Heavy field cannon 175mm M107 (Bw)
Heavy howitzer 203mm M110A1 / A2 (Bw)
(schu) - The self-propelled artillery guns M107 and M110 had been developed by order of the US Army from 1956 .The aim
was to improve the mobility of the heavy field artillery. For this purpose, the American company Pacific Car and Foundry
Company designed a low and barely armored chain unit chassis. A large slewing ring in the rear half of the vehicle formed the
basis for the artillery pieces. An armored combat area for the eight-man crew was unnecessary, as the guns were deployed at
a considerable distance (5 to 10 km) from the main battle line. The chassis had the drive block with the 8-cylinder diesel
engine with 356 HP (262 kW) at the front right, four rollers and a lowered tension roller. A hydraulically lowerable earth spur
and the ability to lock the suspension of the drive ensured the stability of the vehicles when straightening and shooting. Two
rounds of ammunition could be carried on board the self-propelled gun. Production of the 175mm M107 field cannon and the
203mm M110 field howitzer began in 1962 and ended in 1970.
The M107 and M110 (pictured) were developed for the US Army in the 1950s
(Photo: US DOD / Charles P. Connally)
/
The long-barreled M107 field cannon
(Photo: Bundeswehr / Schulte Collection)
The tail spur and the lockable drive give the gun a stable position when firing
(Photo: Bundeswehr / Collection Schulte)
In order to strengthen the firepower of the artillery troops, in 1964 the Bundeswehr procured the 155 mm M109G self-
propelled howitzer, the 175 mm M107 SF cannon and the 203 mm M110 SF howitzer. In the heavy field artillery battalions of
the divisions, the self-propelled guns replaced the M59 Long Tom and M115 field howitzers.
M107 M110A1 M110A2
Length (without gun barrel) 6.50 m 6.50 m 6.50 m
Length with gun barrel 11.30 m 7.48 m 10.71 m
width 3.15 m 3.15 m 3.15 m
height 3.48 m 2.94 m 3.70 m
Combat weight 28.8 t 26.5 t 28.4 t
HP (kW) 356 hp (262 kW) 356 hp (262 kW) 356 hp (262 kW)
/
crew 5-8 5-8 5-8
Armament Cannon 175mm L / 60 Howitzer 203mm L / 25 Howitzer 203mm L / 37
Firing range 32 km 17 km 23 km
In Army Structure 3, valid from 1970, the heavy field artillery battalions in the 2nd and 3rd batteries were each equipped with
six M107 field cannons. The 4th battery received six M110 field howitzers. The restructuring of the artillery troops in the course
of the introduction of Army Structure 4 went hand in hand with the re-barreling of 150 M107 field cannons to 203 mm caliber.
The 80 howitzers M110 also received the new 8.26 m long L / 37 tube with the distinctive two-chamber muzzle brake. The
originally open guns, which were designated M110 A2 after the conversion, now also had a weather protection hood. The
track was also included in the modernization measure. Double block crawler tracks from Diehl replaced the US chains. The
installation of a data input and output device made it possible to integrate the 230 M110A2 guns into the integrated fire control
artillery battery (IFAB). The combat weight was now just under 28.4 t and the top speed had to be reduced to 30 km / h.
The early version of the heavy field howitzer M110 with the short-barreled 203 mm gun
(Photo: Bundeswehr / Collection Schulte)
/
The casing turned the short-barreled 203 mm howitzer into a long-barreled 203 mm gun
(Photo: Bundeswehr / Collection Schulte)
While the field artillery battalions of the divisions had a battery with six field howitzers 203 mm M110 A2, the field artillery
battalions of the corps had three batteries with six guns each. The capture of artillery structure 85 led to the dissolution of the
corps artillery from 1985. The released M110 A2 went to the artillery battalions, where they were present with nine guns each
in the 4th and 5th battery until they were retired in 1993.
Other user states of the M107 / M110 included Belgium, Greece, Great Britain, Iran, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, South
Vietnam and Turkey. The standard chassis was also used in the T119 open crane vehicle and the M578 armored recovery
vehicle.
These pages were created as part of the "Veteran of the Month" campaign with the collaboration
of Arnd Baumgardt, Thomas Lendorf, R. Haag, Rolf Gronen, Werner Schröder and Wolfgang Igert.
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