The following PR photos showcase an artillery unit from the 6th Marine Brigade (6*06) undergoing training at the PLA Army’s Zhurihe Combined Arms Training Base, Asia’s largest such base (link) The following images confirm that the PLA Marines have access to organic, large-caliber fire support in the form of the 155mm PCL-181 howitzer.The PCL-181 is a wheeled artillery system, and its selection over heavier tracked alternatives like the PLZ-05 likely reflects a strategic preference for enhanced mobility and reduced logistical burden for the PLAN Marine. Its lighter weight and road-friendly design make it well-suited for rapid deployment and maneuverability, those are key advantages for the 6th Marine Brigade.
Artillery Regiment, 11th Combined-Arms Division , Xinjiang Military District, Western Theater Command
received its PCL181 155mm truck mounted SPH upgrade to replace her old PL66 152mm towed howitzer.
One more PCL181 155mm truck mounted SPH unit identified
(Source
here)
Military vehicles attached to an artillery brigade under the PLA 74th
Group Army conduct a convoy maneuver under strange and complicated
terrain conditions on June 7, 2020. (eng.chinamil.com.cn/Photo by Huang
Hai)
Thus far, there are a total of four such PCL181 equipped artillery brigades confirmed, they are:
- 74th Artillery Brigade, 74th Group Army, Southern Theater Command
(former 1st Artillery Division, 42nd Group Army) (from above)
-75th Artillery Brigade, 75th Group Army, Southern Theater Command
-73rd Artillery Brigade, 73th Group Army, Eastern Theater Command
-308th Independent Artillery Brigade, Tibet Military District
PCL-181 is SH15
PCL-181 brings great improvement for PLA artillery troops
- Source
- http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/view/2020-05/07/content_9808544.htm
- Editor
- Wang Xinjuan
- Time
- 2020-05-07 10:31:47
The domestically developed PCL-181155mm wheeled vehicle-mounted
howitzers are commissioned to an army brigade under the PLA Eastern
Theater Command. (Photo/Courtesy of Weibo @ CNR guofangshikong)
Recently, it has been widely reported that China's new generation of
155mm vehicle-mounted howitzers, the PCL-181, have been delivered to
troops of a brigade under the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern
Theater Command in batches.
This reveals both the renewal of the
main equipment, and even the overall improvement of the authorization
system, tactical thinking, and equipment system of the PLA Army
artillery troops.
Faster in response
The PCL-181 currently delivered to the PLA Army artillery troops will
be mainly used to replace the active PL-66 152-mm towed gun-howitzers
and a small part of the remaining Type 59-1 130-mm towed cannons.
Compared with the latter two,
the PCL-181 features "fastness" as
its most prominent technical advantage --- to be specific, its
"fastness" in response, marching, and aiming.
First, its response is fast. Within three minutes, the PL-66 152-mm
towed gun-howitzer can only complete the transition from marching state
to combat state; while thanks to its integrated wheeled chassis and
highly automated electromechanical hydraulic servo system, the PCL-181
can realize the whole process from parking to combat state, then to
launching six projectiles, and finally to withdrawing and transferring.
This means a qualitative leap for the tactics of the PLA Army artillery
troops.
Second, its marching is fast. With the integration of wheeled chassis
and artillery, the PCL-181 can reach the maximum design speed in
marching, with no need to worry about the rollover accident caused by
overspeed, which is hardly possible for the PL-66 152-mm towed
gun-howitzer.
Third, its aiming is fast. The PCL-181 is equipped with the
world-leading automatic fire control system (AFCS). Following the input
of the target azimuth data, the vehicle-mounted fire control computer
can automatically settle the shooting elements and automatically adjust
the azimuth and height of the artillery. However, such element
adjustments of the PL-66 rely entirely on manual operation.
Lighter and smaller
At present, the PLA Army artillery troops have already been equipped
with the PLZ-05 155mm self-propelled howitzers. Why is the PCL-181 still
needed?
The full combat weight of the PCL-181 vehicle-mounted howitzer
is 25 tons, only about half compared with the PLZ-05 155mm
self-propelled howitzer.(Photo/Courtesy of Weibo @ CNR guofangshikong)
The PCL-181 has a full combat weight of 25 tons, only about half
compared with the PLZ-05. Since there are certain restrictions on the
total weight of vehicles on many bridges and highways, the PCL-181 is
superior to such heavy-duty tracked vehicles as the PLZ-05 in terms of
mobility. In addition, with a smaller overall size, the PCL-181 has no
worries about "overrun"(the overall height exceeds 3.6 meters or overall
width exceeds the train cabin) when transported by rail, and can get
through almost all railway sections to reach a freight station nearest
to the destination.
Besides, the PCL-181 weighs only 25 tons, which is just within the
cargo capacity of China's Y-9 tactical transport aircraft. Each Y-9
tactical transport aircraft can carry one PCL-181, and as long as there
are a sufficient number of transport aircraft groups, the rapid
deployment of the organically assigned artillery troops as a whole
within nearly a thousand kilometers can be realized. This will
undoubtedly greatly improve the rapid reaction capability of the PLA
Army.
In addition, the PCL-181 is more cost-effective with a lower price,
so the procurement cost can be reduced to a considerable extent while
ensuring equivalent firepower. Under the premise of controlling the
procurement cost, it is possible to completely replace the old towed
artilleries such as the Type 59-1 the PL-66, which are now active in
quantity. In this way, the situation in which a variety of large-caliber
artillery coexist in the equipment system of the PLA Army artillery
units will be thoroughly changed: artillery of 130 mm and 152 mm
calibers are to be completely eliminated, only with that of 122 mm and
155 mm calibers retained.
More flexible
The PCL-181 vehicle-mounted howitzer is equipped with the military
high-mobility truck chassis, which make it good at long-distance
mobility on road. It was reported that the service members of an Army
brigade under the Eastern Theater Command just drove the PCL-181 to
their camp after unloading at the freight station. However, when it came
to receiving the PLZ-05 155mm self-propelled howitzers in the past,
they had to carry them back with heavy-duty wheeled trailers.
According to statistics, the total mileage of China's expressway
network has exceeded 100,000 kilometers at present. Therefore, the
PCL-181 can quickly reach designated areas by using its wheeled chassis
of long-distance rapid maneuverability in North China, East China, and
South China where the expressway network is relatively dense. In
addition, the PCL-181 is also superior to the PLZ-05 in terms of
maneuverability and operational flexibility in mountainous areas,
deserts, Gobi deserts, and plateaus.
