Dark Earth General Discussion

Yes and no. There needs to be a quite considerable target to merit use of a dragon; additionally, they have more than their breath to bring to the table.

British Army Artillery 1968: Guns, Rockets and Mortars (1/2)

The British Army’s artillery park has undergone considerable changes during the 1960s, with doctrinal shifts, technological advancements and combat experience being the chief drivers. The general composition is in line with the projections of 1961-64, but there have been some alterations driven by circumstance and policy shifts.

Towed Artillery
The most common field gun in Army service is the Royal Ordnance L24 QF Light Gun. It has replaced the QF 25pdr in regular and TA service, although some variants of the older weapon remain in some ancillary and home defence units. 1280 guns are deployed by operational Royal Artillery airborne and field regiments attached to the eight ‘light’ Army divisions, the reserve Light Division and the Commando brigades, whilst a further 640 are deployed in various Imperial and foreign based units. Total Regular Army stocks amount to over 3200 guns.

With a 50lb shell, a normal range of 25 miles (32 has been achieved with experimental new rocket assisted projectiles) and a sustained rate of fire of 8 rounds per minute, it is the most powerful field gun in its class and has proved superior to the Soviet D-30 in cross border artillery duels in Borneo, but has been outperformed by the long range Soviet M-46 130mm heavy gun. Whilst attempts were made to sell the design to the United States to replace its legacy field artillery park of M101A1 105mm howitzers, the War Department instead elected to procure an American 125mm gun-howitzer.

The L24 has a reasonable anti-tank performance with a HESH shell against older medium tanks and has proved deadly against lighter armoured fighting vehicles, but has little capacity against modern MBTs, save at close range, where the sheer weight of shell has a telling effect. However, it’s best role is undoubtably general purpose field artillery, where it’s combination of speed of firing, range and accuracy make it a difficult gun to match.

The medium towed regiments are equipped with the L121 6” gun-howitzer. 640 L121s are currently deployed by 20 operational regiments, 8 of which are fielded by the infantry and airborne divisions, with 4 deployed in South Vietnam and Malaya, 4 assigned to Middle East Command and 4 assigned to the British Mobile Force; a further 600 guns are held in wartime reserve. It is equipped with the same gun as the FV-236 and provides long range heavy conventional, chemical and nuclear firepower. As with the 125mm, great importance is placed upon accuracy and speed of response to fire missions. The L121 has proved successful as an export weapon to date, having been acquired, in addition to the Commonwealth, by Argentina, Chile, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Egypt, Persia, Yugoslavia and Bulgaria.

Towed 8” and 9.2” howitzers remain in the Royal Artillery’s non-operational strategic reserve, war reserve stocks and some Territorial Army regiments, but have been generally replaced by self propelled variants due to the issue of mobility; heavy towed artillery is considered too heavy for helicopter, Rotodyne or light aircraft transport.

Self Propelled Artillery
The FV-433 Abbot, converted to carry the 125mm Gun, is the equal most widely deployed self propelled artillery piece in British service. It is fielded at brigade level in each heavy division and brigade group, along with 8 regiments rotated on Imperial deployments. The early 1960s shift in doctrine lead to a shift in role, from divisional general support to tactical artillery and direct fire; whilst it can provide direct support against enemy vehicles, it is only moderately protected and not suited to frontline engagement. With a battery per battlegroup, this deployment provides for fire support down to the lowest tactical level.

The Abbot’s 125mm gun is capable of elevation up to 75 degrees and 360 degree traverse and has a range of 25 miles, like it’s towed counterpart. Perhaps the most notable attribute of the Abbot is it’s high rate of fire, capable of 12 rounds per minute in burst mode; development of further automation to speed this further is underway. It is one of the faster tracked vehicles in British service, reaching a maximum road speed of 39mph. Army holdings of the Abbot total over 2500, reflecting the high esteem in which it is held. Whilst the 125mm shell does not have weight and lethality of the 6”, it’s numbers and rate of fire provide for the excellence in suppressive fire, creeping and rolling barrages and defensive box fire; it is considered the third most important gun in the Royal Artillery.

The most important is regarded to be the FV236, sometimes known as the Archbishop in line with the old wartime ecclesiastical nicknames given to mobile artillery, other times as the SP-70, but usually called simply the 6”. It has delivered in service all that it promised in the early 1960s and more, now being fielded as the main general support weapon of British heavy divisions in addition to the broad provision of heavy bombardment and destructive fire. In addition to divisional deployments, three regiments are fielded in each Corps AGRA, eight are deployed in the Middle East, Vietnam, Borneo and four are in reserve in Britain. It does not have quite the brute speed of the Swedish Bandkanon, but can maintain a top rate of 8 rounds per minute with its 100lb shells out to at least 42 miles; efforts to extend this have not yet resulted in desired improvements in range, partially justifying the continued operation of heavier guns.

The American M107 175mm self propelled gun was acquired in 1965 to equip BAOR regiments attached to Corps AGRA. The original purpose of their acquisition was to augment shorter range 6” and 8” howitzer with long range artillery that provide almost double their range, but this particular issue was ameliorated by the increased capability of the FV246. With a maximum range of 50 miles with enhanced rocket propelled shells, the M107 is a powerful long range weapon but its accuracy is somewhat less than anticipated, particularly at maximum distance. The option for a second tranche of purchases for Middle East and Far East Command was therefore not exercised, with those forces relying on 8” guns. There remains a role for a long range gun in the ballistic sweet spot filled by the 175mm, the Soviet 180mm and the German 172.5mm, which some have proposed to fill with a modern 7” or 7.2” gun of 70 calibres in length, but there is a general preference in the higher levels of the Board of Ordnance for a reduction in the number of different calibre weapons fielded.

The FV254 8”/60 self propelled gun-howitzer is extremely highly rated by the Royal Artillery for its accuracy and the destructive effect of its 240lb shell, which is regarded as the best balanced weapon for use against fortified enemy positions. Recent developments in Advanced Conventional Munitions, canister shot, artillery deployed anti-tank mines and Special Anti-Tank Munitions make it even more formidable. It also fields a number of chemical, biological, incendiary, special purpose and nuclear rounds. The main armament is carried in a fully armoured and MRBC secure turret capable of 360 degree traverse and elevation from -5 to 75 degrees. Maximum firing range is currently 49 miles with supercharged propellant and rocket assisted shells, but this is projected as increasing rapidly under Project Lionheart, a special superpriority programme for the extension of the range of the FV254.

It is based on the chassis of the Conqueror heavy tank with a more powerful Chieftain engine and is capable of limited amphibious operations. As with the FV-236, it is equipped with arcane enhanced sights and targeting systems controlled by an onboard Marconi computing engine. 768 guns are deployed by 32 regular Heavy Regiments and total Army stocks are over 1200, not counting additional wartime attritional reserves.

The heaviest self propelled gun in large scale Royal Artillery service is the FV287, which carries a Mk XXIV 240mm gun-howitzer of 60 calibres. It is fielded by twelve superheavy regiments, primarily attached to Corps AGRA and the Royal Artillery Division. Their dual main roles are long range nuclear and conventional firepower, with their 360lb shells considered to be the most effective weapon against dug-in enemy positions and infrastructure in British field army service. Whilst current range is 48 miles, there are very promising efforts to extend this under Project Excalibur, which is also experimenting with engine improvements and an autoloader.

Given the comparatively small numbers of superheavy equipments, a decision was made during Korean War rearmament to generally standardise Western superheavy artillery on a 240mm calibre. This is reflected in the FV287, which saw the strange polite fiction of the 1950s 9.2” Mk XXIII Special adjusted to reflect real practice and avoid misinterpretation; this was thought to be the result of a War Office misprint and subsequent public ministerial announcement of a new and superior British design. Some confusion over the differing calibres did occur during the Six Day Middle Eastern War of 1956, leading to delivery of the wrong ammunition, but the subsequent cooling of Anglo-American relations put off any nomenclature alteration for the next few years.

The FV287 has a fully protected turret capable of 360 traverse and elevation to 75 degrees and carries 24 shells onboard, but these capabilities, in addition to a sufficient battle speed of 29mph come at a considerable cost in weight, coming in at 64 tons, not counting its accompanying support vehicle. There are plans to increase its relative mobility under Project Excalibur through installation of a new engine. In any event, the perceived value of the FV287 is such that further investment is seen as worthwhile; it’s battlefield performance in South Vietnam has met with universally positive reviews, particularly of its ability to destroy underground enemy bunker systems and clear out jungle landing zones with airburst rounds.

In Part 2: Rockets, Mortars and Siege Artillery

What no Pink beret.

How about a Raspberry Beret?

My goodness, ugh! I tend to eschew rock and roll and other children's music.

As for the colour, I left that out quite deliberately. At this point in time, Soviet Airborne Troops wore a raspberry beret and they are seen as one of the more likely threats for any raid or invasion of the British Isles. It wouldn't do to normalise the colour and detract from the message "If you see someone dressed like this, sound an alarm".