and cost-effectively as possible, the Long Range Cannon team hopes to maximize use of existing resources and leverage several technologies already in development.


Trough a system-of-systems approach, the Long Range Cannon program integrates the M777ER with several high-potential, extended range and GPS-degraded or -denied artillery technol- ogies, including the Location and Azimuth Determining System for more secure and accurate survey control and target acquisi- tion; a projectile tracking system for improving impact accuracy; and a high-explosive, rocket-assisted projectile along with a super- charged propellant to achieve the desired maximum ranges.


Te team plans to use the extended range armament to modernize the current weapon-ammunition interface, in an effort to further


Army AL&T Magazine


Fall 2019


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