Here's How Marine Corps Mortar Crews Get Explosive Rounds To Fall Right On Top Of An Enemy

US Marines with 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, fire an M224 60 mm mortar system for a live-fire range during Exercise Iron Fist 2020 on Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. US Marine Corps/Lance Cpl. Robert Kuehn

Business Insider: Here's how Marine Corps mortar crews get explosive rounds to fall right on top of an enemy over 1,000 meters away

* Mortar crews can drop explosive rounds on enemies at great distances, keeping bigger threats like light armor at bay for other Marines moving on the battlefield.
* But getting the round there is no easy task.
* During a recent visit to Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton for exercise Iron Fist, Insider had the opportunity to observe and learn how 60 mm mortar teams get rounds down range.

CAMP PENDLETON, California — US Marine Corps 60 mm mortar teams can drop explosive rounds on their enemies from over 1,000 meters away, and Insider recently had the opportunity to watch them do it.

During a visit to Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Insider observed a mortar crew firing off multiple rounds using an M224 60 mm light mortar, which is a high-angle-of-fire weapon that can be drop- or trigger-fired.

The training was carried out as part of the latest iteration of Iron Fist, an exercise that involves various training evolutions leading up to a large amphibious assault.

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WNU Editor: Impressive.

Russian Commandos Are Getting "Silent" Mortars

Warzone/The Drive: Russian Commandos Are Getting "Silent" Mortars That Are As Quiet As A Suppressed Rifle

The weapons use special ammunition to eliminate smoke and flash during firing and keep noise to an absolute minimum.

Personnel at a forward operating base are patrolling the perimeter after dark when they hear a muffled popping sound in the distance. Soon after, small shells begin raining down on them and there’s no clear indication where the attackers are shooting from. They’ve just been on the receiving end of a 2B25 “silent” 82mm mortar.

This might sound like some sort of unlockable upgrade in a video game, but it’s an actual weapon system that Russian special operations forces, commonly referred to as spetsnaz, began receiving in 2018. Jane’s was first to learn that the Kremlin had begun fielding the specialized mortars from an unnamed individual at Russia’s Army 2018 defense exposition in August 2018.

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WNU Editor: Special forces/commandos and stealth go hand-in-hand. It looks like this mortar will accomplish it.

The U.S. Army Wants A Laser-Guided Precision Mortar System

Mortar Might

Soldiers fire a 120mm Mortar during exercise Real Thaw in Santa Margarida, Portugal, March 10, 2017. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Philip Steiner

Defense Web: US Army developing laser-guided precision mortar

The US Army has closed its initial solicitation phase for designs to create a next generation precision mortar that will allow Soldiers to put their rounds on target with extreme accuracy.

The 120mm high explosive guided mortar, or HEGM program, is intended to replace the current precision-guided HE mortar, the accelerated precision mortar initiative or APMI, the US Army said.

The solicitation period, which ended Jan. 27, sought feasible designs from the private sector to create a new "smart" mortar. While the HEGM round will incorporate state-of-the-art technology, the new round is intended to be a different design than APMI.

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Update #1: Army eyes laser-guided mortar system (UPI)
Update #2: Army Seeks Laser-Guided Precision Mortar Tech Developers; Lt. Col. Anthony Gibbs Comments (Executive Biz)

WNU Editor: This will be an ideal weapon in urban combat and to keep civilian casualties low.

GPS-Guided Mortars Fielded For The First Time

New GPS-guided mortar rounds are seven times more accurate.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/04/08/army-deploys-gps-guided-mortars./#ixzz1Iw1DBUeN
U.S. Army

Army Deploys First GPS-Guided Mortars -- Popular Science

Precision guided munitions have completely altered the face of warfare, but the humble mortar has remained virtually unchanged for decades, lobbing explosive rounds at a faraway enemy with a relatively high degree of inaccuracy. Finally, the U.S. army is giving this this infantry workhorse a 21st-century update, fielding GPS-guided mortar rounds for the first time.

One Infantry Brigade Combat Team in Afghanistan has already received the new rounds, known as Accelerated Precision Mortar Initiative cartridges (APMI), and seven more are expected to receive them in the next sixth months. The GPS-guided 120-millimeter mortar rounds will offer infantry commanders precision-strike capability, offering them an alternative to blanketing an area in indirect fire.

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More News On GPS-Guided Mortars

Army Deploys First GPS-Guided Mortars -- FOX News
120mm Magic Arrives -- Strategy Page
Army delivers GPS-guided mortars to soldiers in Afghanistan -- Geek.com
US Army fields first precision-guided mortars to troops in Afghanistan -- Defence Web

My Comment: This is going to have an immediate impact in war zones like Afghanistan.