SubscribeIn the not too distant future, U.S. soldiers engaged in urban combat or others forms of combat will have a new weapon at the ready - ATK's XM395 Precision Guided Mortar Munition (PGMM).
In December 2004, ATK won an initial contract for PGMM that could put the new mortar projectile in the hands of troops as early as 2009.
PGMM flies a ballistic trajectory to target and guides to within one-meter accuracy using embedded thrusters and no moving parts. “PGMM looks and feels just like the mortar our troops use today but it extends the range and brings precision-fire capability to the infantry for the first time in the history of combat,” said John Shroyer, President, ATK Ordnance Systems.
Fire in the hole: PGMM puts precision-fire capability in the hands of soldiers for the very first time.
Not only will PGMM give U.S. and allied soldiers unmatched firepower on the battlefield, it will minimize additional troop training because PGMM shares the same dimensions as today’s standard 120mm mortar and the same fire-control system.
“PGMM helps reduce the U.S. Army’s cost for both training and supply chain management by utilizing existing infrastructure and taking advantage of a system the soldier already understands thoroughly,” said Shroyer. “This is an ATK strength that we apply to not just PGMM, but other programs such as the Navy Extended Range Munition, which we won earlier last year.”
BTERM flies ballistically to target just like PGMM and is compatible with the Navy’s standard 5-inch gun. Both systems employ advanced gun-hardened electronics pioneered by ATK that allow them to withstand the tremendous g-forces experienced when exiting a mortar or a ship-board gun.
The 120mm smooth-bore, semi-active laser PGMM looks, feels, and loads almost identically to the mortar system in service today. But as a precision-guided mortar munition, it is capable of defeating hardened and stationary targets with far fewer rounds, at greater ranges, and with much less collateral damage than current mortar ammunition.
PGMM addresses the need to provide coalition mobile assault battle units with an extended-range precision weapon they can quickly deploy against time-sensitive, protected threats - even in urban areas. The laser-guided PGMM is able to defeat bunkers, buildings, and light-armored vehicles with pinpoint accuracy. For all of its effectiveness, the PGMM is easy for the soldier to operate expeditiously and safely.
ATK’s PGMM design borrows from proven cannon-launched projectile technology and adds state-of-the-art seeker and guidance capability. Its elegantly simple design having few moving parts makes it affordable and will allow U.S. allied forces to procure the weapon system in the quantities needed to have significant impact on the battlefield.
ATK's PGMM is fully compatible with existing systems, mortar-firing doctrine, and training. PGMM pairs the best of today's mortar technology, particularly the inherent accuracy of the ballistic trajectory, with the best, off-the-shelf seeker and navigation technologies available. PGMM's operational sequence:
- The forward observer identifies a high-payoff target and requests the PGMM round
- The mortar fire direction center computes the ballistic solution, and the mortar squad prepares the round and weapon for firing
- The PGMM is drop-fired upon orders from the fire direction center
- The PGMM flies a ballistic trajectory to the target acquisition basket, eliminating the need for high-cost inertial components for flight control or GPS for navigation
- After reaching apogee, the PGMM's semi-active laser turns on and begins looking for laser energy
- The forward observer designates the target with a laser
- Using control thruster firings, the projectile maneuvers to the optimum angle of attack
- The warhead detonates after target impact and PGMM defeats its target.