Latest news with #M107
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Yahoo
Fort Benning upgrades range to accommodate new sniper rifle
The Army is upgrading a multipurpose sniper training range at Fort Benning, Georgia to handle new weapons that can shoot farther than the current range allows. The improvements are part of a series of modernization efforts scheduled over the next seven years, according to an Army release. As part of the modernization initiative, Burroughs Range was upgraded to extend a section of the range from 800 meters to 1,100 meters. A future upgrade includes some target areas being expanded to distances of up to 1,200 meters, offering improved training opportunities for soldiers using the range. 'The current sniper rifle system used by the Army has an effective range of about 1,000 meters,' said Shane Duncanson, Fort Benning range planner. Newest sniper rifle for soldiers, Marines takes on final hurdle before fielding The Army's newest sniper rifle, the Mk22, can strike targets as far as 1,500 to 1,800 meters, Duncanson said. The Mk22 is a multi-caliber, bolt-action rifle that replaces the M2010, M110 and M107 sniper rifles. 'The requirements for changes to the training ranges came from new weapons systems being introduced,' said John Nolt, acting director of Directorate of Plans, Training, Mobilization & Security at Fort Benning. Completed in 1976, Burroughs Range was initially designed as a heavy sniper training facility, with armored targets placed throughout the training area, according to the release. Additionally, a two-meter tall, 225-meter-long, 21-meter-deep berm, complete with a moving target rail system to its rear, is located on the west side of the range at 800 meters from the shooting positions. 'As the battlefield changes, our training ranges have to change, too,' said Jason Olive, Fort Benning range officer. 'As Burroughs Range transitions to the Army's newest Multipurpose Sniper Range, the requirement for a moving armored target was eliminated, which required the removal of the berm and tracks behind it, allowing additional line of sight and an area to incorporate the Army's newest trackless moving target technology.' The construction work at Burroughs Range involved leveling the berm, demolishing the obsolete rail system — which featured a 44-centimeter concrete base and a 20-centimeter rebar barrier extending along the entire 225-meter length — gradually leveling the land behind the berm, removing trees and clearing debris throughout the range. 'Burroughs Range was built back in a day when 1,000 meters was the farthest someone could shoot, and typically a solider would train at 600-800 meters,' Duncanson said. 'We're in the process of doing small incremental improvements so that we can use the new weapon systems and rounds at 1,200 meters.' Personnel from Fort Benning, as well as the Georgia Army National Guard's 177th Engineer Support Company, 878th Engineer Battalion out of Augusta, Georgia, and the Army Reserve's 718th Engineer Company, 926th Engineer Battalion out of Birmingham, Alabama all contributed to modifying the range. 'This type of training allows us to meet directly on the job site with our active duty and Reserve counterparts,' said Warrant Officer James Jarrett, a construction officer with 177th Engineer Support Company. The ongoing modernization of training ranges across Fort Benning is focused on improving soldiers' training, readiness and operational capabilities, according to the release.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Yahoo
Ranges on Fort Benning aren't long enough for Army's new sniper rifle
The Army is updating its sniper training range at Fort Benning, Georgia to accommodate its newest sniper rifle, which can accurately hit targets nearly a mile away. The MK22 Precision Sniper Rifle is a multi-caliber bolt-action sniper rifle that was designed to replace the Army's M2010, M110 and M107 rifles, according to the Army's Program Executive Office Soldier, which is in charge of new weapon development. The Army's current generation of sniper rifles have 'an effective range' of nearly 1,000 meters, but the new MK22 can reach targets between 1,500 to 1,800 meters away, said Shane Duncanson, Fort Benning range planner, in an Army release. As a result, he said, the sniper rifle 'requires a whole different range design.' Will Brugge, a spokesperson for Fort Benning, said that the range upgrades will allow soldiers to use the MK22 to the fullest extent, which helps them train specific sniper skills like calculating ballistics, estimating distances and actually hitting targets. 'Firing at targets with the weapon system's maximum effective range requires snipers to be absolutely precise with their ballistic calculations to accommodate for atmospheric conditions, primarily wind speed and temperature. It also requires snipers to be absolute with their range estimation skills. Further engagements also challenge the sniper's ability to detect targets and apply target recognition skills,' Brugge said. 'Snipers who do this successfully gain experience and confidence in using the weapon system.' The MK22 rifle can swap between three different barrels to use three types of ammunition: the typical 7.62mm, and two new calibers, .300 and .338 Norma Magnum rounds, which can be switched out depending on the type of mission. With the shortest barrel, the rifle can use standard 7.62 rounds for targets as far as 1000 meters. Two longer barrels accommodate the .300NM's regular ball round and the .338NM's armor-piercing round for shots up to 1,500 meters, according to an Army fact sheet on the system. An Army marksmanship instructor at one of the largest bases told Task & Purpose that some soldiers with the new MK22 have not yet received the .300NM and .338NM ammunition. Unlike 7.62 rounds, which the Army has used for decades in other weapons, both of the new sniper rounds have been developed specifically for the rifle. The Army signed a $157 million contract with Sig Sauer to produce .300NM and .338NM ammunition in June 2022. Sig Sauer told Task & Purpose that all of the ammunition ordered by the Army had been delivered. The Army fielded the MK22 to special operations soldiers in 2021. According to PEO Soldier officials, the sniper rifles are still being distributed to conventional units that have sniper-trained soldiers assigned to them, such as infantry battalions. Officials declined to give additional details on what units have so far received the MK22 or which might soon. The sniper rifle is also being adopted by the Marine Corps, which announced in November 2024 that it had been fielded to all of its infantry and reconnaissance units and training schools. The new rifles arrive amid a Marine Corps-wide overhaul of its marksmanship training, which includes building new ranges at major training centers. Fort Benning's largest firing range, the Burroughs Range, was completed in 1976 and was originally designed for heavy sniper training with armored targets and a moving target rail system 800 meters from shooters. To make room for the MK22, the range will now initially be upgraded for soldiers to practice with targets at distances between 800 and 1,100 meters. Further work will extend that distance to 1,200 meters away in the coming years. However, as part of the range upgrades, the Army is removing a 225-meter berm and tracks, which will give soldiers an additional line of sight to distant targets and an area to install new trackless moving targets. A Marine Corps reply-all email apocalypse has an incredible real-life ending Army shuts down its sole active-duty information operations command Army plans to close more than 20 base museums in major reduction Former Green Beret nominated to top Pentagon position to oversee special ops The Navy's new recruiting commercial puts the 'dirt wars' in the past
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ukraine's defense industry says the fight against Russia has shown it that the West's approach to weapons is all wrong
The West is approaching weaponry the wrong way when thinking about major conflicts, a Ukrainian industry rep said. Countries need a lot of pretty good weapons instead of only a handful of excellent ones. It's a warning that industry officials, experts, and some European defense ministers have echoed. Ukraine's defense industry is urging the West to abandon its longtime fixation on sleek, expensive weaponry in favor of cheaper, mass-produced arms, the kind needed to survive and win a grinding war of attrition against Russia. Serhiy Goncharov, the CEO of the National Association of Ukrainian Defense Industries — which represents around 100 Ukrainian companies — told Business Insider that the West's longstanding focus on fielding limited numbers of cutting-edge systems could be a serious disadvantage in a protracted conflict. Those systems are good to have, but mass is key. The war in Ukraine shows you don't need a handful of ultra-precise, expensive weapons, Goncharov told BI. You need a massive supply of good enough firepower. He said that the expensive weapons like the US military's M982 Excalibur guided munition (each shell costs $100,000) "don't work" when the other side has electronic warfare systems and the kind of traditional artillery rounds that are 30 times cheaper. Goncharov pointed to the M107, a self-propelled gun that was first fielded by the US in the 1960s, as an example of inexpensive firepower that can be effective in large numbers. "You don't need 10 Archers from the Swedish that are probably one of the best artillery systems in the world," he said, referring to the artillery system made by BAE Systems that was given to Ukraine by Sweden. Instead, you need 200 cheap howitzers like the Bohdana one that Ukraine makes. The "enormous rate of damage," the significant rate of ammo and equipment attrition, in a fight like this means you need a constant supply of weaponry to keep fighting, especially when there isn't any guarantee the high-end weapons will be the game changers promised. Russia's invasion of Ukraine has been one marked by extensive use of artillery and tremendous ammunition expenditure. The war in some ways resembes the huge, destructive battles of World War I and World War II, with high casualties and substantial equipment losses. Russia has one of the world's largest militaries backed by a large population. The country has repeatedly demonstrated a willingness to pursue an attritional style of warfare, committing a lot of troops and weaponry to a fight to slowly wear down its foe. Russia's invasion has chewed through equipment. The UK Ministry of Defense said in December that Russia had lost over 3,600 main battle tanks and almost 8,000 armored vehicles since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022. The Russians have the mass to absorb those losses. Ukraine has struggled with weapon and ammo shortages, as well as deficiencies in manpower. Ukraine turned to small, cheap drones as an asymmetric warfare alternative; Russia has employed uncrewed systems in battle as well. China, another concern in the West, has built a similar kind of force, one with the mass to take losses. The West, on the other hand, has spent the last two decades and change fighting lower-level adversaries where its forces can win the day with superior capabilities. Goncharov's warning is one that has been echoed by other Western defense officials and companies. Countries have been keen to learn lessons about fighting Russia from the conflict in Ukraine, particularly in Europe, where many countries warn Russia could pursue further aggression in the future and defense spending is growing rapidly. Gabrielius Landsbergis, the former defense minister of Lithuania, a NATO ally bordering Russia, previously described the war to Business Insider as one of "high quantities." He said that while the West has largely focused on new and expensive weaponry that takes a long time to manufacture, Russia has been "building something that's cheap, that's expendable, that's fast." He said the West has "been preparing for a different kind of war" than what it would face in one against Russia, focusing on impressive equipment that is "very expensive." Troels Lund Poulsen, the Danish defense minister, previously told BI that "one of the lessons" from Ukraine is that the West needs far greater quantities of inexpensive weaponry to meet the threats posed by Russia and China. The head of NATO, Mark Rutte, urged countries to take similar learnings earlier this year, saying the alliance is too slow at developing weapons. He said the alliance works toward perfect, "but it doesn't have to be perfect." He said that Ukraine will go ahead with equipment that is a "six to seven" out of 10, while NATO militaries insist on reaching "nine or 10." He said it wasn't about getting rid of the expensive weaponry completely, but about finding a balance. It's about "getting speed and enough quality done in the right conjunction." That's something warfare experts have also told BI. Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow and the director of research in the foreign-policy program at the Brookings Institution, said the West's approach needs to change. The American military, for instance, is far more used to wars where "the whole point is you're not going to be slogging it out for months and years on end." But he also said that doesn't mean the West needs to completely abandon the development of advanced systems. "Those things have not become unimportant just because we realized that other things are also important," he said. The UK's armed forces minister also warned last month that the war showed the West needs to change how it procures weaponry. Luke Pollard said Ukraine's fight showed NATO "the way we have run our militaries, the way we have run our defense, is outdated." He said NATO militaries "build and procure really expensive high-end bits of kit. And it will take you five, 10 years: five years to run a procurement challenge, another 10 years to build it." Industry has taken note, too. Kuldar Väärsi, the CEO of Milrem Robotics, an autonomous unmanned ground vehicle company in NATO ally Estonia, told BI in May that "we need to learn from Ukraine, and we need to get more pragmatic about what kind of equipment we buy." He said Europe needs to learn that "having a hundred more simple pieces of equipment is better than having 10 very sophisticated pieces of equipment." He said countries need to start buying less-sophisticated pieces of weaponry en masse so industry can adjust. "Industry has to manufacture what the customer is buying. And if the customer is still buying only a few very sophisticated items, then the industry just aligns with that." And the reality is that may not work. Read the original article on Business Insider
Business Insider
11-06-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Ukraine's defense industry says the fight against Russia has shown it that the West's approach to weapons is all wrong
Ukraine's defense industry is urging the West to abandon its longtime fixation on sleek, expensive weaponry in favor of cheaper, mass-produced arms, the kind needed to survive and win a grinding war of attrition against Russia. Serhiy Goncharov, the CEO of the National Association of Ukrainian Defense Industries — which represents around 100 Ukrainian companies — told Business Insider that the West's longstanding focus on fielding limited numbers of cutting-edge systems could be a serious disadvantage in a protracted conflict. Those systems are good to have, but mass is key. An argument for mass The war in Ukraine shows you don't need a handful of ultra-precise, expensive weapons, Goncharov told BI. You need a massive supply of good enough firepower. He said that the expensive weapons like the US military's M982 Excalibur guided munition (each shell costs $100,000) "don't work" when the other side has electronic warfare systems and the kind of traditional artillery rounds that are 30 times cheaper. Goncharov pointed to the M107, a self-propelled gun that was first fielded by the US in the 1960s, as an example of inexpensive firepower that can be effective in large numbers. "You don't need 10 Archers from the Swedish that are probably one of the best artillery systems in the world," he said, referring to the artillery system made by BAE Systems that was given to Ukraine by Sweden. Instead, you need 200 cheap howitzers like the Bohdana one that Ukraine makes. The "enormous rate of damage," the significant rate of ammo and equipment attrition, in a fight like this means you need a constant supply of weaponry to keep fighting, especially when there isn't any guarantee the high-end weapons will be the game changers promised. Russia's grinding attritional warfare Russia's invasion of Ukraine has been one marked by extensive use of artillery and tremendous ammunition expenditure. The war in some ways resembes the huge, destructive battles of World War I and World War II, with high casualties and substantial equipment losses. Russia has one of the world's largest militaries backed by a large population. The country has repeatedly demonstrated a willingness to pursue an attritional style of warfare, committing a lot of troops and weaponry to a fight to slowly wear down its foe. Russia's invasion has chewed through equipment. The UK Ministry of Defense said in December that Russia had lost over 3,600 main battle tanks and almost 8,000 armored vehicles since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022. The Russians have the mass to absorb those losses. Ukraine has struggled with weapon and ammo shortages, as well as deficiencies in manpower. Ukraine turned to small, cheap drones as an asymmetric warfare alternative; Russia has employed uncrewed systems in battle as well. China, another concern in the West, has built a similar kind of force, one with the mass to take losses. The West, on the other hand, has spent the last two decades and change fighting lower-level adversaries where its forces can win the day with superior capabilities. European and NATO are waking up Goncharov's warning is one that has been echoed by other Western defense officials and companies. Countries have been keen to learn lessons about fighting Russia from the conflict in Ukraine, particularly in Europe, where many countries warn Russia could pursue further aggression in the future and defense spending is growing rapidly. Gabrielius Landsbergis, the former defense minister of Lithuania, a NATO ally bordering Russia, previously described the war to Business Insider as one of "high quantities." He said that while the West has largely focused on new and expensive weaponry that takes a long time to manufacture, Russia has been "building something that's cheap, that's expendable, that's fast." He said the West has "been preparing for a different kind of war" than what it would face in one against Russia, focusing on impressive equipment that is "very expensive." Troels Lund Poulsen, the Danish defense minister, previously told BI that "one of the lessons" from Ukraine is that the West needs far greater quantities of inexpensive weaponry to meet the threats posed by Russia and China. The head of NATO, Mark Rutte, urged countries to take similar learnings earlier this year, saying the alliance is too slow at developing weapons. He said the alliance works toward perfect, "but it doesn't have to be perfect." He said that Ukraine will go ahead with equipment that is a "six to seven" out of 10, while NATO militaries insist on reaching "nine or 10." He said it wasn't about getting rid of the expensive weaponry completely, but about finding a balance. It's about "getting speed and enough quality done in the right conjunction." That's something warfare experts have also told BI. Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow and the director of research in the foreign-policy program at the Brookings Institution, said the West's approach needs to change. The American military, for instance, is far more used to wars where "the whole point is you're not going to be slogging it out for months and years on end." But he also said that doesn't mean the West needs to completely abandon the development of advanced systems. "Those things have not become unimportant just because we realized that other things are also important," he said. The UK's armed forces minister also warned last month that the war showed the West needs to change how it procures weaponry. Luke Pollard said Ukraine's fight showed NATO "the way we have run our militaries, the way we have run our defense, is outdated." He said NATO militaries "build and procure really expensive high-end bits of kit. And it will take you five, 10 years: five years to run a procurement challenge, another 10 years to build it." Industry has taken note, too. Kuldar Väärsi, the CEO of Milrem Robotics, an autonomous unmanned ground vehicle company in NATO ally Estonia, told BI in May that "we need to learn from Ukraine, and we need to get more pragmatic about what kind of equipment we buy." He said Europe needs to learn that "having a hundred more simple pieces of equipment is better than having 10 very sophisticated pieces of equipment." He said countries need to start buying less-sophisticated pieces of weaponry en masse so industry can adjust. "Industry has to manufacture what the customer is buying. And if the customer is still buying only a few very sophisticated items, then the industry just aligns with that." And the reality is that may not work.
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Czech company completes construction of projectile production line in Ukraine
Czech defence giant Czechoslovak Group has almost completed the construction of an artillery projectile production line in Ukraine. Source: Ukrainian military news outlet Militarnyi Details: The Czechoslovak Group will soon complete the construction of a production line to manufacture 155 mm artillery projectiles as part of a joint project with the Ukrainian government. "The production site is at the final stage of preparation for launch, but we cannot announce a specific date at this time," the company's representatives said at a briefing at the Czechoslovak Group headquarters. Militarnyi reports that the company will produce the main range of ammunition included in the Czechoslovak Group's production offer. The Czech company is solely responsible for preparing the production line, while the Ukrainian side is responsible for all other organisational processes. In addition, the briefing stressed that the company will be located in an area with a low risk of missile attacks, which will ensure stable and uninterrupted production in the future. The briefing also revealed the types of ammunition that will be produced in Ukraine under the license. These are 155-mm artillery rounds M107, 155-mm artillery rounds L15 of increased power and 155-mm long-range artillery round HE ER-BT/BB MKM/VMK. Additionally, 105-mm high explosive incendiary artillery rounds M1 NE and 120-mm tank rounds of an unspecified type will be produced as well. Background: Ukrainian Armour signed a package of documents on cooperation with the Czech holding Czechoslovak Group (CSG) in October 2024. One agreement concerns the supply of components, and the other concerns the licensing of ammunition production (transfer of technology and documentation for the production of artillery rounds). "We plan to produce and supply about 100,000 rounds of ammunition next year and more than 300,000 in 2026. The equipment preparation process has already started," said Vladyslav Belbas, CEO of Ukrainian Armour. Czechoslovak Group AS reported record sales and profitability for last year as the war in Ukraine boosted demand for heavy ammunition and combat vehicles manufactured by the Prague-based company. Revenue jumped 71% to €1.73 billion (about US$1.9 billion), said the defence conglomerate known as CSG, owned by Czech billionaire Michal Strnad. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation rose 130% to €439 million. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
