An artillery battalion of the United States Army fired its final rounds using the M109A6 Paladin system, ending 43 years of operation with the self-propelled howitzer during exercises at Fort Carson, Colorado.
According to the website Defence Blog, the farewell was carried out by the 3rd Battalion, 29th Field Artillery Regiment, a unit of the 4th Infantry Division, during the Ivy Mass exercise on May 7.
In addition to completing its final certification as a Paladin unit, the battalion also became the first in the force to conduct a live-fire exercise using the new digital Artillery Execution Suite system, integrated into the Next Generation Command and Control (NGC2) architecture.
According to the U.S. Army, the test connected sensors and firing systems in a nearly automated digital chain, allowing target data to be sent directly to the howitzer with minimal human intervention. The concept is part of the U.S. effort to accelerate the so-called “sensor-to-shooter loop,” considered crucial in modern high-intensity warfare.
The M109A6 Paladin became one of the U.S. Army’s primary armored artillery platforms starting in the 1990s. Equipped with a 155 mm cannon, the system was used in conflicts such as the Gulf War, Iraq, and Afghanistan, serving as a reference for several Western self-propelled howitzers.
The battalion’s transition is part of a broader restructuring of the U.S. Army, which plans to combine 105 mm and 155 mm artillery systems in mixed formations to expand operational flexibility.
Despite the retirement of the M109A6, the Paladin family will continue in service through newer versions such as the M109A7, currently used in American artillery modernization programs.
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Photo: Dvidshub / Public domain. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
