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Posted: 7/7/2020 10:06:19 AM EDT
[#1]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Cav troop had 4.2” mounted in M106 tracks. No humping. Those guys were good too My last hitch I was 11C in HHC for a infantry battalion Mostly FO/FDC That shit was truck born. Busting out the base plate will put hair in your chest. And yes that shit makes a big hole. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: 60, 81, and 120mm varieties. Mmm hmm love me some portable firepower  Now, humping the ammo is another matter entirely  Cav troop had 4.2” mounted in M106 tracks. No humping. Those guys were good too My last hitch I was 11C in HHC for a infantry battalion Mostly FO/FDC That shit was truck born. Busting out the base plate will put hair in your chest. And yes that shit makes a big hole. Biggest guns in the brigade! |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 10:07:16 AM EDT
[#2]
Quote HistoryQuoted: There’s a small charge in the base, but most of the range comes from donut-shaped propellant charges that you place on the “stem” or whatever is above the tailfins. More donuts = more range. Mortars (like artillery/howitzers) are fired at 45-90 degrees, as opposed to cannon (like a tank gun, for example), which are fired at 0-45 degrees. This makes mortars & howitzers ideal for supporting fire from behind your units, since they can fire over you (and over cover that the enemy might be behind). So cannon is direct fire, and mortar/howitzer is indirect fire, if that makes sense. (I’m probably not using the correct American technical terms.  )Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Great vid. Where's the propellant in the round? How high do they go in comparison to how far out? The angle they were shooting it looked like 70 degrees or more. Seriously, how do these things work? There’s a small charge in the base, but most of the range comes from donut-shaped propellant charges that you place on the “stem” or whatever is above the tailfins. More donuts = more range. Mortars (like artillery/howitzers) are fired at 45-90 degrees, as opposed to cannon (like a tank gun, for example), which are fired at 0-45 degrees. This makes mortars & howitzers ideal for supporting fire from behind your units, since they can fire over you (and over cover that the enemy might be behind). So cannon is direct fire, and mortar/howitzer is indirect fire, if that makes sense. (I’m probably not using the correct American technical terms. )What you are calling the “stem” (you’re spending too much time making pipes) is called the ignition cartridge. It is filled with an energetic. It essentially functions like an rifle cartridge. A primer in the base of the ignition cartridge initiates the explosives train when a fixed firing pin inside the barrel of the mortar impacts the primer. The primer initiates the ignition ctg which initiates the “cheese” propellant charges. These are the correct American terms. No Danish terms allowed. The 4.2’ and propellant charges look like just like slices of American cheese. Now all US 60mm, 81mm and 120mm all use the C shaped charges. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 10:14:43 AM EDT
[#3]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Danish army had a 60mm in each infantry platoon, and an 81mm section (3 tubes) in each infantry company. Each battalion would have a 120mm platoon with 3 or 4 tubes. I think the older 120mm tubes have been replaced with some fancy new system these days. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 10:17:39 AM EDT
[#4]
That video of the mortar pit returning fire while under fire was a perfect example of the benefit of the new mortar over the old 4.2” with cheese charges. That is all I ever used on the 4.2” was the cheese nitro cellulose with a powder bag initiator. Our 60mm insert had the styrofoam looking charges, coarser but faster.
No way I could cut cheese charges as fast as those guys thumbing off the styrofoam peanuts. I was watching for the charge cut and I saw they went to that system. There were other powder charge systems for the 4.2” but I never saw them. Then again we were tier three being in the guard and were probably allocated the old shit to burn through it in training. A little more sight and tripod work but the advantage in firing rate or simply using less ammomen cutting charges is a benefit. More bodies is never a bad thing in a mortar section. Shit’s heavy yo. Someone brought up the ground mounts. Gun drill on a 4.2” was a full body workout. We mostly fired from the M106a2 or 3 mortar carrier. The ground mount was hanging on the outside. It’s fun putting the bridge and baseplate on the side of the track. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 10:21:32 AM EDT
[#5]
Quote HistoryQuote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: I'm not sure that I have heard of any battles from the GWOT where American mortarmen were involved. So does the US still use mortars, or is it all airstrikes, tanks and TOW missiles? Quoted: OP must be retarded or something Quoted: Is your g oogle broke? I'd like to know whatever gave op the impression that we might not be. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 10:26:46 AM EDT
[#6]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Mortars are scary effective. Lots of boom. Very effective, i was on a 60mm motar team and they are pretty much spot on for area targets and have quite a few round types to use. They even get nastier the bigger they get i.e. 81 mm and 120 mm |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 10:32:04 AM EDT
[#7]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Mortars are fun ... to shoot, not to carry. There was a moment where I almost got transferred to a heavy mortar platoon, but I managed to avoid it. jumping the base plate is the worst, it rides low in your ruck and bounces in the door |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 10:42:31 AM EDT
[#8]
My fun fact.......while I have never seen the 120mm first hand my mortar carrier was the first to have one installed.
I showed up to drill and it was a vehicle maintenance weekend,......I walked to the back motor pool and my mortar carrier was missing. It turns out the Watervliet arsenal borrowed it to design and fit the mounts to the mortar carriers. Our Armor bn was about 15 miles from the arsenal. They ended up closing the unit and the building was used by the state for offices before being knocked down for hospital parking I believe.  . It was an old cavalry armory that used to have horse training indoors. In my youth I went there to see the circus acts that used the drill floor.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 10:52:36 AM EDT
[#9]
I worked with a guy deployed to Iraq to shoot mortars.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 11:21:14 AM EDT
[#10]
I was on a 60mm crew in the 82nd from 02-04, did a little time on an 81mm crew as well. Spent some time in Afghanistan humping the baseplate.
In handheld mode, a 60mm M224 is kinda like a longer range M203 or 320, except more boom. For some reason the ROE in ‘10 would allow commander on the ground to authorize handheld 60mm, but required brigade (I think) authorization as soon as you set it up in conventional mode. Whole lotta  A good mortar section will clean your fucking clock. Been on both ends to witness the fact. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 11:44:59 AM EDT
[#11]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Mortars are fun ... to shoot, not to carry. There was a moment where I almost got transferred to a heavy mortar platoon, but I managed to avoid it. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 11:48:43 AM EDT
[#12]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I was on a 60mm crew in the 82nd from 02-04, did a little time on an 81mm crew as well. Spent some time in Afghanistan humping the baseplate. In handheld mode, a 60mm M224 is kinda like a longer range M203 or 320, except more boom. For some reason the ROE in ‘10 would allow commander on the ground to authorize handheld 60mm, but required brigade (I think) authorization as soon as you set it up in conventional mode. Whole lotta A good mortar section will clean your fucking clock. Been on both ends to witness the fact. Wtf. Pretty much defeats the purpose of the company commander’s hip pocket artillery.. I only did a small number of trigger fired rounds sitting on the base plate cross training with 0341s. I was an 0331 at the time. For me the accuracy wasn’t there sighting on the side of the tube. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 11:50:39 AM EDT
[#13]
As the Assistant Brigade Fire Support NCO for 3rd Brigade, 101st ABN, the only fire mission I called in Afghanistan during OEF I was a single round of 120mm Illum fired by a crew from 3rd PPCLI (Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry).
A mine strike outside the perimeter had killed one Afghan and injured a couple more, including the brother of the local warlord, Commander Gulali. I initially launched an Apache to recon the area and they spotted two men walking from the area of the blast to a small village nearby. One was carrying a shovel or hoe and the other was carrying what appeared to be a TM-62 AT mine. The Apache spooked them, but eventually had to RTB, so I called a "Cannot Observe" mission in an attempt to keep them in place while a rifle squad maneuvered into the area. Eventually, the Canadians fired a few bursts from the GPMG on board a Coyote recce vehicle, but, while that kept the men from going anywhere, it also brought out spectators form the village and we had to disengage out of fear of hitting an "innocent bystander." Back then, the ROE was VERY restrictive. We could engage with lethal force if they posed a direct, immediate, threat, but not if they didn't. Since they were just out for a leisurely stroll (at 2am with an AT mine in their hands), the best we could do was Illum. It would have required permission from the Coalition Forces Land Component Commander at Camp Doha, Qatar, for me to fire any HE. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 11:54:27 AM EDT
[#14]
I'm kinda upset I've never seen someone clear Cola Warrior with a mortar
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Posted: 7/7/2020 12:05:34 PM EDT
[#15]
Quote HistoryQuoted: As the Assistant Brigade Fire Support NCO for 3rd Brigade, 101st ABN, the only fire mission I called in Afghanistan during OEF I was a single round of 120mm Illum fired by a crew from 3rd PPCLI (Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry). A mine strike outside the perimeter had killed one Afghan and injured a couple more, including the brother of the local warlord, Commander Gulali. I initially launched an Apache to recon the area and they spotted two men walking from the area of the blast to a small village nearby. One was carrying a shovel or hoe and the other was carrying what appeared to be a TM-62 AT mine. The Apache spooked them, but eventually had to RTB, so I called a "Cannot Observe" mission in an attempt to keep them in place while a rifle squad maneuvered into the area. Eventually, the Canadians fired a few bursts from the GPMG on board a Coyote recce vehicle, but, while that kept the men from going anywhere, it also brought out spectators form the village and we had to disengage out of fear of hitting an "innocent bystander." Back then, the ROE was VERY restrictive. We could engage with lethal force if they posed a direct, immediate, threat, but not if they didn't. Since they were just out for a leisurely stroll (at 2am with an AT mine in their hands), the best we could do was Illum. It would have required permission from the Coalition Forces Land Component Commander at Camp Doha, Qatar, for me to fire any HE. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 12:06:40 PM EDT
[#16]
Quoted: I'm not sure that I have heard of any battles from the GWOT where American mortarmen were involved. So does the US still use mortars, or is it all airstrikes, tanks and TOW missiles? TOWs went out of favor years ago and were replaced by the Javeline, as I understand it. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 12:11:30 PM EDT
[#17]
The British did a study in WWII that approx 75% of their casualties were frags/blast from things that went boom...mortars, shells, bombs. Only 10% were bullets. People think infantry combat is mostly bullets, with some background explosions, because Hollywood makes it look that way, but HE is more dangerous, by far.
The 60mm is the heaviest piece of firepower you could carry yourself on patrol, mounted or dismounted. It couldnt be micromanaged. Modern day lightweight laser rangefinders, hand held computers, etc...have made mortars much quicker to get on target. They can be very accurate and fast. Proximity fuses, which are a WWII invention, mean the round has a little radar and can be set to blow up 3-7 feet off the ground, which is also awesome. Bad guys where we were didnt build bunkers and overhead cover because lazy and inshallah. Lying down in the prone behind a sangar or a rock and firing solves a lot of problems from the direct fire the good guys shoot at you. Lying down on the prone makes you very vulnerable to HE rounds exploding a few feet above ground. They complement each other. Mortars were very common in small COPs where there werent enough people to man a perimeter big enough for a 105mm howitzer. A lot of the time the bad guys would break contact before jets and CAS showed up so the best chance to get your licks in was throw a 60mm in a truck and drop a 1-2 dozen rounds as a way of saying hello. A mortar and an aviator kit bag of a dozen rounds is maybe 50 pounds. You can hop out on the unengaged side and get to work very quickly. There are places they dont work as well, like forests and jungle, if you cant get the round safely through the trees, but we havent fought there lately. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 12:17:59 PM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryQuoted: TOWs went out of favor years ago and were replaced by the Javeline, as I understand it. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: I'm not sure that I have heard of any battles from the GWOT where American mortarmen were involved. So does the US still use mortars, or is it all airstrikes, tanks and TOW missiles? TOWs went out of favor years ago and were replaced by the Javeline, as I understand it. The Javelin is the replacement for the M47 Dragon. The TOW is still used, whether on Bradleys, HMMWV's, or tripods. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 12:18:36 PM EDT
[#19]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Mortars are still in use. The pestle is used less, but it still out there. First I  and then  after it sunk in.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 12:18:52 PM EDT
[#20]
Yeah but don’t expect the mortar section to be at work after lunch.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 12:20:23 PM EDT
[#21]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Yeah but don’t expect the mortar section to be at work after lunch. That's because we FISTers have taught them well. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 12:22:50 PM EDT
[#22]
I was training and helping a mortar team one night and we got attacked. We killed a few guys with an 81mm in 2005.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 1:01:10 PM EDT
[#23]
Quote HistoryQuoted: What you are calling the “stem” (you’re spending too much time making pipes) is called the ignition cartridge. It is filled with an energetic. It essentially functions like an rifle cartridge. A primer in the base of the ignition cartridge initiates the explosives train when a fixed firing pin inside the barrel of the mortar impacts the primer. The primer initiates the ignition ctg which initiates the “cheese” propellant charges. These are the correct American terms. No Danish terms allowed. The 4.2’ and propellant charges look like just like slices of American cheese. Now all US 60mm, 81mm and 120mm all use the C shaped charges. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: Great vid. Where's the propellant in the round? How high do they go in comparison to how far out? The angle they were shooting it looked like 70 degrees or more. Seriously, how do these things work? There’s a small charge in the base, but most of the range comes from donut-shaped propellant charges that you place on the “stem” or whatever is above the tailfins. More donuts = more range. Mortars (like artillery/howitzers) are fired at 45-90 degrees, as opposed to cannon (like a tank gun, for example), which are fired at 0-45 degrees. This makes mortars & howitzers ideal for supporting fire from behind your units, since they can fire over you (and over cover that the enemy might be behind). So cannon is direct fire, and mortar/howitzer is indirect fire, if that makes sense. (I’m probably not using the correct American technical terms. )What you are calling the “stem” (you’re spending too much time making pipes) is called the ignition cartridge. It is filled with an energetic. It essentially functions like an rifle cartridge. A primer in the base of the ignition cartridge initiates the explosives train when a fixed firing pin inside the barrel of the mortar impacts the primer. The primer initiates the ignition ctg which initiates the “cheese” propellant charges. These are the correct American terms. No Danish terms allowed. The 4.2’ and propellant charges look like just like slices of American cheese. Now all US 60mm, 81mm and 120mm all use the C shaped charges. Thanks! I was trying to Americanize it by using "donut"  ETA: Obviously - since I was Cold War, I never fired any shot in anger (whether small arms or mortar), but I always thought that the 81mm was the "sweet spot" for mortars - heavy enough to do a lot of damage, but "light enough" that it COULD be moved without vehicles or much noise. The 60mm was cool, but obviously limited in damage it could do, and the 120 was so heavy that it was like "real" artillery, that required vehicles to move the tubes and to house the math dudes, etc. ETA2: Everyone in the Danish army who trained on mortars typically attached a spent pin inside their beret. Silly, I know - but I still have my first 60mm pin, attached inside a berets I still have laying around.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 1:25:10 PM EDT
[#24]
Hell yeah, and they are more advanced than ever.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 1:27:55 PM EDT
[#25]
 XM395 Accelerated Precision Mortar Initiative GPS Guided 120mm Mortar Round |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 1:31:10 PM EDT
[#26]
11B here (in another life). Much respect for Charlie's.
... but fuck humping or jumping that shit. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 1:31:55 PM EDT
[#27]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Hell yeah, and they are more advanced than ever. The new guided mortar rounds are pretty amazing. I’ve seen them on 81s and 120s at least. They’re expensive as fuck though. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 1:50:35 PM EDT
[#28]
Quote HistoryQuoted: @AZshooter71 I’d be very interested to read the source on this. @fssf158  Attached FileI got that tidbit from an article I read in WW2 History magazine. I cannot say which specific issue, but I’ll try to find it. It was an article on front line medical care. There was a whole section on mortars. There were many anecdotal stories about the nature of wounds received from mortar fire. I remember the article describing the grievous nature of the damage done by 120mm rounds. It stated that the fragments tended to be very large (6 inches) and often resulted in dismemberment and/or horrible mutilation. Even the smaller 81mm variety produced fragments with enough mass to shatter bone and cause irreparable injuries. In addition to the anecdotal stories, there was tabular data that indicated that the 81mm mortar was the most casualty Producing weapon system the Germans fielded in battle. Again, I’ll try and find the article for you. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 2:06:33 PM EDT
[#29]
Quote HistoryQuoted: As the Assistant Brigade Fire Support NCO for 3rd Brigade, 101st ABN, the only fire mission I called in Afghanistan during OEF I was a single round of 120mm Illum fired by a crew from 3rd PPCLI (Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry). A mine strike outside the perimeter had killed one Afghan and injured a couple more, including the brother of the local warlord, Commander Gulali. I initially launched an Apache to recon the area and they spotted two men walking from the area of the blast to a small village nearby. One was carrying a shovel or hoe and the other was carrying what appeared to be a TM-62 AT mine. The Apache spooked them, but eventually had to RTB, so I called a "Cannot Observe" mission in an attempt to keep them in place while a rifle squad maneuvered into the area. Eventually, the Canadians fired a few bursts from the GPMG on board a Coyote recce vehicle, but, while that kept the men from going anywhere, it also brought out spectators form the village and we had to disengage out of fear of hitting an "innocent bystander." Back then, the ROE was VERY restrictive. We could engage with lethal force if they posed a direct, immediate, threat, but not if they didn't. Since they were just out for a leisurely stroll (at 2am with an AT mine in their hands), the best we could do was Illum. It would have required permission from the Coalition Forces Land Component Commander at Camp Doha, Qatar, for me to fire any HE. What year? War story time... I was there in 09-10 as a company FSO right when McCrystal started cracking down and we fired hundreds of rounds of HE and WP from our 120mm mortars. Went up north 7 months in to take a platoon. We had two M198’s, two M119’s for air assaults, and two TPE M120 mortars we dug out of a conex and built firing points for. In Feb or March 2010 we got a lot of ICOM chatter about 300-500 fighters massing near the FOB. I sent additional preplanned targets to the FDC that day (I was tagged with indirect fire base defense...mostly historic POO sites and a few known locations). I placed a mortar target on each of our 3 OP’s (manned by local nationals) and caught a rash of shit from our BN CDR who was collocated. A few nights later they hit us and threw most of their efforts at the largest OP. Ghans in the bunker started yelling about enemy inside the wire shortly after they were hit by 7-10 RPG’s. We ended up shooting 8rnds of 120mm HE onto the OP and then chased the fighters down the reverse slope as best we could with shake n bake. The next morning the QRF hiked the mountain to the OP to do a BDA. They found a dozen or so of our local national security (nearly all half deaf) huddled in the fighting positions and seven KIA fighters. Turns out 13B’s are pretty good on mortars too! Through the rest of that deployment we fired over 1500 rnds of 155 and 105 as well. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 2:40:24 PM EDT
[#30]
Quote HistoryQuoted: What year? War story time... I was there in 09-10 as a company FSO right when McCrystal started cracking down and we fired hundreds of rounds of HE and WP from our 120mm mortars. Went up north 7 months in to take a platoon. We had two M198’s, two M119’s for air assaults, and two TPE M120 mortars we dug out of a conex and built firing points for. In Feb or March 2010 we got a lot of ICOM chatter about 300-500 fighters massing near the FOB. I sent additional preplanned targets to the FDC that day (I was tagged with indirect fire base defense...mostly historic POO sites and a few known locations). I placed a mortar target on each of our 3 OP’s (manned by local nationals) and caught a rash of shit from our BN CDR who was collocated. A few nights later they hit us and threw most of their efforts at the largest OP. Ghans in the bunker started yelling about enemy inside the wire shortly after they were hit by 7-10 RPG’s. We ended up shooting 8rnds of 120mm HE onto the OP and then chased the fighters down the reverse slope as best we could with shake n bake. The next morning the QRF hiked the mountain to the OP to do a BDA. They found a dozen or so of our local national security (nearly all half deaf) huddled in the fighting positions and seven KIA fighters. Turns out 13B’s are pretty good on mortars too! Through the rest of that deployment we fired over 1500 rnds of 155 and 105 as well. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: As the Assistant Brigade Fire Support NCO for 3rd Brigade, 101st ABN, the only fire mission I called in Afghanistan during OEF I was a single round of 120mm Illum fired by a crew from 3rd PPCLI (Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry). A mine strike outside the perimeter had killed one Afghan and injured a couple more, including the brother of the local warlord, Commander Gulali. I initially launched an Apache to recon the area and they spotted two men walking from the area of the blast to a small village nearby. One was carrying a shovel or hoe and the other was carrying what appeared to be a TM-62 AT mine. The Apache spooked them, but eventually had to RTB, so I called a "Cannot Observe" mission in an attempt to keep them in place while a rifle squad maneuvered into the area. Eventually, the Canadians fired a few bursts from the GPMG on board a Coyote recce vehicle, but, while that kept the men from going anywhere, it also brought out spectators form the village and we had to disengage out of fear of hitting an "innocent bystander." Back then, the ROE was VERY restrictive. We could engage with lethal force if they posed a direct, immediate, threat, but not if they didn't. Since they were just out for a leisurely stroll (at 2am with an AT mine in their hands), the best we could do was Illum. It would have required permission from the Coalition Forces Land Component Commander at Camp Doha, Qatar, for me to fire any HE. What year? War story time... I was there in 09-10 as a company FSO right when McCrystal started cracking down and we fired hundreds of rounds of HE and WP from our 120mm mortars. Went up north 7 months in to take a platoon. We had two M198’s, two M119’s for air assaults, and two TPE M120 mortars we dug out of a conex and built firing points for. In Feb or March 2010 we got a lot of ICOM chatter about 300-500 fighters massing near the FOB. I sent additional preplanned targets to the FDC that day (I was tagged with indirect fire base defense...mostly historic POO sites and a few known locations). I placed a mortar target on each of our 3 OP’s (manned by local nationals) and caught a rash of shit from our BN CDR who was collocated. A few nights later they hit us and threw most of their efforts at the largest OP. Ghans in the bunker started yelling about enemy inside the wire shortly after they were hit by 7-10 RPG’s. We ended up shooting 8rnds of 120mm HE onto the OP and then chased the fighters down the reverse slope as best we could with shake n bake. The next morning the QRF hiked the mountain to the OP to do a BDA. They found a dozen or so of our local national security (nearly all half deaf) huddled in the fighting positions and seven KIA fighters. Turns out 13B’s are pretty good on mortars too! Through the rest of that deployment we fired over 1500 rnds of 155 and 105 as well. 2002 |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 2:50:55 PM EDT
[#31]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Of all of the German weapon systems in WW2, the 81mm mortar by far inflicted the most casualties on our troops. It’s a very effective weapon system. for reference |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 2:51:03 PM EDT
[#32]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Mortars are fun ... to shoot, not to carry. There was a moment where I almost got transferred to a heavy mortar platoon, but I managed to avoid it. I did it for a while, but I mostly hauled the radio.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 4:03:09 PM EDT
[#33]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I did it for a while, but I mostly hauled the radio. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Mortars are fun ... to shoot, not to carry. There was a moment where I almost got transferred to a heavy mortar platoon, but I managed to avoid it. I did it for a while, but I mostly hauled the radio. The problem for me was that I went to lieutenant's school as an infantry guy from an infantry regiment, so I only went to the school so I could become an infantry platoon commander. BUT, the regiment needed a few officers for a heavy mortar platoon in addition to a bunch of infantry platoon commanders. Of course, I didn't want to go back to the regiment and spend the rest of my contract as a mortarman. Now, if they had offered me a slot commanding the heavy mortar platoon, I would at least have considered it - but a heavy mortar platoon had THREE lieutenants. One as the platoon commander, one as the "calculating officer" (who spent all his time doing math), and one as a spotter/recon guy. So to me, the chance of just becoming a fucking subordinate working for a platoon commander wasn't really why I went to officer's school. I was already a platoon sergeant, so how would it be any different? I didn't join the infantry so I could sit in the back of a vehicle doing math. Luckily, I managed to avoid it ... but it cost me a shitty evaluation from the school. 
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Posted: 7/7/2020 4:26:39 PM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryQuoted: The problem for me was that I went to lieutenant's school as an infantry guy from an infantry regiment, so I only went to the school so I could become an infantry platoon commander. BUT, the regiment needed a few officers for a heavy mortar platoon in addition to a bunch of infantry platoon commanders. Of course, I didn't want to go back to the regiment and spend the rest of my contract as a mortarman. Now, if they had offered me a slot commanding the heavy mortar platoon, I would at least have considered it - but a heavy mortar platoon had THREE lieutenants. One as the platoon commander, one as the "calculating officer" (who spent all his time doing math), and one as a spotter/recon guy. So to me, the chance of just becoming a fucking subordinate working for a platoon commander wasn't really why I went to officer's school. I was already a platoon sergeant, so how would it be any different? I didn't join the infantry so I could sit in the back of a vehicle doing math. Luckily, I managed to avoid it ... but it cost me a shitty evaluation from the school. That's going on your permanent record, mister! How do you expect to ever succeed with a permanent record like that? You better shape up or ship out! |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 6:04:31 PM EDT
[#35]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Thanks! I was trying to Americanize it by using "donut" ETA: Obviously - since I was Cold War, I never fired any shot in anger (whether small arms or mortar), but I always thought that the 81mm was the "sweet spot" for mortars - heavy enough to do a lot of damage, but "light enough" that it COULD be moved without vehicles or much noise. The 60mm was cool, but obviously limited in damage it could do, and the 120 was so heavy that it was like "real" artillery, that required vehicles to move the tubes and to house the math dudes, etc. ETA2: Everyone in the Danish army who trained on mortars typically attached a spent pin inside their beret. Silly, I know - but I still have my first 60mm pin, attached inside a berets I still have laying around. The most common name I ever heard was "cheese charge" |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 6:27:14 PM EDT
[#36]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Yeah, OK. Reality is actually the complete opposite, but OK. In fact, as I recall, there have actually been investigations into whether or not the Marine Corps was committing war crimes because of all of the head shots in Iraq, but it turned out that they were just shooting what the enemy presented. But, yeah, no one has heard about American riflemen in the GWOT.  Attached File |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 6:30:18 PM EDT
[#37]
What's the biggest artillery round we still use now?
Realize it's probably a howitzer or something and not a mortar. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 6:31:36 PM EDT
[#38]
Quote HistoryQuoted: What's the biggest artillery round we still use now? Realize it's probably a howitzer or something and not a mortar. The largest currently in use is the 155mm. We used to have a 203mm howitzer, but it's been out of service for awhile. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 6:35:33 PM EDT
[#39]
Quote HistoryThe joke had a mortar's trajectory! |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 6:39:41 PM EDT
[#40]
Quote HistoryQuoted: The largest currently in use is the 155mm. We used to have a 203mm howitzer, but it's been out of service for awhile. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: What's the biggest artillery round we still use now? Realize it's probably a howitzer or something and not a mortar. The largest currently in use is the 155mm. We used to have a 203mm howitzer, but it's been out of service for awhile. Damn. Also pretty cool, when I wiki'd our 203mm... Gun barrels from retired M110s were initially used as the outer casing in the manufacture of the GBU-28 bunker buster bomb. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 6:41:42 PM EDT
[#41]
Does the Pope shit in the woods?
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Posted: 7/7/2020 6:43:12 PM EDT
[#42]
There’s only a million and 87 videos on YouTube of troops using mortars
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Posted: 7/7/2020 6:44:59 PM EDT
[#43]
Fob loyalty 2008 we had 3 120 mm motor pits.
They where used a lot. We would have out going rounds before incoming even hit us |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 7:01:20 PM EDT
[#44]
Interesting, I have not hear ANY post Vietnam troop talk about using or training with mortars. I have heard them say things like " taking enemy mortar fire" but nothing otherwise.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 7:16:00 PM EDT
[#45]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Damn. Also pretty cool, when I wiki'd our 203mm... Gun barrels from retired M110s were initially used as the outer casing in the manufacture of the GBU-28 bunker buster bomb. Dad said he disliked the M110s just because everything was so freaking big. A 155mm could put out more rounds downrange faster also. However, he did note that the fuck you on the receiving end from the 8" gun was mobetta than the 155mm though. 
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Posted: 7/7/2020 7:24:33 PM EDT
[#46]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Dad said he disliked the M110s just because everything was so freaking big. A 155mm could put out more rounds downrange faster also. However, he did note that the fuck you on the receiving end from the 8" gun was mobetta than the 155mm though. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img924/7572/7JQu0t.jpg Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Damn. Also pretty cool, when I wiki'd our 203mm... Gun barrels from retired M110s were initially used as the outer casing in the manufacture of the GBU-28 bunker buster bomb. Dad said he disliked the M110s just because everything was so freaking big. A 155mm could put out more rounds downrange faster also. However, he did note that the fuck you on the receiving end from the 8" gun was mobetta than the 155mm though. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img924/7572/7JQu0t.jpg I'm sure those were heavy as shit to load all day if you're supporting guys |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 7:52:19 PM EDT
[#47]
Quote HistoryQuoted: 60, 81, and 120mm varieties. I guess the four deuce is gone. |
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Posted: 7/7/2020 8:01:55 PM EDT
[#48]
They should be used more. We used them infrequently in Iraq, mainly for counter battery. We wanted to take them out on patrols but never got it approved. In Afghanistan we used them quite a bit as most of the patrols were on foot within range. I had never seen 120s in action before that, they fucked some shit up.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 8:05:41 PM EDT
[#49]
I was reading in nam that the nva had 82mm tubes and could use 81mm ammo that was captured in them. do the afghans do the same thing? since they likely had some soviet tubes. not sure how much gear the locals let them capture or sell to them.
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Posted: 7/7/2020 8:15:29 PM EDT
[#50]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Back when I taught mortar gunnery at Ft Benning. FDC procedures at the Infantry Mortar Platoon Course. Just remember: RALS, LARS and Hey Diddle Diddle: far pole in the middle. I went through IMPC in 1982 as a 1LT. FDC was easy, but I learned how to use a plotting board when I was an 11C in an 81mm section. Only time I got to handle a 60mm. Fortunately one of our fellow students was a section sergeant in the 2/75. Rangers were the only ones using it back then. |
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