July 5, 2007: Russia has
developed a unique self-propelled artillery piece. It's a dual barrel (one
above the other) 152mm gun. The two guns share an auto-loading system and a
fifty round ammo supply on board. In fact, there is no one in the turret, just
the ammo and loading machinery for two guns.
With both barrels working,
the "Koalitcia-SV" can fire sixteen rounds a minute for short periods. The gun
is a variation of the current 2S19M system, and is currently undergoing
testing. While a system like this makes sense for current artillery tactics
(fire as many shells as possible, in the shortest period of time, so you can
move to avoid counter-fire), new GPS guided shells are changing everything. The
American Excalibur GPS guided shell just entered service this year in Iraq.
American troops using it are amazed at how two Excalibur shells, fired from
over 30 kilometers away, go through the same hole in the roof of a large
building, and explode inside to kill enemy troops. Without destroying adjacent
buildings. Koalitcia-SV appears to be a great solution for an obsolete problem. PHOTO
