Expeditionary Fire
Support System
Version Two
by Maj Brian P. Duplessis
o recent ground weapons
Nsystem has stirred as much
debate as the expeditionary
fire support system (EFSS).
Since 2000 the Gazette has seen numerous articles advocating weapons
type, assignment within the ground
combat element, and the validity of
the EFSS requirement itself. EFSS, in
initial form, is an M327 120mm rifled towed (RT) mortar. EFSS
should, however, progress to an ultra-lightweight, fully digitized 105mm
pack howitzer (ULWPH), firing advanced ammunition and capable of
limited self-propelled mobility via an
auxiliary power unit (APU).
>Maj Duplessis is attached to Headquarters Battery, Task Force Military Police, 1st
Battalion, 12th Marines, Multinational Force- West, Iraq. This article was his Chase
Prize Essay Contest entry.
The LG1 MK II. (Photo courtesy of NEXTAR©.)
EFSS: A Niche Weapon
EFSS, in current form, is a niche
weapon intended to support the vertical assault element of a ship-to-objective maneuver force for up to 72
hours. 1 Within those 72 hours, vehicles and howitzers are expected to
come ashore and link up with their
respective firing units whereupon artillery swaps mortars for cannon in
order to support subsequent operations ashore. This requirement to embark two distinct unit sets of
equipment raises logistics concerns
that have not been previously addressed in professional journals. An
M777A2 artillery battery is anchored
to a sizeable logistics footprint. The addition of EFSS battery equipment further inflates this already critical mass.
This requirement for additional deck
space is also counterintuitive to requirements set forth in Expeditionary
Fire Support: The System After Next.
Furthermore, the diversion of assault
tars. While EFSS offers value in
terms of portability, it suffers from
the inherent disadvantages of mortars when compared to howitzers.
The principal disadvantage is range;
maximum unassisted range is less
than one-third that of the M777A2.
Emplacement is more challenging in
terms of labor and suitable terrain
due to the requirement to seat the
baseplate. Mortars are limited to
high-angle fire only, rendering EFSS
incapable of direct fire in defense of
the firing unit or the precise engagement of point targets. 5 Lastly, high-angle fire is the least preferred
method of engagement when required to deconflict indirect fire
weapons trajectories and aircraft
flight paths, an enduring requirement in the conduct of vertical assault operations.
The Oto Melara Type 56 105mm pack howitzer. (Photo
courtesy Oto Melara .)
©
support sorties to recover EFSS equipment following the transition to cannon has not been addressed either. We
have accepted this inefficiency due to
the requirement for an EFSS section2
to be internally transportable by two
MV– 22 sorties. 3
The M327 maximum rate of fire,
four rounds per minute, 4 doesn’t match
that of most howitzers, much less mor-
EFSS: Version Two
A proposed solution to the shortcomings of the M327 120mm RT
mortar is to adopt a 105mm
ULWPH, firing advanced ammunition and equipped with an APU as a
source of propulsion. This EFSS replacement would serve as the Corps’
primary close support weapon, supplanting a number of M777A2s in
service.
105mm ULWPH. The M327
120mm RT mortar should be replaced
by a 105mm ULWPH weighing less
than 3,000 pounds and capable of as-
