Return of fires: How the Army is getting back to its big guns as it prepares for the near-peer...

Extremely interesting article. It's a shame how we forget the basics just to have someone make a "Tiger Team" that "discovers" we should never have gone away from a certain process. What I did not see in the article is how they would incorporate harsh ROE's into the missions these troops would face. In certain areas of the Stan, you could do a call for fire, only to be told you're within a certain boundary of a populated area, and no one wants to risk collateral damage. I understand that, but for some odd reason I don't see Joes as "expendable assets" or "collateral damage themselves".

The Army also needs to get systems that while strong and robust, are light enough to be dropped in harsh environments ala mountains. 777's I believe are air drop capable, but how would they make it in a non linear area where you could be hundreds of feet above your target due to elevation changes? The Paladin is great looking, and it can move itself as long as it's kinda flat from what I've seen and I am NO expert on gun bunny equipment. But if there were no tanks in the mountains due to terrain, that Paladin won't make it either. Russia will not come at us in some great high speed army on army battle. Those days are long gone and anyone who wants to fight those type of battles better break out their Blue Books and teleport back a couple hundred years. The future wars will be solidly based off quick engagements, quick decisive deployments of assets along with their recovery and further redeployment. You can pack a bigger punch when you have fire superiority than if you have a few cannons lobbing a couple rounds every minute.

I hope this doesn't turn out to be another Crusader project that cost tons of cash and went nowhere fast. Defense contracting companies are good for that.

Russia has always put its faith in artillery (and missiles). I don't think I would simply stop at just catching up to them. I'm sure they'll redouble their ranges as we double ours. More important, how well can they vs us direct those long range rounds?

I have read that elsewhere as well, as an artilleryman I am concerned and disappointed.