Jeff:
I remember when the Marines went from the Platoon based 8 gun batteries to the battery based 6 gun batteries. The excuse given by all the “higher ups” was you couldn’t tell the difference in the effects of six guns and eight. Yeah, right 200 lbs. less steel going down range per Battery, 600 per Bn (the equivalent of 1 Btry). Beside the ability of a unit to continue action after causalities. The simple fact was it was cheaper, and personnel draw down had to manifest themselves somewhere, and artillery was cut vice Air wing slots and Grunt slots. The Wing was and is relatively safe from draw downs as we all saw in the gulf Air will always be available to provide support. And Grunts are necessary to fulfil the normal Marine peacetime mission and the only time artillery is needed is in real wars, which are uncommon today. Officially the Corps got ride of all its SP in the summer of 1990. However they were still on MPF ships that arrived in the gulf, so they were used and where praised throughout the Artillery community. However after the conflict they disappeared because of maintenance cost.
The army is suffering from the same syndrome, but compounded by recruiting short falls and procurement. When the army was going to equip all its mech forces with Paladin, they request enough to equip 8 gun batteries. Congress only authorized enough to cover 6 gun batteries. Instead of getting ride of artillery units that needed them they changed the TO/E to reflect what they were authorized to procure. The same thing happened with the new M1A2, the army wanted enough to equip everyone with them. Congress said we will only buy X number, way less than was necessary. To make up for this they army will be equipping units with the M1A1 SEP, with most of the capability but not all.
The indirect fire gunnery with the MK-19 is part of the FMFM 6-15 (I believe that is the correct title), Machine Guns and Machine Gunnery. It contains info on how to do IDF with all the Machine guns, the one I have is a little out of date, so it doesn’t contain TFTs for M240g, but still has them for the M60. It is relatively simple to do, my battery did it at Camp Fuji a few years ago, all you need is a M17 plotting board, M2 compass or aiming circle, and a gunners quadrant. I have been told 0331 are expected to be able to able to do IDF with the M2, M240G and Mk19.
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God truly fights on the side with the best artillery