The Army has named its new prototype howitzer the XM-1776 in honor of the country’s founding and to coincide with the nation’s 250th anniversary.
The Army and Hanwha Defense USA announced the new designation on Monday at the Association of the U.S. Army’s annual conference in Washington.
The XM-1776 is the American version of South Korea-based Hanwha’s K-9 mobile howitzer, which at least a dozen countries have used or ordered.
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The Army is testing the eight-wheeled, 155mm self-propelled gun as a replacement for its M-777 towed howitzer.
The Army has ordered nine wheeled XM-1776 prototypes with an option for nine more. The prototype contract is valued at more than $100 million and could rise to more than $263 million, officials said.
The XM-1776 is built on a truck chassis and moves under its own power, unlike the M-777, which must be towed by a separate vehicle. Its crew can operate the weapon from inside a protective cab and quickly relocate to another firing position before enemy artillery detects them, officials said.
“The XM-1776 Mobile Tactical Cannon represents the launch of the U.S. Army’s new long-range precision fires modernization effort and its powerful partnership with [Hanwha Defense USA] to produce this system at speed and scale,” said Mike Smith, Hanwha Defense USA’s chief operating officer.
The XM-1776 outranged the legacy M-777 towed howitzer. It can fire a standard high-explosive round about 25 miles, compared to 15 miles for the current weapon.
The XM-1776 howitzer prototype will undergo four years of field testing, officials said.
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