Military Artillery Research Paper

The military has had major changes since the very first organized battles. So as a branch of the military, artillery has also faced such improvements throughout the centuries. It seems that the inventions and developments we are practicing today will continue to affect the military, and artillery as an integrated part of military. In the past, artillery was used to represent the fire support function. In ancient times arrow and bows, polybolos, ballistas, and catapults were used as means of fire support. Armies were heavy and they were not able to maneuver quickly. It was economically problematic to sustain a war. The discovery of gunpowder resulted in new artillery weapons and artillery units got the ability of firing enemy positions from

a long distances and cutting down on resources. Latterly, the greatest modifications that artillery experienced happened during WWII, following the development of airplanes, rockets, and communication systems. With the information obtained about enemy forces by reconnaissance airplanes, and intelligence efforts, artillery units became far more mobile and able to provide fire power from long distances that enabled them to operate over the long distances on multiple fronts at a time. All of these changes allowed countries to be more efficient in terms of sustainment, economy of forces, and control. Now, as a continuation of the constant changes that artillery has experienced over the time, it is inevitable that changes in traditional artillery doctrine and means are going to take place due to the invention of high-precision weapons (HPW), progress in the effectiveness of intelligence function, and increased considerations over the Rules of Engagement (ROE).
HPWs are in the first row amongst the other factors to affect the artillery doctrine.

Because of their effectiveness in terms of distance, accuracy, control, camouflage, and sustainability, they will affect artillery to change its doctrine and weapons. On 13 May 1972, a month after the first unsuccessful attack on the Thanh Hóa Bridge ("Dragon's Jaw"), initial versions of HPW were successfully applied to destroy a bridge that could not be destroyed before and consumed 800 sorties of US forces (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precision-guided_munition). The accuracy that HPW brought to us forces in that fight caught attention of military authorities to make its use more extensive. Later, they were used by the British forces during the 1982 Falklands War (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precision-guided_munition). Instead of carrying heavy artillery weapons together with units, the British used HPWs from the deck of the ships, located far from island, to destroy the targets inside the island. During these two applications of HPW, both US and British forces had identified lesson from experience that fire support can be more accurate, economic, and easy to handle if they make changes in artillery doctrine and organization to allow exploitation of HPW. After having this idea, both countries set about exploitation of HPW widely. Another example of the application of HPW can be Russia’s recent employment of rockets from the Caspian Sea into Syria to destroy targets in areas controlled

by ISIS. Eliminating targets with rockets, launched from a far distance, is an instance that should be analyzed. Russia did not to deploy any artillery units into the theater and as a result they could reduce the number of soldiers and weapons deployed, economize the forces and resources, and centralize the control of operation to achieve expected accuracy necessary to be successful. Traditional artillery weapons require units to disperse on the battlefield and result in being close to the enemy, less accurate, difficult to control. Often, the use of traditional artillery weapons only ends in partial success and requires foot soldiers to finish the mission. On the other hand, HPWs are easier to deal with, more precise, better able to be applied from a long distances, and does not need additional support from infantry. Consequently, they inspire armies to consider contemporary means of fire support. Accordingly, these considerations learned from past operations, together with other factors such as intelligence, will lead armies to make alterations to traditional artillery doctrine.
Of course all these considerations will not be real without the contribution of effective intelligence. Accurate and timely information about enemy and friendly forces always supports commanders in their decision making and allows them to economize deployed forces and realize ideal use of forces. Thus, the increase in accuracy and timeliness of intelligence will affect artillery doctrine and arms to convert into more contemporary ones. Joint Surveillance and Target Attack Radar System (JSTARS) is overarching example of intelligence system that will have further influence on artillery doctrine. JSTARS, while monitoring the situation 24 hours 7 days, can provide accurate and timely information about the targets and the effects of fires through the synchronized efforts of multiple means of intelligence. The constant capability of having accurate and timely information will decrease need for positioning artillery weapons throughout the area of operation, and will lead to the elimination of intelligence units embedded in artillery. Thus, only sufficient amount of artillery units with more robust communication means will be needed to eliminate the enemy targets. Another example for intelligence’s effect on usage of artillery, can be detention of Osama Bin Laden. Through intelligence efforts, he was nominated as a High Value Target and was looked for. At the same time, as a leader of his terrorist organization, he was protected by his acquaintances. Luckily, accurate intelligence information allowed US forces to deploy the team of United States Navy SEALs and capture the target without engaging the enemy’s battle positions (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osama_bin_Laden). In this example, it is obvious that through effective intelligence efforts, no artillery weapons were needed to capture the HVT. Without accurate information, they would have had to keep fighting through the area of operation and deploy not only artillery, but also soldiers of other branches. Basically, the more accurate the intelligence becomes, the less artillery units will be needed. Additionally, interoperability will be most important issue which will oblige setting up of a new structure in artillery units. Knowing the most important mean of enemy decreases number of units to be deployed to battlefield and risk of collateral damage that supports ROE concept.
Rules of Engagement (ROE) is the last factor to affect artillery doctrine and weaponry. Especially, after establishment of organization of United Nations, the question ROE has become one of the major considerations; and the development of media helped the world community easily monitor the situation in conflicted areas and decide whether to support the campaigns or not. Thus, ROE considerations will affect artillery doctrine and weapons to become more proportional and selective in attacking on targets. Nuclear bombs are the best example to depict how the any mean of collateral damage is going to be restricted. Although there have been two thousand experimental explosions of nuclear weapons, since the Hiroshima and Nagasaki attacks, world has never faced any application of nuclear weapons in war ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_on_the_Non-Proliferation_of_Nuclear_Weapons). Now, there is Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons that is almost all countries agreed on avoiding use of nuclear bombs because of collateral damage they cause and applying means that would be proportional in relation to foe’s means. The recent campaigns showed that in today’s world enemy seeks to fight in the cities, since it is easy to disguise amongst the population. Fighting in the cities, accompanied with ROE concerns, requires the military to be more distinguishing while attacking on target. This is why the artillery is going to lose its importance and will face serious reduction in organization and weapons.
In the end, nothing in life stays still.

So artillery cannot be static all the time. Artillery will face serious changes because of development of HPW, increased accuracy of intelligence, and widespread concern of obedience to Rules of Engagement. HPW with its preciseness, more economical and more controllable features is likely to take place of traditional artillery means and cause serious cuts in number of artillery assets. Contemporary intelligence efforts through their accuracy and ability of providing timely information will decrease the need for reserves and will affect the artillery to cut down on forces used in battlefield. Rules of Engagement, reinforced with media means, will continue to affect the military to use more proper means of artillery. That change will give rise to such results that fire support will be more accurate, sustainable, centralized in control, and more attentive of ROE. Thus, any military personnel should understand and prepare themselves to 21st century’s artillery

concept.