155 mm (6.1 in) is a common,

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

-standard,

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

caliber In guns, particularly firearms, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel Gauge (firearms) , bore – regardless of how or where the bore is measured and whether the f ...

. It is defined in AOP-29 part 1 with reference to

STANAG In NATO, a standardization agreement (STANAG, redundantly: STANAG agreement) defines processes, procedures, terms, and conditions for common military or technical procedures or equipment between the member countries of the alliance. Each NATO st ...

4425. It is commonly used in

field gun A field gun is a field artillery piece. Originally the term referred to smaller guns that could accompany a field army on the march, that when in combat could be moved about the battlefield in response to changing circumstances ( field artille ...

howitzer A howitzer () is a long- ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like ot ...

s, and

gun-howitzer Gun-howitzer (also referred to as gun howitzer) is a type of artillery weapon that is intended to fulfill both the role of ordinary cannon or field gun, and that of a howitzer. It is thus able to convey both direct and indirect fire. Modern gun-h ...

Land warfare

The caliber originated in France after its defeat in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871, when an artillery committee met on 2 February 1874 to discuss new models for the French fortress and siege artillery, among which there was a piece in the caliber range (later on it became known as the

De Bange 155 mm cannon The de Bange 155 mm long cannon mle. 1877 (or more briefly the 155 L de Bange) was the French artillery piece that debuted the 155 mm caliber in widespread use today. Although obsolete by the beginning of World War I, the 155 L was nonet ...

). After several meetings, on 16 April 1874 the committee settled on the 15.5 cm caliber (in the subsequent program-letter of the committee, dating from 21 April 1874, the caliber was for the first time expressed as 155 mm). Since the early 21st century, most NATO armies have adopted 155 mm weapons as an all-purpose standard. They are seen as striking a good compromise between range and power, while only using a single caliber greatly simplifies the logistics burden. This has led to the obsolescence of larger caliber artillery weapons such as the 175 mm (6.9 in) and 203 mm (8 in), although some militaries retain 105 mm (4.1 in) weapons for their light weight and portability. Russian artillery and those of former

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...

countries tend to use the 122 mm (4.8 in), 130 mm (5.1 in) and 152 mm (6.0 in) artillery weapons in similar roles.

Naval warfare

Since the end of

WWII World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, 155 mm has not found any use among

naval A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

forces despite its ubiquity on land, with most NATO and aligned navies using 76 mm (3 in), 100 mm (3.9 in), 114 mm (4.5 in), or 127 mm (5 in) guns on modern warships. At one point the British

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

studied "up-gunning" the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

4.5 inch Mark 8 naval gun The 4.5 inch Mark 8 is a British naval gun system which currently equips the Royal Navy's destroyers and frigates, and some British destroyers and frigates sold to other countries. Background Guns with a 4.5 inch calibre have been t ...

s to give increased firepower and a common caliber between the Royal Navy and the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

. However, despite superficially appearing to be inferior based on a simple comparison of round diameters, when firing conventional ammunition the smaller, 4.5 inch Mark 8 naval gun is comparable to the standard 155 mm gun-howitzer of the British Army. The standard shell from a 4.5 inch Mark 8 naval gun has the same, if not better, range. Only by using

rocket-assisted projectile A rocket-assisted projectile (RAP) is a cannon, howitzer, Mortar (weapon), mortar, or recoilless rifle round incorporating a rocket motor for independent propulsion. This gives the projectile greater speed and range than a non-assisted Ballistics, ...

s (RAPs) can most 155 mm guns have comparable range to the 4.5 inch Mark 8 naval gun and by doing so there is a reduction in the payload. This is because naval guns can be built much more strongly than land-based self-propelled gun-howitzers, and have much longer barrels in relation to caliber (for example the 4.5 inch Mark 8 naval gun has a barrel length of 55

calibers In guns, particularly firearms, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel bore – regardless of how or where the bore is measured and whether the finished bore match ...

, while the standard

AS-90 The AS-90 ("Artillery System for the 1990s"), known officially as Gun Equipment 155 mm L131, is an armoured self-propelled artillery weapon used by the British Army. It can fire standard charges up to using 39 calibre long barrel (comp ...

self-propelled gun has a barrel length of 39 calibers). This allows naval guns to fire heavier shells in comparison to shell diameter and to use larger propellant charges in relation to shell weight leading to greater projectile velocities. In addition, even without active cooling, the heavier naval gun barrels allow a faster sustained rate of fire than field guns, and this is exploited with an autoloading system with a capacity of several hundred rounds. The 155 mm is better than the 4.5 inch Mark 8 naval gun for firing

cannon-launched guided projectile Cannon-launched guided projectiles (CLGP) are precision-guided munitions launched by howitzers, mortars, tank guns, and naval guns. Those projectile main propulsion system is the initial kinetic shoot, directed as much as possible toward the target ...

s (CLGP) as the lower velocity of the 155 mm shell makes it much easier for the projectiles' internal electronic guidance systems to survive being fired. While the

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...

Advanced Gun System The Advanced Gun System (AGS) is a naval artillery system developed and produced by BAE Systems Armaments & Services for the ''Zumwalt''-class destroyer of the United States Navy. Designated the 155 mm/62 (6.1") Mark 51 Advanced Gun System (AGS) ...

(AGS) also uses a 155 mm caliber, it is not compatible with NATO-standard 155 mm ammunition. However, only one type of ammunition was ever developed, and procurement was discontinued in 2016 due to its high cost, making the AGS unusable.

155 mm guns

* GC-45 () *

PLZ-45 The PLZ-45 or Type 88 is a 155 mm self-propelled howitzer designed by Su Zhezi of 674 Factory, and developed by Norinco, 123 Factory (Heilongjiang Hua'an Industry Group Company), 127 Factory (Tsitsihar Heping Machine Shop), 674 Factory (H ...

() *

PLZ-05 The PLZ-05 or the Type 05 is a 155 mm self-propelled howitzer developed by the People's Liberation Army of China to replace the Type 59-1 130 mm towed gun and Type 83 152 mm self-propelled gun. The PLZ-05 was officially unveiled at ...

() *

155 GH 52 APU The 155 GH 52 APU (which stands for ''155 mm gun-howitzer, 52 calibers, auxiliary power unit''), Finnish designation 155 K 98 (''155 mm kenttäkanuuna 1998'' or "155 mm field gun 1998"; FDF terminology doesn't recognise gun-howitzers), is a Fin ...

() * Canon de 155 mm GPF ( - no longer in service) * Canon de 155 C modèle 1915 St. Chamond ( - no longer in service) *

Canon de 155 C modèle 1917 Schneider The Canon de 155 C modèle 1917 Schneider, often abbreviated as the ''C17S'', was a French howitzer designed by Schneider. It was essentially the ''Canon de 155 C modèle 1915 Schneider'' fitted with a different breech to use bagged propellant ra ...

( - no longer in service) *

Obusier de 155 mm Modèle 50 Obusier de 155 mm Modèle 50 was a French 155 mm 30 calibre howitzer introduced in 1952. The first French artillery designed since World War II, it was manufactured in both France - 980 howitzers were produced (French army and export) - ...

( - no longer in service) *

TRF1 The TRF1 is a 155mm French towed howitzer produced by Nexter (ex Giat Industries) and used by the French Army. The TRF1 was showcased in 1979 at the Eurosatory arms trade show, as a replacement for Armée de Terre's Obusier_de_155_mm_Mod%C3%A8le_ ...

( ) *

PzH2000 The Panzerhaubitze 2000 ("tank howitzer 2000"), () abbreviated PzH 2000, is a German 155 mm self-propelled howitzer developed by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) and Rheinmetall in the 1980s and 1990s for the German Army. It is capable of a very hig ...

() *

FH70 The FH70 (field howitzer for the 1970s) is a towed howitzer in use with several nations. History In 1963, NATO agreed a NATO Basic Military Requirement 39 for close support artillery, either towed or tracked. Subsequently, Germany and UK st ...

( / / ) *

Dhanush Venkatesh Prabhu Kasthuri Raja (born 28 July 1983), known professionally as Dhanush, is an Indian actor, producer, director, lyricist and playback singer who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. Starring in 46 films over his career, among hi ...

() *

DRDO Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS) The Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS) is a towed 155 mm/52 calibre howitzer that is being developed for the Indian Army by Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE), Tata Advanced Systems and Kalyani Strategic System ...

() *

ATMOS 2000 ATMOS (Autonomous Truck Mounted howitzer System) is a 155 mm/52 calibre self-propelled gun system manufactured by Israeli military manufacturer Soltam Systems. The system is long range, fast moving, truck mounted with high firepower and mobili ...

() *

Soltam M-68 The M-68 was a 155 mm L33 caliber towed gun howitzer manufactured by Soltam Systems of Israel, and used by the Israeli Defense Force. Design The M-68 is based on the Finnish designed 122 K 60 and 155 K 68 cannon series, first developed in ...

( - no longer in service) *

Soltam M-71 The M-71 is a 155 mm 39 caliber towed howitzer manufactured by Israeli company Soltam Systems. Design The weapon was based on the earlier Soltam M-68 and uses the same recoil system, breech and carriage but had a longer gun barrel (39 calib ...

() * Type 75 () * Type 99 () * 2S19M1-155 () *

Nora B-52 The Nora B-52 is a 155 mm self-propelled howitzer developed by Military Technical Institute and manufactured by Yugoimport SDPR in Velika Plana, Serbia. History The first self-propelled Nora B (developed on the basis of Nora C) was designed by t ...

() * G5/ G6 () *

Bandkanon 1 15,5 cm bandkanon 1 (15,5 cm bkan 1, pronounced "b-kan"), meaning " tracked cannon 1", was a Swedish self-propelled artillery vehicle in use with the Swedish Army from 1967 to 2003, developed by Aktiebolaget Bofors. Its product name was () ...

( - no longer in service) *

T-155 Fırtına T-155 Fırtına ( Turkish for ''Storm'') is a Turkish variant of K9 Thunder 155 mm self-propelled howitzer co-developed with South Korea utilizing Turkish technology and design into existing K9 Thunder. It is manufactured and assembled by Turkish ...

() *

M777 The M777 howitzer is a British towed 155 mm artillery piece in the howitzer class. It is used by the ground forces of Australia, Canada, Colombia, India, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, and the United States. It was first used in combat during the US w ...

() * M1/M2 155 mm "Long Tom" ( - no longer in service) * M12 ( - no longer in service) * M41 ( - no longer in service) * M44 ( - no longer in service) * M53 () * M109 () *

M114 M114 or M-114 may refer to: * M114 155 mm howitzer, a towed howitzer used by the United States Army * M114 armored fighting vehicle, a Vietnam War-era tracked armored fighting vehicle, used by the United States Army * M114 bomb, a U.S. 4 lb. biologi ...

() *

M198 The M198 is a medium-sized, towed 155 mm artillery piece, developed for service with the United States Army and Marine Corps. It was commissioned to be a replacement for the World War II-era M114 155 mm howitzer. It was designed and prototyped at ...

() * XM1203 ( – never entered service) * XM2001 ( – never entered service) ;Firing NATO projectiles *

CAESAR Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caes ...

() * GCT () * Palmaria () *

AHS Krab The AHS Krab (Polish for crab) is a 155 mm NATO-compatible self-propelled tracked gun-howitzer designed in Poland by Huta Stalowa Wola (HSW), by combining the South Korean K9 Thunder chassis with a British BAE Systems AS-90M Braveheart turret w ...

() *

FH-88 The FH-88 or Field Howitzer 88 was the first locally designed howitzer developed for the Singapore Army. It is a 155 mm/39-calibre towed howitzer gun. Development Ordnance Development and Engineering of Singapore (ODE, now Singapore Technol ...

( - no longer in service) *

FH-2000 The FH-2000 or Field Howitzer 2000 was developed by ST Engineering, Singapore Technologies for the Singapore Army. It is a 155 mm/52-calibre towed howitzer gun. It fires projectiles to a maximum range of 42 kilometers using special extended ...

() *

SLWH Pegasus The Singapore Light Weight Howitzer (SLWH) Pegasus is a helicopter-transportable, towed artillery piece. Developed jointly by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), Defence Science and Technology Agency and ST Kinetics, it was commissioned on 28 Octob ...

() *

SSPH Primus The Singapore Self-Propelled Howitzer 1 (SSPH 1) Primus is a self-propelled howitzer armed with a 155 mm howitzer. Developed jointly by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) and Singapore Technologi ...

() *

155 mm SpGH Zuzana Zuzana 155 mm Gun Howitzer is a Slovak artillery system developed by KONŠTRUKTA-Defence, a.s., with a 45-caliber gun and automatic loader for loading of both projectile and charge. It is an evolution of the 152mm SpGH DANA self-propelled h ...

() *

KH179 The KH179 ("Korean Howitzer 1 (First) 79") is a South Korean 155 mm 39 caliber towed howitzer designed and developed by the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) for the Republic of Korea Armed Forces, and is now manufactured by Hyundai WIA. Deve ...

() *

K9 Thunder The K9 Thunder is a South Korean 155 mm self-propelled howitzer designed and developed by the Agency for Defense Development and civil contractors including Dongmyeong Heavy Industries, Kia Heavy Industry, Poongsan Corporation, and Samsung Aer ...

() * Santa Bárbara Sistemas 155/52 () *

Archer Artillery System The Archer Artillery System, or Archer – FH77BW L52, or Artillerisystem 08 is a self-propelled gun system for Sweden and Norway. The heart of the system is a fully automated 155 mm/L52 gun howitzer and a M151 Protector remote controlled weapon s ...

() * FH77 B () *

Panter howitzer The Panter howitzer is an artillery, artillery weapon developed by MKEK for the Turkish Land Forces Command. It has a 155 mm/52-calibre towed howitzer, howitzer gun and is able to fire NATO projectiles to a maximum range of 40 kilometers usi ...

() *

AS90 The AS-90 ("Artillery System for the 1990s"), known officially as Gun Equipment 155 mm L131, is an armoured self-propelled artillery weapon used by the British Army. It can fire standard charges up to using 39 calibre long barrel (comp ...

() ;Incompatible with NATO projectiles *

(AGS) () - no ammunition available * FH77 A ()

155 mm naval guns

* Canon de 155 mm Modèle 1920 ( – non-NATO compatible) * 15.5 cm/60 3rd Year Type naval gun ( – non-NATO compatible) *

( – in service but with no ammunition available; non-NATO compatible) * Mark 8 gun ( – proposed but never produced, NATO compatible)

155 mm shells

References

{{reflist 155 mm artillery Artillery Ammunition