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bobdina
08-12-2009, 10:45 AM
10-ton cannon airdropped over Afghanistan

Staff report
Posted : Tuesday Aug 11, 2009 16:20:24 EDT

How do you get a 10-ton cannon to a remote Army outpost in Afghanistan?

Call the Air Force.

An Air Force C-130 Hercules airdropped a 155 mm M198 Howitzer to soldiers in the Paktika Province in Afghanistan on Saturday.

"Five good chutes, that's all we could ask for," joint airdrop inspector Senior Master Sgt. Kevin Gifford said in an Air Force release. "It means the Army loaders did their job right, and we did our job right, and everything went according to plan."

The 36-foot-long cannon can fire shells at targets more than 13 miles away, according to Army specifications.

http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2009/08/airforce_airdrop_cannon_081009w/

ghost
08-12-2009, 11:15 AM
Nice. But haven't we switched over to the M777? Or are they still in the middle of transitioning?

bobdina
08-12-2009, 11:33 AM
Some units still have the 198 I was reading in the Army Times some units in Europe are transitioning now so yeah there still are units with it.

Cruelbreed
08-12-2009, 01:33 PM
Haven't they dropped even heavier items before?