L897 Warhammer

L897 Warhammer
<imgur w="300">6VzcUVC.png</imgur> L897 Warhammer undergoing trial by the Royal Talakhi Army
Type	Self-propelled artillery
Place of origin	Arthurista
Specifications
Weight	45 tonnes
Crew	5 (Loader, Gunner, Assistant Gunner, Commander, Driver)
Shell	separate loading, bagged charge
Caliber	203 mm L/45
Breech	interrupted screw
Rate of fire	1-2 rounds-per-minute (sustained), 3-4 rounds-per-minute (burst)
Effective firing range	40km (ERFB-BB) 50km (RAP)
Main armament	203 mm L/45 Howitzer
Engine	Apollo Motors LME-3 diesel engine 420bhp
Operational range	720km
Speed	55km/h

The L897 Warhammer is a heavy artillery system in service with the Commonwealth Army.

History

Until the mid-1980's, the main heavy artillery weapons of the Commonwealth Army were imported or license-produced M107 self-propelled guns and M110A2 howitzers. They were envisaged primarily as weapons of divisional- and corps-artillery groups to strike targets deep behind the battleline, conduct counter-battery fire missions (especially to counter the ubiquitous 130mm M-46) and provide general heavy support.

The Commonwealth Army originally envisaged the complete replacement of these two systems with the Gorgon MLRS. However, whilst rocket artillery is capable of delivering considerable burst damage, they are incapable of carrying out the traditional artillery mission of sustained, suppressive fire. Their munitions are also considerably more costly, a major factor when ordnance of all types must be expended en masse in a conventional war.

Accordingly, it was decided to develop a heavy gun system in parallel in order to complement the MLRS. Costly options with fully-enclosed, NBC-proof gunhouses were considered and rejected. Ultimately, it was simply decided to upgrade the M110A2 with a longer L/45 barrel. Renamed the L897 Warhammer, these artillery systems remain in service in divisional and corps-level artillery units.

Design

The Warhammer is primarily intended as a long-range dispenser of DPICM cluster munitions. Its 203mm shells may also be used as vehicles for AMTI smart anti-tank submunitions, of which three may be fitted per projectile. It may theoretically fire tactical nuclear shell with a maximum yield of 40kt from the army's legacy stockpile, although this is not an active arrangement. Rumours that the system may also employ gas-dispensing ammunition has never been commented upon publicly by the Ministry of Defence.

Maximum range is 40km with extended-range full bore/base-bleed ammunition, and 50km with rocket-assisted projectiles.

Sustained rate of fire is about 2-rounds per minute. However, a fit and practiced crew can utilise the backup manual rammer in lieu of the built-in autoloader in order to achieve burst-fire rates of 3-4 rounds per minute.