April 1,
2008: American and Canadian troops have begun using the U.S. Excalibur GPS
guided 155mm artillery shell in Afghanistan. A year ago, American troops began
using Excalibur in Iraq. This is just in time, because Islamic warriors tend to
use civilians as human shields, and that means you have to be precise when you
go after the bad guys with artillery. A typical situation has enemy gunmen
holding out in one building of a walled compound or village. In nearby
buildings, there are women and children. While killing the enemy is good,
killing the civilians can be worse. Smart bombs should be able to fix this,
except that sometimes the smallest smart bomb, the 500 pounder, has too much
bang (280 pounds of explosives). A 155mm artillery shell should do the trick
(only 20 pounds of explosives each), but at long range (20 kilometers or more),
some of these shells will hit the civilians. This is where Excalibur comes in handy.
Unguided shells land anywhere within a 200 meter (or larger) circle. The GPS
guided Excalibur shell falls within a ten meter circle (the middle of that
circle being the "aim point".) After a
year of use in Iraq, the troops find Excalibur invaluable for hitting just what
you want to hit.
For most
nations, the drawback is cost. A "dumb" 155mm shell costs under a thousand
dollars, while one Excalibur costs $150,000. But when you take into account the
civilian lives saved (and good will retained), it's a different story.
Moreover, friendly troops can be closer to the target when Excalibur is used,
meaning your infantry can get into the shelled target quicker, before any
surviving enemy can get ready to shoot back. The Excalibur shell is worth it in
other ways. Ten 155mm shells (of any type, with their propellant and packaging)
weigh about a ton. Ammo supply has always been a major problem with artillery,
and Excalibur is the solution. With Excalibur, fewer 155mm shells have to be
shipped thousands of miles, and looked after until they are used.
Excalibur
was developed in cooperation with Swedish engineers, and the shell is to be
used by the Swedish Army. Australia has adopted Excalibur as well. The
Excalibur was originally supposed to cost under $50,000 each. But developing
electronics and control systems that fit inside a 155mm diameter shell, and
survive being fired out of a cannon, proved far more difficult. That's why a
GPS guided smart bomb only costs about $30,000.
The U.S. Navy
recently cancelled a project to develop a similar 127mm shell, and is now
looking into adopting the Excalibur technology for a GPS guided 127mm shell
that works.
