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| New Zealand And Britain train Ukraine in howitzer L119 |
Kiev - Ukraine gets help from Britain in the midst of the Russian invasion which is still heating up. According to reports this week, the British military began training Ukrainian troops a few weeks ago in Wiltshire, an area in southwest England with the L119 gun.
The news comes less than two weeks after Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited Kyiv, Ukraine, promising a British-led troop training scheme. British and New Zealand troops have overseen the program on British soil and that they are impressed by the desire of the Ukrainian army to learn how to use standard NATO equipment.
Quoted from 19fortyfive.com, Warrant Officer Rebecca Bullock, an expert marksman at the British Royal Artillery, said the soldiers' motivation was "tremendous". "They don't get much rest," Bullock said, adding that the window for these soldiers to learn was very short. How can they be faster, how can they move faster, how can they act? It's all about speed," he said, referring to the focus of Ukrainian soldiers currently in the UK receiving training.
Bullock said he had worked with New Zealand Captain Jonathan Dick to train soldiers on how to use the L119 gun. Training became increasingly necessary for Ukrainian troops as Soviet-era weaponry became increasingly difficult to obtain. This means that Ukraine has received a greater amount of modern NATO weaponry that the army is less familiar with.
What is L119?
The L119 is a 105mm Light Rifle providing direct and indirect fire support to British and New Zealand troops. The howitzer can be used to hit buildings or armored vehicles and has a range of more than 10 km.
The howitzer is 6500mm long, 1800mm wide and weighs 1900kg. This is a towed howitzer, meaning it must be towed by a military vehicle.
In mid-June, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that Britain would oversee a three-week training program for Ukrainian soldiers.
Johnson made the comments during the trip to Kyiv, his third since the war broke out, but did not announce at the time how the project might have progressed.
In a statement issued by 10 Downing Street, the prime minister promised that the British army would provide support to Ukrainian troops.
“When Ukrainian soldiers fire British missiles in defense of your country's sovereignty, they do so also to defend the freedoms we take for granted. That is why I have offered President Zelenskiy a major new military training program that could change the equation of this war, harnessing that most powerful force, Ukraine's determination to win," Johnson said.
The proposal suggested that the British army would provide guidance on medical training, counter-explosive tactics, cybersecurity and combat skills.
Quoted from n nzdf.mil.nz, the L119 Light Gun is a light cannon/howitzer capable of providing direct fire support to armored vehicles or buildings or indirect fire to support combat weapons at a distance of more than 10 km.
While primarily towed into position by a suitable vehicle, it can also be carried as a sling load under a helicopter for faster deployment, or deployment to hard-to-access areas where the vehicle may not be able to travel.
One of the more commonly seen uses of the L119 Light Gun is the artillery salute for state and ceremonial occasions. Depending on the mission requirements, the Light Gun can fire the following types of bombs: high-explosion, smoke, illumination and blanks.
Quoted from Army.mil, there are four production variants plus the L119 model. The M119A1 includes a fire control and maintenance system, while the M119A2 model has improved sights.
The latest revision is the M119A3. The A3 model has a digital fire control system and an internal navigation system for self-location.
The latest variant entered operation in April 2013. The entire system is driven by the M1097 High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV). The system is capable of firing high-explosive, luminous, smoke and long-range ammunition.