The U.S. Army Needs To Fix Its Remaining ‘Fires’ Gap (From 1945)

In recent years, the U.S. Army’s top modernization priority has been long-range precision fires (LRPF). As the war in Ukraine demonstrates, this was a prescient decision. But when it comes to addressing the need for an entirely new portfolio of fires systems, the Army has only solved part of the problem. In the next year or two, the Army expects to field several new fires systems, including the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM), Strategic Mid-Range Fires (SMRF), and Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW). What remains to be accomplished is the fielding of new capabilities to provide precision fires at ranges less than 100 km. The Army’s sole modernization program in this area is the Extended Range Cannon Artillery (ERCA). The Army needs to replace its obsolescent M777 towed 155mm howitzers. The Army can do so rapidly and at reasonable cost by acquiring an existing truck mounted 155mm system. I have written more on this subject here.