MNCNE

Search our content

Home  /  Newsroom  /  News  /  2023  /  U.S. artillery supports Allies in Poland

Sep 18 2023

U.S. artillery supports Allies in Poland

SZCZECIN, Poland – Assigned to NATO enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroup Poland, U.S. Army soldiers with Alpha “Ares” Battery, 4th Battalion, 27th Field Artillery Regiment conducted a live fire training, showcasing the pinpoint accuracy of their M109A6 Paladin 155-mm self-propelled howitzers at Bemowo Piskie Training Area, September 6. To execute an effective fire mission, they worked together with their fellow service members from the Croatian Army.

"This is our first time working with another coalition force," says U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Torry Newkirk, a cannon crew member. "We are doing our best to make one another that much better."

Acting as forward observers, the Croatians provided support and feedback required for the success of the fire mission. Their role was to ensure that the artillery could accurately and quickly send rounds downrange. "It shows immediately that also our Allies are proficient. From the very first day working together, we have had no hiccups, no problems," underpins 1st Lieutenant Barnet Cohen, a platoon leader with the Alpha "Ares" Battery.

They are helping us get ready, fit to fight, so we can fight together as a battlegroup.

Paladin M109A6 is a cannon artillery system with self-propelled howitzer and is operated by a crew of four: a commander, a driver, a gunner and a loader. The crew are able to receive mission data via a secure voice and digital communications system, compute the firing data, automatically unlock the cannon from the travel lock, point the cannon and fire, and move to a new location without external technical assistance. 

Video © Captain Daniel Yarnall

Story by Multinational Corps Northeast Public Affairs Office

Search our content:

Address

Multinational Corps Northeast
Waleriana Łukasińskiego 33
71-215 Szczecin
Poland

Media Operations

Public Affairs Office
Waleriana Łukasińskiego 33
71-215 Szczecin
Poland