UPDATED 1 December 2007

TOWED RECOILLESS RIFLES

The Battle of Crete: World's First Air-Mech-Strike Operation: Airborne Victory, Amphibious Defeat

MYSTERY: we know with some certainty that the Kettenkrad motorcycle half-tracks were AIRLANDED by JU-52s at great risk onto Maleme airfield which was littered with destroyed aircraft. What we do not know is whether the LG40 75mm and LG42 105mm recoilless rifles were AIRDROPPED as 3 separate bundle loads from under the JU-52s and hand-towed into action initially or whether they airlanded with the motorcycle half-tracks.

LG40 75mm RR in ACTION on Crete!

LG42 105mm RR in ACTION on Crete!

The Germans were deploying a new weapon on Crete: the LG40 Panzerabwehrwerfer 7.5, a 75mm recoilless rifle. At 320 pounds, it weighed only a tenth as much as a standard German 75mm field gun, yet had two-thirds of its range. The new gun could fling a 13-pound shell over three miles. Adding to the airborne units' firepower was the fact that one-quarter of the German paratroopers jumped with an MP40 submachine gun, often carried in addition to a powerful bolt-action Mauser K98k rifle. Moreover, almost every German squad was equipped with an MG34 light machine gun.

The Germans used color-coded parachutes to distinguish the canisters carrying rifles, ammunition, crew-served weapons and other supplies. Heavy equipment like the LG40 was dropped with a special triple-parachute harness designed to bear the extra weight.

By the 24 May, the Germans were now being reinforced on a huge scale and had been resupplied to the point where they could begin to adopt conventional tactics supported by tactical air power and their own artillery. To the Allies' surprise, the Germans had brought artillery onto the island. This was unheard of in 1941, artillery being thought of as too cumbersome and heavy for airborne operations. The Germans had managed it by deploying one of the first recoilless guns seen in Europe. The recoilless gun had been invented by an American naval officer, Commander Davis during the First World War, and was very basic. Davis reasoned that if two guns were placed back to back and fired simultaneously, the recoil from both would cancel each other out. He made a gun with a single central chamber and two barrels facing in opposite directions. One barrel carried an explosive projectile, the other an equivalent weight of grease and lead shot. When the central cartridge was exploded the two projectiles were sent down their barrels at identical speeds making the entire mechanism free from recoil. The explosive shell went to its target while the wad of grease and shot disintegrated in the air. The Davis gun was purchased by the British and experiments undertaken to see if it could be used as an anti-submarine weapon but the war ended before the trials were completed. The German Rheinmetall company continued to experiment with the idea and eventually reduced it to a much simpler form. Reasoning that recoil could still be counterbalanced if the ejected 'countershot' was smaller but faster they found that the shell could be counterbalanced by a stream of gas moving at very high speed through a nozzle in the gun breech. The LG40 was of 75mm caliber, weighed 320lbs and fired a 13lbs high explosive shell to a range of 6.8km. The conventional 75mm gun of the German Army weighed 2,470lbs and fired the same shell to a range of 9.4km. Thus the recoilless rifle allowed virtually the same firepower as a conventional artillery piece with two-thirds the range but one eighth the weight.

The LG 40 was built in four parts, each capable of parachute decent without the need for special packing; the ordnance split into barrel and breech assembly, while a simple top carriage and a wheeled tripod assembly formed the rest of the equipment.

Although Rheinmetal were responsible for the basic research, both they and Krupp were given development contracts and both produced prototypes. The Krupp model used a simple side-swinging breech mechanism and was mounted on two motorcycle wheels, while the Rheinmetall type used a horizontal sliding breechblock and two small aircraft-type wheels.

The latter was the one accepted for service. Extensive use was made of light alloy in the mounting to save weight; and, to prevent the back blast from ricocheting on to the detachment, the elevation and traverse gears were interconnected so that the normal 360 degrees traverse was restricted to 30 degrees each way as soon as the elevation reached 20 degrees.

The firing mechanism was placed in a streamlined housing in the center of the jet venturi, so that a normal type primer in the center of the plastic case base could be used.

The danger area at the rear of the gun extended to 100 m (109 yds) for practice firing ot 50 m (55 yds) for combat firing; this, however, referred only to the actual jet blast, and stones and debris were disturbed some considerable distance beyond this. Firing instructions also emphasized the danger to the detachment members' ears from the blast, and recommended them to plug their ears tightly with clay or mud before firing. A total of 450 of these guns were made, 170 by Rheinmetall-Borsig at Dusseldorf.

Data

Caliber: 75 mm (2.95 in).
Length of gun: 750 mm (29.53 in).
Length of bore: 458 mm (18.03 in).
Rifling: 28 grooves, uniform right-hand twist, 1/52.
Breech mechanism: horizontal sliding block, percussion fired.
Traverse: 360 degrees below 20 degrees elevation, 60 degrees above 20 degrees elevation.
Elevation: -15 degrees to + 42 degrees.
Weight in action: 145 kg (320 lb).

Performance:

Firing standard high explosive shell weighing 5.83 kg (12.86 lb).

Full charge: velocity 350 m/ps (1,148 ft/ps), maximum range 6,800 m (7,434 yds).

Ammunition:

Separate-loading, cased charge.

Projectiles:

7.5 cm Gr 34 A1: fuzed K1 AZ 23, weight 5.75 kg (12.68 lb).
This was an high explosive shell, filled with a 90/10 mixture of TNT and aluminium powder.

7.5 cm Gr 38 H1/B: fuzed AZ 38, weight 4.40 kg (9.70 lb).
This is a hollow charge anti-tank shell.

These were the shells fired by the 7.5 cm Geb G.36.

7.5 cm Pzgr. rot: fuzed Bd Z f 7.5 cm Pzgr, weight 6.08 kg (14.99 lb).

This was an armor piercing high explosive shell of conventional pattern.

This was the shell fired by the 7.5 cm F K 16 nA.

Propelling charge

The charge consisted of a silk-cloth bag containing 1.21 kg (2.68 lb) of Digl Str P with a gunpowder igniter stitched to the bottom; this was carried in a cartridge case with an 85 mm (3.35 in) aperture in the base that was closed by a plastic disc. A percussion primer C/43 was screwed into the centre. The case-mouth was closed by a cardboard cup.

The design of the 75mm light gun relates to the recoilless rifles, in the breech of its stem is a nozzle for the release of solid-reactant gases outside, i.e., to the side, opposite to the direction of the motion of projectile. In this case the dynamic balancing occurs - stem with the shot remains fixed, thanks to which it is possible to forego the bulky and heavy antigravity devices. The development of recoilless rifles began in Germany in the middle thirties. They were necessary in order to ensure artillery for the fallschirmjägers, they were called "light weapons" due to secrecy. One such weapon is the 75- mm light gun, which was being used in the parachute divisions of the Wehrmacht against infantry targets and weapon emplacements. the first succesful use of the weapon was in the combat during the large-scale airborne operation on the seizure of Crete island in the spring of 1941.

The guns consists of following major portions: stem with the lock and the nozzle, upper machine tool with lift and swivel gears of guidance, lower machine tool with the tripod and tread with the cushioning of the sight mechanisms. The gun barrel consists of pipe- monoblock and breech, connected to the pipe with the aid of the sukharnogo lock. The lock is horizontal, wedge, which is opened/disclosed to the right. In the wedge of lock are openings for the release of the solid-reactant gases resultant with the shot back; the nozzle is fixed on the wedge. The upper machine tool poured from the light alloy revolves on the pintle of lower machine tool. Sectorial type lift and swivel gears are assembled on the upper machine tool. Lower machine tool consists of base, three feet and tread. Feet are hinged connected with the base of lower machine tool. In the firing position they are fixed with the aid of the stops. Rear feet are connected together upon transfer to the march position, and the nose wheel strut rises and is attached to the clip of stem. The tread consists of the tubular axle, in which is assembled torsion cushioning, and two disk wheels with the continuous rubber tires. The weight of gun in the firing position is 145 kg. For the landing by parachute method and for transportation on the drag harrows under the winter conditions the gun is divided into two parts (stem and gun carriage). The light weight of system gives a good maneuverability on the field of battle. The gun can conduct fire at the elevation from - 15° to 42° with the sector of horizontal field of fire 60°, and at the elevation from - 15° to 20° - with the sector of horizontal field of fire 360°. In this case is ensured the maximum range of shooting 8 100 meter. Ammunition to the 75 mm gun consists of special fixed rounds with the HE fragmentation, cumulative and armor-piercing shells. Case used in these cartridges has a bottom of plastic with the nest for primer cup. The bottom of the case flies out when firing and thus it makes it possible for the part of solid-reactant gases to leave back through the nozzle. The HE fragmentation projectile with a weight of 5,7 kg has the initial velocity of 376 m/s, shooting is conducted on the distance of 8 100 m. The shaped-charge shell with a weight of 4,6 kg has an initial velocity of 364 m/s and a firing distance 6 800 m. It is capable to penetrate armor with a thickness of 50 mm. As all recoilless rifles the 75- mm gun possesses such deficiencies as the disclosing action of the solid-reactant gases, which emerge from the nozzle, the presence from behind of the nozzle is hazardous zone as deep as 50 m, and also the outgoing of the nozzle gases produces a strong sound, which can damage the eardrums.

The caliber of 75 mm
Initial velocity of projectile: 376 m/s (HE fragmentation) 364 (cumulative)
The greatest angle of elevation: 42 degrees angle of depression -15 angle of the horizontal
Field of fire: 60 degrees
The weight when emplaced: 145 kg
Rate of fire: 8 shots/min
Maximum range of shooting: 6 800 - 8 100 m
Armor-piercing ability with shaped-charge shells: 50mm

TOWED RECOIL ARTILLERY

Later on, 57mm towed anti-tank guns were towed by jeeps from gliders for Operation Market-Garden (U.S. Airborne forces achieved their objectives) and even short-barrel 105mm howitzers just at war's end. This operation was a failure however, when British towed guns couldn't get into firing position to break through German road blocks on the way to Arnhem bridge. For meeting engagements, vehicles must have their firepower ready to fire, and our Airborne has long needed turreted light tanks or fixed assault guns to achieve this.

How Jeep-Towed AA/AT Guns Failed the British on the way to Arnhem

Even if your gun is towed by an ARMORED track, there's no guarantee that enemy fire will let you get out to put it into action

A mere pair of armored cars and some training students with rifles stopped two elite parachute battalions from reaching Arnhem bridge to reinforce LTC Frost who took an unopposed route. LTG Gavin reports that their jeeps towing AT guns couldn't get into return fire condition against the ready-to-fire armored cars. We know that Freddie Gough's Recce Squadron towed Polsten AA cannon. Whatever gun types they were towing, this inability to immediately return high explosive cannon fire to ward off a mere pair of armored cars RESULTED IN THE DEFEAT OF AN ENTIRE BATTLE EFFORT WITH STRATEGIC NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES.

Most everyone thinks the Germans are the epitome of military efficiency so let's see how long it takes them to stop, unlimber and put into action a small 37mm towed anti-tank gun.

Watch video at full speed fast forward to 9:30:

The small unarmored, wheeled truck stops at 9:32.

Still Sequence

The AT only fires what looks to be one round already in its breech at 9:48, so it takes 16 seconds under ideal conditions to get a towed AA/AT gun on a paved road into action. A less efficient crew would take longer. In a meeting engagement when the enemy spots you or you spot them and both sides open fire, the towed AA/AT gun crew cannot return fire for a fatal 16 seconds. A lot can go wrong.

1.) Crew is killed and truck/towed gun destroyed before they can dismount

2.) Crew is killed after they dismount, truck and gun still vulnerable to destruction

3.) Crew is only safe from frontal small arms fire 15 seconds later by virtue of a gunshield (U.S. towed guns no longer have these today) , but bullets can shred the gun's tires and immobilize it

4.) Any high explosive near miss BEHIND the gunshield wounds and kills the crew

Today, 105mm M119 light guns so decisive in the Falklands war in 1982, and even M198 155mm howitzers are parachute airdropped to give long-reaching fire support for Airborne infantry. However, avant garde' civilian wonks at DoD are anti-artllery in favor of aircraft-dropped expensive precision munitions and therefore tube artillery was not taken to Afghanistan, resulting in several U.S. deaths that could have been avoided had artillery was there to suppress enemy mortar fires.

The early Air Assault fire support vision history page

Early Army Air Assault doctrine wrongly omitted ground armored vehicles as a necessary part for its 3D combined-arms team in Vietnam since they can be in an always in a ready-to-fight configuration. The AR/AAV was supposed to be under 10-tons to facilitate CH-47 Chinook helicopter liftability but it ended up at 17-tons with the Sheridan light tank and thus too heavy. The early idea was for the helicopter to replace ALL ground vehicle functions; which was found to be impossible--Air-Mech-Strike solves this by providing a ground AFV to give infantry mobility, dominant firepower, armored protection and a means to carry ammunition/vital supplies in greater than manpack quantities. Early Airborne/Air Assault doctrine depended on artillery in distant "firebases" to give foot mobile aircraft-delivered infantry firepower, however this distant firepower was not responsive or accurate enough for a close-in firefight to not land on friendly troops. Later in the Vietnam war, the firebases themselves became the targets of the enemy (Dien Bien Phu, Khe Sanh) to destroy with LONG-RANGE ARTILLERY FIRE and eventually rendered the Air Assault concept given to the South Vietnamese Army (ARVN) untenable. Air-Mech-Strike would solve this by having "tanks" and infantry carrier versions accompany AMS forces after aircraft insertion and having mobile artillery that would not necessarily need a defended firebase to operate. The goal of today's artillery firing area rockets and precision munitions would be to Suppress (SEAD) and Destroy (DEAD) enemy air defense weaponry to facilitate cross-FLOT operations as well as clear Drop/Landing Zones determined first by C4I "virtual pathfinding" means.

The U.S. infantryman over the years has come to expect and get continuous artillery support on call. The artilleryman in turn has depended on the infantry to secure his positions and keep his supply routes open. In Vietnam no simple solutions were available to continue this long-established teamwork. The early designers of the airmobile division had recognized that they would have to sacrifice the heavy 155mm howitzers and be content with moving the 105mm howitzer with the Chinook helicopter. As it turned out, a 155mm howitzer battalion was continuously attached to the 1st Cavalry. It was teamed with the CH-54 SkyCrane to become an integral part of the Division's fire support, even though it was not officially "organic." The Little John (surface-to-surface guided missile) rocket had been included in the original organization, but when the 1st Cavalry deployed to Vietnam, the Little John was deleted due to tactical and manpower considerations. To make up for this deficiency in firepower, an aerial rocket artillery battalion (ARA) was organized as the general support artillery. It consisted of three firing batteries, each equipped with twelve Huey helicopters armed with 2.75-inch aerial rockets.

The eratic impact trajectory of the 2.75" rockets lead to turning CH-47s into flying "Guns-a-Go-Go" gunships described below at the bottom of this web page but egos in the ARA community were bruised and they sabotaged this important concept from continuing.

Unguided 2.75 inch Hydra 70mm rockets have limitations in how close they can be used to friendly troops which enemies can exploit with "belt buckle" hugging tactics. This asymmetric tactic can be negated by attack aircraft with observers to direct guns and by increasing Hydra 70mm accuracy through low-cost guidance means.

The airmobile tactics of the 1st Cavalry Division, its speed of maneuver, and the distances involved required drastic changes in the techniques and development of fire support co-ordination. For one thing, the air was filled with a number of new objects-hundreds of troop transport helicopters, armed helicopters, reconnais[s]ance aircraft, and tactical air support. Through this same atmosphere thousands of shells from tube artillery had to travel. Fire support co-ordination during the critical air assault phase of an operation was the most difficult to resolve. The tactical air support, tube and aerial artillery, and sometimes naval gunfire and B-52 bombers had to be integrated without danger to the friendly forces and without firepower gaps that would relieve the pressure on the enemy. Only careful planning and carefully worked out standing operating procedures could make this manageable.

As an example, the 1st Cavalry Division had a zone system based on the twelve hour clock superimposed on the map location of each firing position. North was at 12:00 o'clock. Prior to firing, the artillery units announced over the aircraft guard frequencies the danger areas such as "firing in zones three and four, altitude 3,000 feet." It was incumbent on the pilot to check for artillery fire prior to approaching a landing zone. As an additional precaution, canonneers scanned the skies in the direction of fire prior to pulling the lanyard while observers checked the forward end of the trajectory.

During the first battle of the Ia Drang Valley, the 1st Cavalry had covered such a wide zone that the placement of artillery was of utmost importance. Not only was it necessary to cover the landing zones of the attacking forces, but it was also necessary to place artillery in such a position that it could cover another artillery unit for mutual support. In this "war without front lines," the artilleryman found himself often confronting the enemy face to face. It was not long before the artillery decided it would be good practice to collocate itself with the infantry battalion reserve.

During MASHER-WHITE WING, the 155-mm howitzer was airlifted for the first time using the CH-54 "SkyCrane" helicopter. During this same campaign, it became an accepted technique to select hilltops for artillery positions since these were easier to defend and provided open fields of fire.

Artillery has always been notorious for consuming large tonnages of ammunition. Again this is symptomatic with the kind of support that the U. S. infantryman has taken for granted. However, in Vietnam where practically every round had to be delivered by air, artillery ammunition proved to be one of the biggest logistics problems. Commanders had to exert supervision at all levels to make sure that the right fire support means was chosen for the target of the moment. A wise commander did not spend too much ammunition on harassment and interdiction fires that could not be observed.

The airmobile artilleryman had learned to fire in all directions with a minimum of confusion. He became accustomed to rapid and frequent moves and developed confidence in his airmobile prime mover, the Chinook. He even developed his own special tactics, known as "the artillery raid." In this case, an artillery battery would be moved deep into suspected enemy territory, rapidly fire prepared concentrations on targets that had been developed by intelligence, and then pull out before the enemy could react. Some of these raids were conceived, planned, and executed in less than three hours.

Workable methods were found to employ aerial rocket artillery at night, but the mainstay of fire support during the hours of darkness remained the tube artillery. Seldom was an infantry unit required to hold a position at night out of range of its friendly guns.

Close-in fire support has always been inherently dangerous. In the fluid situation of the airmobile battlefield, the ever present danger of the proverbial "short round" is multiplied by all the points on the compass. An error in any direction may well result in friendly casualties. As a result, coordination and control of all fire, the knowledge of the exact location of every friendly element is more important in the Air-Mech-Strike capable Division than in any other combat force. AMS solves this gap in fire support coverage in close by providing light armored fighting vehicle firepower so artillery will be used less and armored protection organic to infantry on the ground so even if a round falls short our men will not be harmed.

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M119 105mm "light gun" victor in the Falklands war

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M777 155mm UltraLightweight Howitzer (ULH)

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Self-Propelled 105-155mm Howitzers: endangered species in the U.S. Army

Soltam RASCAL C-130 air-transportable 155mm SPH

The Rascal 155mm SPH

M109A6 PALADIN 155mm SPH

Paladin fact sheet

UDLP CRUSADER C-17 air-transportable 155mm SPH

Official Crusader web site

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Battle: Secretary Rumsfeld, airpower advocates about to overrun "Firebase Crusader"

The ambush that November day nearly 37 years ago was a total surprise to the American column on its way to Landing Zone Albany in the Ia Drang Valley. The well-prepared North Vietnamese attack separated, killed and wounded many American troops. In some areas, the North Vietnamese were inside the defensive perimeter, moving toward the positions occupied by the Americans.

Often on the battlefield, a shot would ring out, followed by a scream. The enemy was taking no prisoners.

Lt. Bob Jeanette, a weapons officer of the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry, was severely wounded, but had a radio. "As it got dark, I was still in the same position. I was trying to maintain contact with whoever I had talking to me back at brigade. There was a lull in the battle, and suddenly I was talking to an artillery outfit.

"The North Vietnamese were now running around the area, and we could see them moving. Bunches of 10, 20, more of them circling the perimeter of the landing zone. It was maybe 150 yards to the landing zone perimeter, and the enemy were between us and them."

Ultimately, Jeanette was able to convince the artillery unit to bring high explosive rounds down on top of the enemy.

"I never really knew how effective that artillery fire was until two things happened," he remembered.

The first incident happened while he was recovering from wounds at St. Albans Navy Hospital in New York, "I met someone who had been in that fight, a 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry guy, who came over to me and thanked me for that artillery fire. I was out in the halls on my crutches for exercise and he came up to me on crutches, too. He had an empty trouser leg. He told me the artillery took his leg, but it saved his life and he was grateful. I was stunned."

Later at Fort Levenworth, Jeanette met a sergeant who was in the same battle whose position was about 50 yards from his position. "Sgt. Howard said that every time the enemy got close to them, the artillery would come in close, too, and really whack them. He said the artillery fire was the only thing that kept the enemy away and kept them alive."

The above is just one of many war stories from the Vietnam conflict, but maybe the civilian movers and shakers in Washington need to re-read "We Were Soldiers Once And Young" by Lt. Gen. Hal Moore and Joseph Galloway.

The scene described occurred after air strikes by the highly efficient A-1E Skyraiders. Despite napalm and other ordnance, many enemy soldiers remained alive. It took artillery fire to save American lives.

That was long ago. But proof that it wasn't just an artifact of history emerged only weeks ago during Operation Anaconda in Afghanistan, when a U.S. infantry company found itself under mortar and rocket fire for nearly 12 hours without close air support. Unfortunately, it also had no artillery support: the unit's artillery had been left behind in the U.S.

Pentagon civilians who threaten to cut the Crusader artillery system seem to have forgotten their history. Airpower is a wonderful tool, but it isn't enough. Infantrymen on the ground need the combined firepower of both close air support and artillery.

Strangely, combat veterans who understand the value of combined firepower have been deafeningly quiet about the need for more advanced artillery. That's hard to understand, because they know air power has its limitations and that their grandsons will pay the price.

In the late 1940s when air power advocates tried to eliminate aircraft carriers and shift responsibility for power projection to the Air Force, active duty admirals revolted, cranked up the public relations machine on the need for Naval airpower and won.

The battle for Crusader may be over. The "after action report" will be prepared soon. Maybe the report should look at why the Army failed to convince the Pentagon, public and President that the Crusader was a vital asset. If so, it should also examine why the combat veterans who experienced the live-saving value of artillery hid in their foxholes.

"If, as now seems likely, the Defense Department decides to defy congressional opposition and axe the Army's controversial Crusader howitzer program, the Army must share with its reformist critics responsibility for the program's cancellation.

By acceding with astonishingly little resistance to critics' disparagement of today's operational force as a legacy of the Cold War, the Army has undercut the most compelling argument for Crusader and for many of its other modernization programs as well. To a considerable extent, the Army itself, not Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, may have sacrificed Crusader on the alter of "transformation".

Note that the question is not whether the Army should transform. Few in or out of uniform doubt that it must. Instead, the operative question is whether transformation should apply to the entire Army or just a notional "Objective" force achievable sometime in the not very clear and probably not very near future.

On this score, the Army's public stance has been incomprehensible. It is one thing to acknowledge and repair a longstanding and troublesome gap in ground combat capabilities between the Army's light and heavy forces, and to look for better ways to exploit new information technologies. The Army is doing both as a matter of urgency, and so it should.

But it is another matter altogether to accept without quarrel reformists' facile contention that today's fielded forces, including our heavy forces, are strategically and tactically obsolete. Here evidence surrenders to speculation. Indeed, what little evidence there is, including that of our own operations in Somalia and Afghanistan and Israeli operations in the West Bank, suggests the opposite conclusion.

And yet, it is precisely that contention that now threatens Crusader. In the end, critics' real objections to Crusader are less to the system itself, complaints about its bulk notwithstanding, than to the Army it is intended to support, which is to say the one we have.

Because those objections arise on different and overlapping levels, they are not easy to answer. At the most basic level, some critics simply discount the threat of major conflict, at least for the next decade or so. Others reluctant to go quite that far, especially after 9-11, insist that any such conflict can be won from a distance, in effect relegating ground forces to mopping up. And even among those unwilling to discount altogether the prospect of ground combat operations, some now believe the heavy lifting can be done on the cheap by special operations forces backed by airpower.

Reflecting as they do irresolvable assumptions about when and where a future war might erupt and against whom, such views are almost impossible to refute. As a practical matter, however, they also are largely irrelevant. For better or worse, the Army we have is the one we on which we will depend for years to come. Hence the more pertinent issue is what should be done to prolong its ability to fight and win.

Here, the central complaint is that today's Army is too bulky to deploy quickly and too cumbersome to win quickly when it arrives. Critics cite the months required to assemble a decisive ground force during the Persian Gulf War (carefully ignoring the astonishingly swift victory that followed) and the Army's dilatory response during the Kosovo conflict (equally ignoring the prolonged political and internal military resistance to committing ground forces that preceded it).

Situational specifics apart, however, strategic and tactical agility are much less hostage to the Army's materiel than to the way it is organized and employed. For example, today's armored forces are far more agile and lethal than their predecessors, but their basic tactical organization and employment have changed little in decades.

Similarly, five years of study have revealed a host of organizational and operational changes not solely dependent on new investment that would materially increase the efficiency of Army logistical operations, eliminating the "iron mountain" of supplies about which so many have complained. But few of those changes have yet been applied to today's force.

Finally, with specific reference to Crusader, even the Army's new medium-weight brigades, intended to fill the light-heavy gap noted earlier, include a full battalion of towed howitzers, at the price of tens of heavy airlift sorties. Assuming they performed as advertised, two or three Crusaders, were they available, would do the same job better for a fraction of the lift.

By restricting its transformation efforts to its Interim and Objective forces and resolutely ignoring relatively inexpensive ways to reconfigure its fielded forces, the Army effectively has mortgaged its present to its future. Why should Mr. Rumsfeld or anyone else spend millions on a weapon intended to support what the Army itself dismisses as a "legacy" force?

In a recent conversation, a congressional staffer commented to me, "We want to help the Army. We just can't figure out what it really wants us to support."

Taking the good Colonel's arguments further....

We can make a version of the Crusader Self-Propelled howitzer on a stretched M113 MTVL 11-ton light tracked XM1108 platform like the Soltam RASCAL 155mm SPH attached and make it even lighter than its current 39 tons on a heavier tracked platform. Of course this contradicts the 19-24 ton LAV-III armored car as IAV decision which is also too heavy to fly by C-130s, but its the way the Army should go to overcome opposition criticism that its latest SPHs are not air-transportable "enough".

The point of having ground-based artillery is that you cannot rely on aircraft to suppress the enemy to enable MANEUVER as the 1973 IDF learned the hard way:

1973 Yom Kippur War Analysis

But this fight is not about doing MANEUVER, both Rumsfield and current Army leaders want to do FIREPOWER bombardment to try to win wars. Crusader to the current Army leadership is a way to bombard a digitized pinball game of a battlefield for their LAV-III/IAV armored cars to afterwards roll in and hand out candy/food for the U.N.

Both AF blue and Army green bombard and occupy (BO) are wrong, but automated SP Artillery like Crusader is a good and needed weapon for decisive MANEUVER that encircles, collapses and destroys enemies like the Taliban, al Queda and the Republican Guard even if current Army leaders just want to do "precision strikes" to get footage to show on CNN.

We should simply scale Crusader back to production for III Corps units that would do Desert Storm II to save money for what we need now to fight the war on terror: upgrade M113A3s, buy some M8 AGS light tanks and cancel immobile, vulnerable LAV-III armored car purchases.

We should realize that gold-plating munitions with guidance and then throwing them away when we could put the guidance into precision accurate aiming is smarter and in the long run cheaper. We cannot shoot $1 million dollar shells to kill individual Taliban Soldiers. We are on an anti-physical mentalism kick that forgets that in war you need PHYSICAL effects, and to get that muscle we have to pay for it up front in the platforms that physically launch; things like Crusader and Iowa class battleships. The precision munitions people cannot saturate large areas where dispersed enemy infantry are to facilitate MANEUVER to finish them off. We forget that the whole point of PRECISION is that it works against POINT targets. The ability to fire faster like an automatic SPH like Crusader can to get 8 cheap "wooden" shells but guided with precision aiming to cover an area to destroy a dispersed enemy is vital.

And at the same time we are building 3D Cavalry-type AMS forces we can get the speed the strategic deployment of 2D forces by low-cost improvements.

APS-3 Sealift

1. Ocean swim kits for the M113A3 Gavins to swim selves to shore

2. Stern shelf on TAKR-300/310 ships to hold a LCAC or sea sled to shuttle M1/M2/Crusader-Paladins ashore or buy one old amphib and assign to APS-3

3. Place Heavy Brigade that will link up with APS-3 vehicles parachute jump qualify (will separate cowards from those that want to collect a paycheck)

4. Buy old carrier or clear off deck of TAKR-300/310 sealift ship to make a "Jeep" carrier for Army helicopters to shuttle M113A3s and M973A2 armored SUSVs ashore

Details:

Seabased: the correct use of seapower for decisive maneuver

Many of the technowonks have called for buying the in-service German 155mm SPH PZH2000. The PZH gun weighs 62 tons. It has no resupply vehicle. Crusader weighs 40 tons. Its resupply vehicle weighs 38 tons. The only relevant point of the size is that two Crusader or one and its resupply vehicle will fit on a C-17. It is automated so the 48 rounds onboard the howitzer can be resupplied from the 100 round resupply vehicle in 12 minutes. The PZH does not have a resupply vehicle nor does it have the auto resupply capability and it takes about an hour to reload the 60 rounds it carries. The crew on the Crusader is separated from the ammo, not so with PZH. In the time it takes Crusader to program and fire 15 rounds, displace 750 meters, reload, and fire the next mission, Paladin has only been able to fire seven of the 15 rounds. Another point of consideration is that Crusader can deploy on C-17 with ammo loaded. Paladin flies empty with pallets of ammo that have to be broken down and loaded at the other end. If necessary for Airfield security, Crusader can roll off and be able to provide security in all directions out to 50 km and fire with in 90 seconds of off-load. It took a whole battery of Paladins to provide security for Task Force Hawk in Albania. Four Crusaders could have covered the entire area of Kosovo.

There are so many reasons why Crusader makes sense for the Army's artillery requirements. Truth is, if they had transformed the artillery unit structure to take advantage of the 3:1 advantage of Crusader, they might not be having their problems with the DoD budget-cutters. They have tried to hold onto their force structure and their organization and that is being used against them to justify killing the system. Crusader makes sense for both the 2D counterattack corps and the light AMS 3D forces which lack the punch they need and instead need to rely on the speed and precision of Crusader for the asymmetrical threats that our forces most likely would face, keep this in mind.

If DoD succeeds in killing the program, much of the $2 billion that has been invested in the program and the technological developments could be lost since a cold stop means pulling the plug. It's as if you pull the plug on your computer before you save your word document. Some of the date is saved but if you're like me you don't constantly think about it and all of a sudden your data is gone. You also have lost the intellectual capital that was working on the program. Without their thoughts and ideas it is tough to move the technologies to other programs much less recreate what you had. Some of the technologies that are involved include object oriented software; real-time common operating environment; ammunition handling; spray-cooling technology; electronics that allow field replacement of interior printed circuit boards; fully automated ammunition handling mechanism, a capability whereby a single howitzer crew (3 men) can perform the technical and tactical fire direction for up to 5 howitzers thus providing the potential to eliminate the current fire direction center within a platoon; first ground combat vehicle "cockpit"; human systems integration (only shirt-sleeve environment combat platform); the only combat platform that has an integrated solution to support interoperability interface with fire control, (AFATDS), situational awareness (FBCB2) and logistics infrastructure (GCSS-Army); survivability including innovative supplemental ballistic protection; susceptibility reduction; laser ignition system; universal inductive fuze setter that allows 12 rounds per minute; projectile tracking system.

When you put all this together and you consider the lack of analysis that DoD put into their suggested alternatives it is staggering how cavalier and imperial the decision process has become.

Artillery Gun System (AGS): Someone read our AMS book!; Europeans offer a long-range 155mm SPH far superior to our shortbarrel FCS NLOCS-C that's still air transportable by clever split-loading

Kudos to Mark Ash for finding this!

In both editions of our Air-Mech-Strike book, we advocated using the PLS flat rack system to shoot rockets and tube artillery. Maybe the Germans picked up on the idea?

Bad news about the NLOS-Cannon FCS howitzer. Not only is its short barrel result in short-range THERE IS NO SPACE INSIDE TO CARRY ANY CREW, just a driver in front. This implies a SECOND 20-ton NLOS-FDC FCS vehicle = 40 tons = same weight as a M109A6 Paladin but at less range which is fatal in an artillery duel between armies.

We should cancel NLOS-C and FCS and buy AGM and mount it on a XM1108 Gavin /MLRS carrier on band tracks with hybrid-electric drive. We can get not only C-130 air-transportability, we can get the 40 km long range we must have fired by a 2-man crew in one vehicle and not two.

www.army-technology.com/projects/artillery

ARTILLERY GUN MODULE (AGM) MEDIUM WEIGHT SELF PROPELLED HOWITZER, GERMANY

Krauss-Maffei Wegmann's Artillery Gun Module (AGM) is an air-transportable, medium-weight, turreted self-propelled howitzer based on the proven technology of the PzH 2000 SP howitzer in service with the German Army. The system is fully autonomous and provides the same performance as the PzH 2000, but with reduced cost, crew levels and weight.

The gun module can be fitted on a tracked or wheeled chassis. The intention is to integrate the gun module into available in-service chassis for the customer country and to set up co-production arrangements with the local in-country chassis producer to provide a cost effective and medium weight indirect fire support platform.

The Artillery Gun Module development has been based on the 155mm / L52-calibre gun but the system could also be adapted for a lighter gun such as a 105mm gun or 39-calibre 155mm gun.

The module can be fitted on a heavy 6x6 or 8x8 chassis, a tracked Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) hull or a main battle tank hull. It is necessary to fit hydraulically operated stabilisers and firing spades to wheeled platforms for the vehicle to withstand the recoil. The AGM installed on an MLRS chassis has a combat weight of 27t. Mounted on a 6x6 truck the combat weight is about 22.5t compared to the PzH 2000 combat weight of about 55t.

Under a completely separate programme led by shipbuilders HDW, a naval modular artillery gun, MONARC, is being developed that integrates the gun turret and autoloader from the PzH 2000 into the deck of a naval vessel.

PROOF-OF-PRINCIPLE DEMONSTRATOR

The development programme was started in early 2003. A proof-of-principle demonstrator has been built with a 52-calibre gun mounted on an MLRS tracked chassis. Preliminary verification firing trials of the proof-of-principle demonstrator were successfully carried out at the German Army's live firing range at Meppen in August and September 2004. 79 rounds were fired during the trials. Most were Zone 6 firings using Rheinmettall DM72 charge systems with a 52°C charge temperature.

The proof-of-principle demonstrator was not built with an autoloader and was manually loaded for the trials. The system successfully fired with the turret in the forward and rear positions and up to 45° in azimuth on either side of these positions. The firing tests were completed at all elevations. Some firings, but not at all elevations, were carried out with the turret at 90° to the forward position and using the most powerful Zone 6 charges.

SECOND DEMONSTRATOR

Assembly of a fully functioning second demonstrator started in the second quarter of 2005 and is scheduled for full firing trials starting in late 2005. The demonstrator includes a fully automatic loading system which loads the projectiles and the charges. A new six-cylinder engine and transmission is intended to be installed in the next evolutionary step.

GUN MODULE

The system is operated by a crew of two.

The AGM uses the main gun components from the PzH 2000, i.e. the barrel and elevating mass, the shell loader and flick rammer. The system also has a separate dedicated auxiliary power unit. The turret is of lightweight aluminium armour construction.

The 12.5t turret carries 30 projectiles and charges. The autoloader is based on a modified PzH 2000 shell loader and an automatic charge loader. The charge loader will automatically compose the selected charges using any Joint Ballistics Memorandum of Understanding (JBMOU) compliant charge module. The autoloader is powered by a 24V electrical supply.

A lifting system is installed at the front of the turret allowing the crew to reload the magazine from outside the vehicle. The ammunition feed has an automatic inductive fuse setting system. The pneumatically operated flick rammer rams the shells into the breech with elevation angle-dependent ramming pressure control.

CHASSIS

The MLRS chassis is modified with stronger torsion bars and extra shock absorbers.

The crew cabin is separated from the firing module. The crew cabin is fitted with a computerised fire control system with the NATO Armament Ballistic Kernel software implemented and linked to the KMW Artillery Command and Control System or to other command and control systems. The system can be loaded and fired manually.

The cabin provides protection against small arms rounds, anti-personnel mines, bomblets and nuclear, biological and chemical warfare attack.

PERFORMANCE

The AGM can fire against stationary and moving targets at a rate of 6 to 8 rounds per minute including Multiple-Round Simultaneous-Impact (MRSI) firing. Using standard rounds the maximum range is 30km; this is increased to more than 40km with base bleed rounds.

The into-action and out-of-action times for the AGM are similar to those of the PzH 2000 - approx. 30 seconds. The system receives target data via a radio link either while it is on the move or in a defilade position. The laying and loading data is computed and the firing command is executed. Immediately after firing the last round, the vehicle leaves the firing position in a shoot-and-scoot manoeuvre to avoid counter battery fire.

AIR TRANSPORTABILITY

The howitzer on the MLRS chassis is air transportable on an Airbus A400M transporter aircraft. With the gun in the forward position lowered over the cab the barrel overhangs the vehicle by 2.5m. For air transport, the Artillery Gun Module is 10.42m long, 2.97m wide and 3.06m high.

www.army-technology.com/projects/artillery/specs.html

SPECIFICATIONS - ARTILLERY GUN MODULE (AGM) MEDIUM WEIGHT SELF PROPELLED HOWITZER, GERMANY

Key Data

Crew 2
Dimensions
Height 3.06m
Width 2.97m
Length 10.42m
Weights
Weight module 12.5t
Weight with MLRS hull 27t
Weight with 6x6 truck Estimated at less than 23t
Weapons
Barrel 155mm, 52-calibre
Ammunition NATO standard 155mm

Performance

Traverse 360°
Rate of fire 6 to 8 rounds per minute
Range, standard 155mm rounds 30km
Range, base bleed rounds >40km
Air transportability C-130, A400M

The Army under Vanderpool did the indirect rocket helicopter mission even better by USING THE HELICOPTER ITSELF AS THE LAUNCHER.

www.redstone.army.mil/history/aviation/docs/gunsagogo.html

LTC Carle E. Dunn, USA-Ret. writes:

The CH-34 was the most powerful, single reciprocating engine helicopter in the Army. Its lift capabilities far exceeded others. Also, it had an ideal capability for the project underway. The rotors could be disengaged while the engine remained operating. Why was this important? When firing rockets in an indirect fire mode, it's best that the rotor blades be stationary.

The situation encountered was this. Rocket pods were mounted on each side of an H-34. The pods held 4.5-inch rockets -- 48 of them. The concept was to fire from the ground in an indirect fire mode, i.e., the same as regular artillery. A forward observer (FO) would locate a target and initiate a fire mission. Adjusting rounds would be fired into the desired impact area. The FO would adjust fire onto the target. Then a salvo would be unleashed to fire for effect. This was standard artillery procedure.

However, the weapon system was anything but standard. And, some methods used were truly innovative. Moreover, some super-scrounging took place. The Navy had 12 railroad boxcar loads of 4.5-inch rockets. They intended to dump these missiles in the ocean. Someone at Sill convinced the Navy to ship them to the Artillery Center. They were quite pleased to present the Army with these vintage projectiles.

Field artillery employment doctrine defined tactical procedures for the H-34 test. To illustrate, imagine a planned offensive. Two H-34s are on station (in flight) in direct support of a ground unit. The FO contacts Fire Direction Center (FDC) personnel aboard one of the 34s. He calls for a fire mission.

A key element, in any field artillery mission, is direction of fire. In the evaluation scenario, initial direction of fire is laid using the Radio Magnetic Indicators aboard the 34s. The pilots land their craft pointed in this general direction. This is just as effective as many an artillery mission where the direction of fire comes from a magnetic compass.

FDC personnel know where the FO is. They also know the target's location. And, they have a direction of fire. The next objective is to get rounds on the way for the FO to adjust.

Upon landing, two individuals rush to the 34's tail wheel. They place a fabricated set of rollers beneath it. The rollers are about the size of roller skate wheels. They are held together in a semicircular frame. This enhances the ability to easily move the aft pylon while pointing the craft for direction.

Meanwhile, an artilleryman adjusts the rocket pods for elevation. He does this using a common lug wrench, similar to one used to remove lug nuts from a car's wheel. To assure correct elevation, he places a gunner's quadrant atop each pod. The elevation on the quadrant is determined by the FDC. When the gunner sees the quadrant's bubble center, the pods are at the correct elevation. Once set, two rockets are fired.

The bursting radius of a 4.5-inch rocket is about the same as a 105-mm howitzer projectile. If the FO can get two rounds within 50 meters of the target, the subsequent rocket salvo from both aircraft should be effective.

These missions took place. I watched. Moreover, I helped evaluate data from the "tests." There was controversy within the artillery community. The Infantry school, at Fort Benning, Georgia, provided their input. These idea exchanges, comments and opinions were healthy. They were helping mold future development.

A heated debate arose over which rocket to use. There were avid supporters of only using 2.75-inch rockets and restricting their use to a direct fire mode. The Infantry School stood firm on this issue.

The smaller missile, with its fin stabilization, was absolutely useless as an indirect fire projectile. This particular rocket bad enough problems in a direct fire role. Its tendency to "weather vane," i.e., turn into the wind, caused its Circular Probable Error (CPE) to be quite large in a crosswind. One comment beard at a meeting was, "Hell, there's no telling where the damn thing will go. Its CPE is already something like a 100 meters in a 1000. That's dangerous shooting close to troops!" Those words would ring in my ears during my first Vietnam tour.

Test reports from the CH-34 evaluation showed it to be almost as accurate as a 105-mm projectile when fired indirectly. The 34s also fired these rockets in a direct mode. They had similar problems as the 2.75 but not nearly as bad. A civilian defense contractor, I think it was Lockheed, had an impressive solution. The 4.5-inch, because of its larger size, could be fitted with a stabilization device. They wanted to rig the missile with a pyrotechnic gyro.

I personally attended a briefing by two representatives explaining how this device worked. Upon firing, a powder train ignited which caused a gyro to "spin-up" in 1/10th of a second. No wind, crosswinds, whatever. . . where that thing was pointed when it fired is where it went. Stated CPE was 1 meter in a one thousand. With a bursting radius of 35 to 50 meters, that's deadly at 3000 meters (9 feet approx.). To my knowledge the Army never tried this arrangement.

One evaluation consideration was aircraft vulnerability. A particularly worrisome part was when they were on the ground during a fire mission. Someone asked the question, "Why do they have to land to fire?"

This question raised some interesting observations. The most obvious were the rockets hitting the rotor blades after a launch. Some reflection brought to mind that machine guns had been firing through turning propellers since World War I (WWI). Simply link the firing mechanism to the transmission in such a way that rockets would go between the turning blades. This idea gave me goose bumps.

Furthermore, there was having to determine a firing solution while in flight. The firing battery would be on the move. The aircraft-target relationship would constantly change. No big deal, the Navy had been doing this for more than half a century.

Chuck Jarnot's T-MARS on trailer using MLRS 227mm rockets

AMS-SG author proposes we use MLRS packs on trailers to do air-mech artillery raids.

OTHER SELF-PROPELLED PRECISION ARTILLERY

A fascinating description of how the U.S. Army put America into space through its mobile surface-to-surface ballistic missile (SSM) program can be read on the web page below dedicated to pioneer General James M. Gavin's startling 1958 book, "War and Peace in the Space Age":

Generals Gavin and Medaris created the world's first mobile SSMs that could be deployed by aircraft in addition to their high ground mobility proven effective by the Allied Air Forces inability to target much less destroy German mobile V-2 missiles on transporter/erector launchers. This failure to defeat mobile launchers predates our failure with Scuds in Gulf War 1 and the Israeli Air Force in the recent war in Lebanon.

A very interesting short-range SSM with conventional high explosive or nuclear warhead capability is the Lance still in use by the Israeli Defense Forces.

Lance SSM on M113 Gavin modified M667 all-terrain tracked transporter/erector/launcher

2 x Lance SSMs carried on resupply carrier

Lance SSM M667 all-terrain tracked TEL Parachute VADL from C-130 Hercules

Amphibious Lance SSMs!

Lance SSM on wheeled trailer/erector/launcher

Chinook sling-load of Lance SSM on trailer from under the AMS-SG's own YCH-47A "Ghost Ship"!

CH-47B/C/D model sling-load of Lance SSM

CH-47 internal load RO-RO carry of Lance SSM on trailer

CH-47 sling-load of Lance SSM on trailer from under a CH-54

Stuka in flight

Stuka painting

Stuka versus grunt animation

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Russian IL-2 "Sturmovik"

Excellent web page on IL-2

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Lockheed P-38 "Lightning" (German nickname:"Fork-tailed devil")

The first aircraft we had the out-performed the Japanese Zero and the German Me-109 is best described in Martin Caidin's book "P-38: Fork Tailed Devil". Like all of the other U.S. Army Air force/Corps planes in WWII, it could operate from operate from unimproved flying strips; a "Cactus Air Force"; a capability lost with today's pampered air force planes that need long, vulnerable concrete runways to operate and thus are miles away from the action on the ground resulting in Close Air Support being everything but "close". When the Japanese war mastermind, Yamamoto was flying a distance away, the 339th Fighter squadron was able to intercept and shoot him down, perhaps the critical act that sped up the war's end. With Air-Mech-Strike we will correct this. An enigmatic airplane because its guns are in the nose with the pilot and thus more easily aimed/bore-sighted than wing-mounted guns. The FACT that America's highest scoring aces Army Air Force pilots Bong (40)and Maguire (38) flew the P-38 is proof positive. We highly recommend the film, "A guy named joe" to see the P-38 in action to include an air-to-ground role. One questioned noone has answered however is how you bail out from a P-38 without hitting the rear stabilizer?

P-38 Specifications

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USAAF P-39 "AiraCobra"

Legendary low-level, armored CAS aircraft used by the U.S. Army Air Force 67th Fighter Squadron and 347th Fighter Wing "Cactus Air Force" on Guadalcanal to defeat the Japanese Army operated from unimproved dirt and matted landing strips like "Fighter 2". After saving the marines, the Army took over the ground fighting and finished clearing the Japanese off of the island. You see this brilliantly depicted in the film, "A Thin Red Line"

P-39 statistics

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American P-40 "Flying Tiger"

Heavily armed and armored plane could out-dive the Japanese Zero; used to bomb/strafe in Far East Asia with the American Volunteer Group (AVG) "Flying Tigers" and with the RAF in North Africa. Highly recommend "God is my co-pilot" by BG Robert L. Scott.

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P-47 Thunderbolt

ALL you'll ever want to know about how the P-47 was designed/constructed...and then some

The Thunderbolt was a massive airplane, the biggest and the heaviest single engine, single-placed fighter ever built. The engine, the Pratt & Whitney 18 cylinder twin-row radial, developed 2,000 H.P., was the most powerful engine at the time. However, in turn, it needed a highly efficient duct system for its super-charger. The designer, Alaxander Kartveli designed the duct system first, then build the fuselage around it. The heavy fighter was not an instant winner with the pilots that initally took it to combat. The American Ex-Eagle Squadron pilots hated it from the beginning, but the 56th Fighter Group pilots, who initally trained on the P-47, loved it! Low-altitude air-to-air combat remained a problem until a paddle blade was added, but high-altitude combat was a different story. Being radial, piston-engined using air cooling, the P-47 could take a lot of battle damage to its engine and still fly home, whereas a liquid-cooled P-51 could be shot down if its cooling system was damaged. The P-51s were used for high-altitude bomber escort missions where their streamlined high-performance was necessary to shoot down German ME-109s and FM-190s. The short range of the P-47 was a distinct handicap until the auxiliary fuel tanks were added. When it came to strafing and dive bombing, the big P-47 excelled. Following D-Day, in France the Thunderbolts performed magnificently in ground support until the end of the war. Republic P-47 Thunderbolt First flight: May 6, 1941 Total produced: 15, 683 Most units built - P-47D: 12,602 Average cost of P-47D: $82,997 Engine: R2800-59 Power: 2000/2300 H.P. Propeller: 13 Feet Fuel internal: 305 U.S. gal. Fuel external: 375 U.S. gal. Service celing: 40,000 ft. Armament: 8 ea. 50 cal. HMG with from 267 to 425 rpm Bombs: 2 x 1000 lb., or 3 x 500, etc.; max load of 2,500 lbs. 546,000 combat sorties with a combat loss rate of only 0.7 percent. 132,000 tons of bombs dropped 135 million rounds of 50 cal. fired 1-1/2 million hours of combat 20 million gal of fuel consumed 11,878 Enemy planes destroyed; 1/2 in the air; 1/2 on the ground 160,000 military vehicles destroyed 9,000 enemy locomotives destroyed More victories than any other American aircraft in W.W.II Dimensions Span: 40 ft. 9-5/15 in. Length: 30 ft. 1-3/4 in. Height: 14 ft. 8-1/16 in. Wing area: 300 sq. ft. Weight: 9,900 lbs. (empty) Gross: 14,000 lbs. Max: 17,000 lbs. Speeds Max: 426 mph at 30,000 ft. Landing: 106 mph Climb 6 min. to 15,000 ft. 13.5 min to 30,000 ft. Range Max: 800 miles at 10,000 ft. (4.2 hrs.) Normal: 390 miles at 25,000 ft.

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P-51 "Mustang" stop-gap CAS

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A-1 "Skyraider"

Ever see the film, "Flight of the Intruder" Skyraiders save the day, gunning down the NVA so downed A-6 Intruder fighter-bomber pilots could be rescued, art depicting what took place thousands of times during America's long war in Vietnam. Or how about "We Were Soldiers"?. This time SkyRaiders save U.S. Army Sky-Soldiers on the ground. The legendary Skyraider, with the ruggedness of the P-47 via a massive radial engine was fought by Navy and AF pilots in both Korea and Vietnam, perhaps the Son Tay POW camp rescue mission being the most significant mission strategically as it forced the enemy to treat our POWS better, saving dozens of lives.

The alleged close air support practicing USMC retired their SkyRaiders in 1957, but the wiser USN and USAF Air Commandos used "off-the-shelf" SkyRaiders to legendary effect in Vietnam.

Experience by Pappy Gunn of massing single-barrel .50 caliber heavy machine guns in the nose of first B-25s and then A-26s lead to the gunship saturation strafing of drop zones before Paratroopers jumped which continues today with the AC-130 (see below). The A-26 was renamed the "B-26" by some years later in the 1960s.

After combat in WWII, Korea, the Bay of Pigs, the A-26 was upgraded and sent to Vietnam where the USAF "Air Commandos" did tremendous damage to the Ho Chi Minh trail's supply columns, far exceeding the bomb results of the faster USAF fighter-bomber jets. Rather than seeing that it had nothing to do with one's flying skills, just the simple law of physics that slower aircraft can see targets to hit them better, the USAF waited until A-26 combat losses dried up the spare parts to keep them flying in order to pull them from active service in the middle of the war. The A-26 as a firebomber almost steals the movie, Always as Holly Hunter flies it on a desperate mission to save trapped Forest Service "Smoke jumpers".

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OV-1 Mohawk: armed as early U.S. Army Air Assault doctrine intended, retired in '96 should be on duty today over Afghanistan!

EXCLUSIVE VIDEOS! OV-1 Mohawk Video from Cold War, Vietnam and Desert Storm!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=uX-48e05foQ

www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nJu3rDeomk

OV-1 In action photos!

OV-1 with bombs
Loading 2.75 inch rocket
OV-1 with airdrop resupply pod
Armed JOV-1C towed by jeep
Armed OV-1s taxing for STOL take-off
OV-1 mock-up with water skis
Snow ski landings with OV-1B in Germany
OV-1 mid-air refuel from C-7 Caribou
Excellent OV-1 downward visibility
Mohawk gunnery and rocket practice!
Armed OV-1 landing in Vietnam

From, the time of military balloonists, battlefield commanders have known the value of aerial reconnaissance, and the continuing need to look "over the next hill" has spawned many airborne observation platforms. The Grumman OV-1 is, however; unique among modern military aircraft in having been designed from the outset for battlefield surveillance. Strong, powerful, and purposefully ugly, the Mohawk has given the U.S. Army a versatile eye-in-the-sky for over thirty years, and it should have an important future (we should build new aircraft).

Grumman undertook development of the Mohawk in an unusual joint program sponsored by the U.S. Army and marine Corps. The two services shared broadly similar requirements for an observation aircraft with Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) performance and the ability to operate under spartan conditions along-side frontline troops. Grumman and Lycoming were the unanimous choice of a joint service selection board for airframe and engine manufacturers, and the aircraft was designated OF-1 in marine markings and AO-1 with the Army.

As unveiled late in 1957, the Grumman G-134 Mohawk mockup had a round, insect-like nose, twin engines, and high T-tail. The roomy cockpit featured a large windshield that gave pilot and observer good downward visibility over the nose. Bulged side windows made it possible for the crew to look down at any spot on the ground, even directly beneath the aircraft, from any altitude greater than 37 ft.

The mid-wing layout gave the Mohawk a short, incredibly strong landing gear, and the overwing engine installation kept the 10 ft. diameter propeller well clear of the ground while affording the power plants some protection from groundfire. The OF-1/AO-1 also represented the first fixed-wing application for the Lycoming T-53 turboshaft, the engine then flying in the prototype Huey helicopter.

Marine requirements contributed an unusual feature to the design. As originally proposed, the OF-1 could be fitted with water skis that would allow the aircraft to land at sea and taxi to island beaches at 20 kts. Since the marines operate fixed wing aircraft in the close support role, the mockup also sported underwing pylons for rockets, bombs, and other stores.

Soon after the detailed wooden mockup was displayed, the marines withdrew from the Mohawk program for allegedly "economy" reasons, but in April 1958, the Army gave Grumman the go-ahead for nine YAO-1 prototypes. The marines went ahead years later and developed the OV-10 Bronco when it could have had OV-1s years before. The joint service roots of the Mohawk did, however, result in the aircraft being evaluated by the U.S. Navy, and all early contracts were placed through the Navy on the behalf of the Army.

By the time the first YAO-1 rolled out, the single T-tail of the mockup had given way to the distinctive three-tailed layout. Grumman engineers found the T-tail would have provided inadequate control with one engine out, and to overcome this, the aircraft would have required a hydraulically boosted rudder, an unwanted complexity in an aircraft intended for operation from rudimentary frontline bases.

Twin tails would have given the Mohawk sufficient single-engine control but poor directional stability in conventional flight due to propwash. The triple tail layout proved best, and in an unexpected example of early "stealth" technology, it created a smaller overall radar return than the original T-tail layout.

Grumman test pilot Ralph Donnell made the first flight in the YAO-1 on April 14, 1959, at the company's Peconic River test facility. The aircraft handled well, and the last of nine prototypes under the original $22 million contract was flying by the end of the year.

With its short, broad-chord wing, hydraulically operated flaps, leading edge slats and hydraulic speedbrakes, the Mohawk was very much a STOL flying machine. More than half the wing span was bathed in the wash of the big, reversible pitch propellers, and the wing incorporated a pair of hydraulically operated auxiliary ailerons that worked only when the flaps were down, for better low-speed control. Even loaded with test gear heavier than its intended reconnaissance fit, the YAO-1 could take off over a 50 ft. obstacle in about 900 ft. of runway and stop in just 300 ft.

In flight, the Mohawk had a design ceiling of 22,000 ft. and a top speed of about 320 mph. The big fuselage speedbrakes helped the aircraft make ultra-short landings, and they enabled the Mohawk to drop quickly from moderate cruising altitudes to escape enemy fighters. Drawing from a Grumman Ironworks heritage, based on the 20 year production of dependable, robust fighter planes, the sturdy AO-1 was rated plus 5g and minus 1 1/2g, and could reportedly pull up to 7g without structural damage.

Ralph Donnell's masterful demonstration routines with the snappy Mohawk often included a near hover in a stiff wind. The new aircraft had a stalling speed of just 60 kt., and with flaps down a minimum turning radius of only 355 ft. at 1.6g. Flight testing of the YAO-1 turned up some slight flutter, quickly cured by smoothing the skin of the vertical tail. The successful test program led to a second $22 million contract for 35 production AO-1AFs, the first of which were delivered to the U.S. Army Aviation School at Ft. Rucker, Alabama, in mid 1960.

The AO-1/OF-1 mockup showed Army markings and marine water skis. Skis would have enabled OF-1 to land at sea and taxi to shore at about 20 kts. Older OV-1A was used during tests of snow/mud skis in 1963. If skis were fitted, nosewheel doors were removed. Nosewheel well was plugged by ski itself after retraction. Main gear skis rotated 94 degrees for retraction. Designed to be maintained and repaired in the field. aircraft had interchangeable left-right stabilizers, elevators, and outboard fins. Wings could be removed inboard of engines to ship Mohawk by truck or train. STOL AO-1 had landing gear stressed for sink rates to 17 fpm and low pressure tires for soft, unprepared surfaces. Landings could be made in 300 to 500 ft.: takeoffs in 900 to 1,000 ft. Triple-tailed Mohawk had flaps inboard of engines and auxiliary ailerons between engines and ailerons. All primary flight controls (ailerons, rudders, elevators) were manually operated through rods, cranks, and cables. Auxiliary ailerons. speed brakes, and flaps were hydraulic. Designed to take punishment and shoot back, Mohawk had 246 Ibs. of crew armor including 1/4 in. thick aluminum cockpit floor and flak curtains.

From inception, the AO-1 had been designed to accommodate three different reconnaissance systems: conventional cameras, side- looking airborne radar, and infrared sensors. The early AO-1AF carried a single camera amidships that could take pictures vertically, or tilt 15 or 30 degrees to either side under the control of pilot or observer.

While the Army's first turboprop aircraft entered the inventory successfully, the Mohawk proved very much a "hot" ship to service aviators coming from slow, piston-engined airplanes. Its power and responsiveness tempted pilots to show off and resulted in more than a few fatal accidents. The two-seat cockpit could be fitted with dual controls for training, but operational Mohawks were most often flown by a pilot and reconnaissance systems operator. The right- hand observer's seat might have had the linkages for control stick and rudder panels, but the controls themselves were rarely in place.

With the big propellers so close to the cockpit, and with the Mohawk destined to spend much of its time at low altitudes, conventional crew bail-outs were impossible. Grumman therefore provided the AO-1 with twin Martin-Baker ejection seats that could propel pilot and observer to safety from zero altitude at any air- speed greater than 100 kts. The transparent overhead panels also could be jettisoned, but normal ejection sequence blasted the crew right through the canopy. It took some time for Army ground and flight crews to learn how to maintain and use the new seats properly, but once procedures were established, the notoriously hard seats proved themselves lifesavers.

The second of the Mohawk recon systems spawned a new model, the AO-1BF (later OV-1B). First unveiled in 1960, the B model had its Side-Looking Airborne Radar (SLAR) in an 18 ft. long fiberglass pod suspended from the right side of the fuselage. To save weight, the fuselage speedbrakes and wing leading edge slats were deleted, but the wings themselves were extended 6 ft. for additional lift. The B also incorporated an autopilot that helped fly uniform radar mapping patterns.

Despite its ungainly appearance, the SLAR-toting B handled quite well. In 1971, a single example was loaned by the Army to the U.S. Geological Survey for geologic and hydrologic studies under the direction of Herbert Skibitzke. Over the next four years, systems specialist and pilot Mary Lou Brown was to fly the USGS Mohawk on survey missions all over the United States.

As she recalls: "The Mohawk was a delightful plane to fly. Perhaps I should quality that statement. The 'B' model had a longer wingspan...and it was considered to be the safest model. We had no experience with the 'A' or 'C' models; however, we knew of several accidents with those models that were attributed to the shorter wingspan.

"Our pilot checkout procedure was informal and abbreviated. First, we read the manual. Then, Skibitzke rode in the right seat observing while a qualified Army instructor flew the plane. They then traded places, and Skibitzke piloted the plane with the instructor in the right seat. The process was repeated twice with Skibitzke being the check pilot for Ruby Sheldon and me. After several takeoffs and landings, we felt quite confident in the Mohawk."

The radar imaging capability of the Mohawk was to prove a significant advance in both peace and war. The SLAR could look through foliage and map terrain, presenting the observer with a film image of the earth below only minutes after the area was scanned. In military operations, the image was split in two parts - - one showing fixed terrain features, the other spotting moving targets.

In mid-1961, the first Mohawks to serve with U.S. forces overseas were delivered to the 7th Army at Sandhoffen airfield near Manheim, Germany. Before its formal acceptance, the camera-carrying AO-1AF was flown by Ralph Donnell on a tour of 29 European airfields to show it off before the U.S. Army field commanders and potential European customers.

Germany and France had shown early interest in the Mohawk, and Grumman actually signed a license production agreement with the French manufacturer Breguet in exchange for American rights to the Atlantic maritime patrol aircraft.

Projected European versions of the Mohawk were to have had the more powerful DeHavilland Gnome turboprops, but orders never materialized. Two radar-equipped OV-1Bs were, however, evaluated in both German and French markings in 1963.

The Berlin Crisis led President Kennedy to bolster U.S. forces in Europe and, as a result, eleven OA-1s were hurriedly cocooned for shipment to Germany in November 1961.

Stateside test work with the AO-1 continued. The aircraft performed well at temperatures down to -50 degrees F during a deployment to Fort Greely, Alaska, and in February 1962, two AO-1As maintained near perfect availability during the arduous Alaskan winter exercise Operation Great Bear at Fort Richardson.

When the Department of Defense reorganized American military aircraft designations in 1962, the Mohawk models were tagged OV-1A for the visual recon/photographic version, OV-1B for the SLAR toting variant, and OV-1C for the infrared reconnaissance bird.

That same year also marked the debut of the Mohawk in the Far East when the first OV-1s were delivered to U.S. Army training units in Japan.

The OV-1 was soon to take part in one of the earliest elements of American involvement in Vietnam, In July 1962, the 23rd Special Warfare Aviation Detachment (Surveillance) was formed. The unit arrived in the Republic of Vietnam in September with six OV-1As to provide reconnaissance capability for the South Vietnamese Army (ARVN). They were flown by American pilots and South Vietnamese observers.

The ordnance-carrying potential of the OV-1 soon generated a long- running feud between the Army and the self-centered Air Force, and among small-minded factions of the Army aviation community itself. Tested with a varied collection of bombs, rockets, gunpods, and other stores, the OV-1 proved itself a nimble and potent weapons platform. It did, however, venture into what was considered the operational realm of the Air Force even though the USAF really has been disinterested in helping the Army win battles with CAS for decades, so OV-1s provided fixed-wing air support for Army ground forces in Vietnam. The running battle over who should be responsible for such missions became so heated that at one point the Air Force demanded Grumman suppress company brochures stressing the attack potential of the OV-1. Typical corruption from the selfish USAF that doesn't want to do CAS and at the same time doesn't want anyone who does want to do it to be able to provide battle-winning and life-saving CAS.

Mohawk armament in the early stages of the Vietnam war was specifically restricted to 0.50 caliber heavy machine gun pods, and pilots were ordered not to fire unless fired upon by guerilla forces. Nevertheless, the OV-1s did provide important information to field commanders on Viet Cong movements, and their usefulness was to result in additional deployment as the American presence in southeast Asia grew.

The photo reconnaissance OV-1As were joined in 1963 by specially modified JOV-1Cs of the 11th Air Assault Division based on the more powerful "C" version of the Mohawk, the armed reconnaissance JOV was stripped of the sophisticated infrared sensing gear that distinguished the "C" model and equipped with gunsight, dual controls, and two additional stores pylons. (All Mohawks had six wing hard-points but normally operated with only two or four pylons in place.) The aircraft represented the Army's exploitation of the attack capability of the OV-1, specifically in support of troop-carrying helicopters. It was to prove a successful and highly controversial (to the selfish USAF) experiment. We should ask the men whose lives were saved if the effort was worth it.

More Mohawks appeared in Vietnam in the fall of 1964 when the 4th Aerial Surveillance and Target Acquisition (ASTA) Detachment arrived with a mix of radar-equipped OV-1Bs and infrared recon Cs. By spring, 1965, the thirty Mohawks in Vietnam had been combined in the 73rd Aerial Surveillance Company based at the former seaside resort of Vung Tau, 35 miles southeast of Saigon.

Despite the value of the OV-1s in providing American and South Vietnamese field commanders with their own, responsive reconnaissance capability, the U.S. Army remained unsure of the value of the Mohawk. The very nature of the joint Army/marine program had forced design compromises that made the aircraft an expensive and, sometimes, openly resisted item in Army budgets. Orders for the OV-1 stopped in Fiscal 1964. Service politics comes before the mission and the men.

Fast, quiet, and rugged, the Mohawks in Vietnam proved their worth time and again. At the full-scale battle of la Drang in 1965, and later in the Bong Son campaign, the few Mohawks available provided the ground forces with important visual reconnaissance reports and CAS firepower, and the growing usefulness of SLAR and IR imagery became increasingly apparent to the other American services. The Air Force used precision targeting data from OV-1s to direct B-52 strikes (no complaints from the USAF when its helping them get the glory). Navy coastal patrol forces were directed to infiltration points discovered by Mohawk radar; and the marines made good use of Mohawk night recon data in the conduct of Operation Starlight in August 1965.

Operational success led to additional Mohawk orders in 1966, and by 1968, five surveillance companies were operating in Southeast Asia.

Regardless of official policy, OV-1s in Southeast Asia often flew armed with a mix of rocket and gun pods because troops in the field tend to be more mature and driven by common sense. The rugged constitution of the aircraft proved a blessing for flightcrews, particularly when Viet Cong forces were equipped with heavier weapons and learned how to use them against low-flying aircraft. One Mohawk returned to base with more than 90 holes in one wing, another with its empennage nearly severed by an anti-aircraft hit. One, nicknamed "Old Yeller" for all the zinc chromate dabbed over its battle patches, was mortally wounded after 900 combat hours. Unable to lower or shake one landing gear down, the pilot ordered the observer to eject, then followed himself. A Grumman technical representative later confirmed that the abandoned Mohawk obligingly crashed in a nearby scrapyard.

By night, photo reconnaissance OV-1s flew with two box-like dispensers mounted over the aft wing roots, each with 52 upward firing flares. Catastrophic accidents in which improperly loaded flares fired down and detonated the entire package led to the introduction of a more effective strobe light pod that could generate up to 300 powerful flashes a flight, one every 3 seconds.

Of far greater value was the radar and infrared imagery provided by OV-1Bs and Cs. Day or night, in any weather, the Mohawks could paint details of enemy movement and disposition on continuous film strip maps of the terrain below. The SLAR system could look to the left or right of the flight path, or scan both sides at once. The "Red Haze" infrared system painted a picture of the earth directly under the aircraft, detecting telltale heat traces of truck engines, campfires, or other disturbances ordinarily hidden by darkness, camouflage, or the density of the natural jungle canopy.

The Viet Cong developed a fearful respect of the all-seeing Mohawk. They reportedly dubbed the quiet OV-1 "Whispering Death," and they offered a standing reward of 50,000 piastres (then, 118 piastres to the dollar) to any gunner downing a Mohawk.

From the first American presence in Vietnam to the final withdrawal, the OV-1 provided an important dimension in intelligence gathering.

Last of the principal Mohawk versions to enter production was the versatile OV-1D with more powerful T53-701 engines, improved avionics, and interchangeable mission pallets that make it possible to switch the aircraft from infrared to SLAR configuration in about an hour. The first four OV-1Ds were prototypes converted from earlier production airframes, and the first flew in 1969. These were followed by 37 new-build aircraft, the last of which was delivered in December 1970.

While the OV-1 was never the subject of heavy export sales, two olive drab D models were transferred to Israel direct from U.S. Army stocks in 1974, and their delivery was kept a closely guarded secret for more than a year. Despite the Israeli penchant for secrecy, the aircraft were flown out of Lod International Airport. A Pan Am copilot reportedly photographed one from the cockpit of his waiting jet and was met in Rome by Israeli agents demanding the film! The aircraft are evidently still in Israeli service, conducting classified surveillance operations.

Grumman also demonstrated the OV-1 to the Philippines Air Force in 1974, again stressing the counterinsurgency potential of the armed Mohawk. No sale resulted.

In the score of years since the OV-1 entered Army service, this powerful, versatile machine has set its share of performance records. On June 16, 1966, test pilot Jim Peters flew an OV-1 to 3,000 m (9,842 ft.) in 3 min., 41 sec., and to 6,000 m (19,685 ft.) in 9 min., 9 sec. He also held the OV-1 at 32,000 ft. sustained altitude, all world records for a turboprop aircraft in the Mohawk's weight class. A month later, Army Colonel Edward Nielson flew an OV-1 to a new turboprop speed record when he covered a 100 km closed course in 12 min., 48.8 sec. at an average speed of 292 mph.

Unusual in that it marked one of the few world record attempts to be made by an Army tactical unit, an OV-1C of the 293rd Aviation Company based at Fort Hood, Texas, set three new time-to-climb records in June 1971. The unpressurized Mohawk with uprated T53-L15 engines also climbed to 39,880 ft. peak altitude and sustained 36,352 ft. Before their flight, CW2 Thomas Yoha and Capt. Richard Steinbock had to pre-breathe pure oxygen to eliminate nitrogen from the blood-stream and prevent decompression sickness at high altitude.

The specialized sensing capabilities of the Mohawk have proven useful to several civilian government agencies. With its radar modified for the survey role, the single OV-1B of the U.S. Geological Survey participated in a series of geologic and hydrologic studies, mapping fractured rock formations, limestone sink holes, and other phenomena to help document water resources.

The first survey mission flown by the USGS was to detect surface water in the jungles of Panama as part of the Inter-American Geodetic Survey. In September 1971, project head Herbert Skibitzke was on the way to the Canal Zone when bad weather diverted him to Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico, Low on fuel, he found the runway covered with slick, rain-soaked volcanic ash. Ordinary braking would have caused any conventional aircraft to swerve dangerously on landing, but the reverse thrust of the twin-engined Mohawk brought it to a safe stop.

In 1974, the USGS OV-1 surveyed the route of the Alaskan oil pipeline, and later that year, it helped study pack ice in the Beaufort Sea off the north coast of Alaska. In the frozen Arctic, using an ejection seat to abandon a crippled aircraft meant almost certain death by exposure. The OV-1B was consequently equipped with underwing pods packed with emergency flotation gear that would let survey crews ditch and survive. Fortunately, the situation never arose.

Supporting the lone Mohawk posed its own problems. "Maintenance was a nightmare," according to Mary Lou Brown, "especially in the Arctic. The aircraft and all its components were highly specialized. Parts could be procured only from the Army, and special tools were required for all the special parts. The hydraulic system was particularly vulnerable to the extremely cold temperatures of the Arctic; but then a main gear collapsed on landing at Phoenix Sky Harbor where the temperature was more than 100 degrees. The SLAR antenna made an excellent skid... On one memorable Arctic flight, Skibitzke had departed Fort Wainwright, in Fairbanks, after the plane had been in for maintenance, to return to our base at Point Barrow. As he approached the Yukon River, there was a resounding thud as first one gear and then the other dropped out of the wells and dangled beneath the plane. Attempts at recycling were ineffective. With about 400 miles of frozen tundra and the Brooks range between him and Point Barrow, he turned back to Fort Wainwright for another maintenance session."

The Mohawk continued its valuable survey work until 1975 when the aircraft was turned over to the Naval Air Test Center at Patuxent River, Maryland.

Another "renegade" OV-1 served with the Environmental Protection Agency in the early seventies. EPA bailed an OV-1C from the Department of Defense and used the panoramic nose camera and infrared sensing system to document oil spills, strip mine land damage, industrial waste flows, and other phenomena. The aircraft was flown from the EPA facility near Las Vegas, and returned to the Army in 1976.

After more than eight years of service, four OV-1Cs still fly with the U.S. Customs Service, hunting for drug smugglers with a non- standard, nose-mounted infrared system.

NASA too has found some uses for the Mohawk. An OV-1B was modified by Grumman to carry a small jet engine under the right wing. With it, carefully controlled flight profiles are flown over a test range to measure aircraft noise characteristics.

Additional early-model Mohawks have been brought up to the latest OV-1D standard, and if service longevity is a measure of design success, the OV-1 is undoubtedly a successful airplane. By the end of 1980, the Army had 25 x OV-1Bs, 26 x Cs, and 84 x Ds in active and reserve units. Starting in 1972, the Army National Guard began to receive the Mohawk, and in 1981, the Guard had 13 x OV-1Bs, 24 x Cs, and 16 x Ds serving with three units in Georgia and Oregon.

Grumman at one time proposed a single-seat attack version of the Mohawk with powerful T-55 engines and 30mm cannon in response to the Air Force AX competition. The production contract eventually went to the Fairchild Republic A-1O. Another Mohawk derivative with an extended nose for extra seats and special electronics never advanced past the drawing board.

There is, however, a specialized, little publicized Mohawk in service. The RV-1D performs classified electronic intelligence duties and is distinguished by two large underwing pods.

Before folding, Grumman continued to update Mohawks at the company's Stuart, Florida facility. And with new avionics and nap-of-the-earth flying tactics, Grumman's bug-eyed, multi-sensor bird served with the Army well into the nineties.

Overshadowed by sleek spyplanes and all-seeing satellites, the OV-1 should have remained a potent, responsive reconnaissance platform -- one that will stay in the frontlines of aerial intelligence gathering for some time to come.

CLOSE AIR SUPPORT YES OR NO? TROOPS OR POLITICS?

Since its inception as a joint Army and marine program, the OV-1 Mohawk had been a center of controversy. Actually the Army and marine requirements were never compatible and compromises were made that suited neither. From the Army's viewpoint, the original design was compromised by shipboard requirements and other specific marine specifications which had little application for an Army observation aircraft. From the marine viewpoint, they were looking for a fixed-wing replacement for the old Cessna L-19 "Bird Dog" light observation aircraft and they did not require sophisticated sensor systems which they planned to carry on other aircraft (like what?). As it turned out, the marines dropped out of the development program before the first prototypes were ready for flight.

Because the Mohawk was an exception to the Secretary of Defense's memorandum on weight limitations for Army aircraft and because it had inherent capabilities for armament, the Air Force had opposed its development from the beginning. There is no doubt that certain Army visionaries viewed the Mohawk as the "nose of the camel within the tent of tactical air support." The Army was to suffer for their enthusiasm for years to come by narrow-minded types who wanted to centralize control of CAS when it was proven CAS is best done decentralized under ground maneuver force control. The manufacturer, Grumman, published carefully placed brochures which showed the Mohawk in a variety of attack roles.

The Mohawk was originally designed as a visual reconnaissance aircraft with better survivability than the L-19 "Bird Dog" of Korean vintage. In addition, it was to have an integral camera system for spot photo coverage. Above all, it was to land and take off in the same distance as the L-19 which it was to supplement. It was not long, however, that "improved" versions of the Mohawk were visualized carrying sophisticated sensor systems developed by the Army surveillance agencies such as infared and side-looking radar. Weight, space, and power provisions had not been made for these systems in the original design. As a result, the gross weight increased and performance declined. These growth versions of the Mohawk were coming off the drawing board before the first "A" model had even been tested throughout its entire flight envelope and subsequent tests were to prove that major engineering modifications to both wing and power plants would be necessary in the latter versions. Furthermore, the addition of all this sophisticated sensor equipment not only raised the unit cost significantly but, in the view of many, watered down the Army contention that this was truly a front-line low-echelon aircraft.

Regardless, many OV-1s unencumbered by sensor arrays went ahead and flew armed CAS missions, saving many lives and winning many firefights.

It is important to review its actual performance in Vietnam in 1962. The six armed Mohawks did a magnificent job and many Army advisors pleaded for more of the same. The missions performed by these aircraft during this period were somewhat tangential to the story of airmobility in the Army. However, this does not take anything away from the individual accomplishments of the Mohawk pilots.

After a storm of controversy in the Pentagon, the 23rd Special Warfare Aviation Detachment was deployed to Vietnam in September 1962 for the purpose of providing air surveillance in support of Republic of Vietnam forces. In addition, they were to serve as a test unit for operational evaluation conducted by the Army Concept Team in Vietnam. The 23rd Special Warfare Aviation Detachment (Surveillance) was organized in July 1962 as a prototype armed aerial surveillance unit using the OV-1 Mohawk aircraft. Besides its headquarters and photo processing section, there were three flight teams, each consisting of two armed Mohawks, four pilots, and seven enlisted maintenance and armament specialists.

When they were deployed to Vietnam their rules of employment specified that: on all operational flights a Vietnamese observer would be aboard; that the aircraft would be armed with .50 caliber heavy machine gun weapons only; and, that this armament would be used only when required to defend against a hostile attack. The 23rd Special Warfare Aviation Detachment was assigned to Support Group, Vietnam for administration and logistical support. Operational control remained with Commander, Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, who decided to place the Mohawks in support of II Army of the Republic of Vietnam Corps. From 16 October to 22 November the entire unit was stationed at Nha Trang supporting the 9th Division and the Railway Security Agency. On 23 November one flight team was moved to Qui Nhon, 100 miles north of Nha Trang, to be closer to the 9th Division.

The plan of test for the 23rd Special Warfare Aviation Detachment called for systematic surveillance of a sector that would insure an even distribution of effort over a selected tactical area. However, it soon became abundantly clear that the supported units were generating so many missions for specific reconnaissance sorties within their tactical areas that no other missions could be flown. In each area, an element of the 23rd Special Warfare Aviation Detachment was employed under the direction of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam commander, through his U. S. advisor, as an integral part of the total available force. Because of the many variables involved, the specific contribution of the Mohawk to the reduction of Viet Cong incidents could not be quantified. But, there was no question that the 23rd Special Warfare Aviation Detachment inhibited and restricted Viet Cong activity.

Visual and photographic reconnaissance by this twin-turbine airplane produced a wealth of intelligence for supported units. Hundreds of structures, most of them camouflaged, were detected in Viet Cong base areas. Likewise, hundreds of people were sighted in suspect areas and, because of the detailed familiarity of Mohawk crews with the local situation and activity patterns, some of the people sighted could be positively identified as insurgents. One of the unique advantages of the Mohawk in reconnaissance was its speed to noise relationship which allowed the aircraft to get within observation distance of people on the ground without alerting them to it's presence. In one Division, artillery fires directed from the air were nearly tripled by the activities of Mohawk observers. Supported units quickly developed air to ground procedures to exploit the capabilities of the immediately available Special Warfare Aviation Detachment aircraft.

From 16 October 1962 to 15 March 1963 the 23rd Special Warfare Aviation Detachment flew more than 2,000 hours in the performance of 785 combat support missions. It had delivered defensive fire 27 times and had lost two aircraft. The cause of the loss of these two aircraft was never determined.

Many of the U. S. Army advisors wrote glowing reports of the Mohawk pilots and urged Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, to relax the rules of engagement. For example, on 23 March 1963 the Senior advisor of the II Corps Tactical Zone, Colonel Hal D. McCown, Wrote:

... Two Mohawk aircraft are constantly based at Quang Ngai airfield for close and immediate support of the 25th Infantry Division. Results of Mohawk operations there thus far include the following:

a. Rapid production of low level aerial photographs of VC troop dispositions and installations as well as photographic coverage of prospective operational areas of the 25th Infantry Division.

b. A large volume of combat intelligence has been produced by visual sightings of troops in the open including weapon emplacements.

c. A bonus effect has been obtained from the defensive machine gun fire put down by the Mohawks when fired upon. Some VC casualties have been observed from these fires.

d. During the period 15 February to 8 March, artillery adjustment by Mohawk observers on VC troops sighted accounted for an estimated 65 enemy casualties. Combining these casualties with those noted in subparagraph c above, it is concluded that the Mohawk has either directly or indirectly caused more VC casualties during this period than all other military forces in Quang Ngai, including RVNAF air strikes.

Furthermore, I consider that the attack by the well equipped Q 95 VC Battalion in the Bato area on 3 March was relatively impotent. This was most probably due to actions by Mohawk aircraft on the days immediately preceeding the attack. These aircraft were responsible for sighting and adjusting fire on large groups of armed VC within a few thousand meters of the scene of the attack.

Despite this fine performance, the full potential of the Mohawk aircraft cannot be realized because of the present test restrictions. I refer to the limitation of armament to the .50 caliber [ED: heavy, single-barrel] machine guns.

The Mohawk aircraft consistently locate remunerative targets which are beyond the range of friendly artillery. The majority of these targets are small bodies of troops in the open. In counter-insurgency operations this is the type target most likely to be encountered. These are fleeting targets, and unless immediately engaged, will disperse and disappear. They are long gone before a friendly air strike can be mounted.

On the several occasions that the Mohawk has encountered and returned ground fire, the aircraft limitation to .50 cal machine guns has considerably curtailed the effectiveness of this defensive response. It is apparent that the addition of rockets, napalm and small fragmentation bombs would have greatly increased the number of VC casualties inflicted during the past few weeks. Further, this vastly increased fire-power capability would have a profound impact on the VC ability to conduct daylight troop movements. This would seriously hinder their tactical initiative, especially in Quang Ngai Province. It is also believed that this increased defensive firepower would enhance the surveillance capability of the aircraft by allowing greater low level freedom of movement.

It is my considered opinion that the Mohawks' success can be attributed to their immediate responsiveness to the ground commanders. In a counter-insurgency operation such as we have in Vietnam with its fleeting and elusive targets, the immediate and direct control over an aircraft as swift, silent and well-equipped as the Mohawk, flown by pilots with intimate knowledge of the terrain and the current enemy situation, is an invaluable asset to a commander.

There is no doubt that the Mohawks filled a real intelligence need for the U. S. Army advisors in the field. For the first time the advisors found themselves with a responsive tool in the form of the Mohawk under their direct operational control to fill in the many gaps in their intelligence. Their requests for aerial surveillance and fighter strikes through the cumbersome channels to the Vietnamese Air Force no doubt increased their desire for more Mohawk support. As can be seen from the above, there was the inevitable trend to use the Mohawk in the CAS fighter role, mainly because it was there and it had the hard points necessary to carry armament.

The Army Air Assault Division as defined by the Howze Board was supposed to have 24 armed OV-1 Mohawks but