155mm M777A1 Howitzer

The M777 howitzer weapon system is a 155mm medium towed artillery weapon. The M777 may be assigned the tactical mission of direct support (DS), general support (GS), reinforcing (R), or general support reinforcing (GSR) roles. The M777 is an extended range weapon weighing 9,277 lbs without basic issue items. It can be towed by 10-ton vehicle. It fires a 95 lb projectile to a range of 24,000 meters (14 miles) or a rocket-assisted projectile to 30,000 meters (18 miles). Muzzle velocity (at Charge 8 Super) is 827 m/s, and the barrel life goes up to 2,650 firings.

A total of six M777 Lightweight 155mm Towed Howitzers (LWTH) with optical fire control sights were procured in 2005. With TF 1-06, A Battery 1 RCHA deployed with four of the six M777 howitzers in support of Operation ARCHER. Two howitzers remained in Canada to be used for training of follow-on rotations.

The first Digital Gun Management System (DGMS) was installed and trialed on the two training howitzers at CFB Petawawa in April 2006.

The M777 has a barrel length of 39 calibers and requires a crew of ten to operate at full capacity. It can fire with a reduced crew of five if necessary. It can be air lifted by the CH-47, CH-53D, CH-53E, or MV-22 helicopter or C-5, C-17, C-130, and C-141 fixed wing aircraft. The body of the M777 has trails, spades, and stabilizers that can be folded for transportation and storage. Unassisted, its maximum range is 24.7km.

It can pump out 5 rounds per minute, with a sustained rate of 2 rounds per minute.

In the dead of night or the thick of a storm, the M777 can fire its massive artillery with accurate precision - directly or indirectly - thanks to its optical fire control system, which is digitally compatible. It is also compatible with the new Raytheon XM982 Excalibur GPS/Inertial Navigation-guided extended range 155mm projectiles. These have a maximum range of 40km and a circular error probability (CEP) of 10m. Initial testing of the Excalibur was in August of 2003, and initial fielding was expected for 2006.

The M777 has been selected by the US Marine Corps and the US Army as their next-generation medium-force weapon. BAE Systems has developed a mobile version, the M777 Portee, which is mounted on a purpose-built 8x6 Supacat vehicle.

In this episode of "Future Weapons: The M777 Howitzer" host Richard "Mack" Machowicz takes a close look at the M777 howitzer.

Unidentified Canadian Artillery unit firing the M777 during a live fire exercise in Ft. Bliss Texas.