Impressive images of the M-109 of the Spanish Army firing 'Base Bleed' ammunition

@DefAviation ES 11·09·2022 · 21:44 0

Seeing M-109 self-propelled howitzers firing their 155mm cannons is always impressive, but even more so if they open fire with certain ammunition.

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An example of this is the images of Exercise Guiloche 22 published by the Spanish Army. In this exercise, carried out by the 11st Field Artillery Regiment (RACA 11), reinforced with sensors from the 63 Rocket Launch Artillery Regiment (RALCA 63) and the 4th Coastal Artillery Regiment (RACTA 4), was trained and certified in his capabilities firing with "Base Bleed" extended range ammunition.

The Spanish Army has been using Base Bleed ammunition for years in different artillery units. Under these lines we can see an exercise of the Brigade A paratrooper in 2013 firing an L-118 Light Gun howitzer with this type of ammunition at the "San Gregorio" Training Center in Zaragoza.

The Base Bleed is a type of ammunition that carries a rocket on its rear, which is ignited by firing the cannon. Thanks to this type of ammunition, an M-109 can extend the range of its shots.

In this enlargement of the previous photo we can clearly see the ignition of the rocket of a Base Bleed ammunition fired by an M-109 from RACA 11.

In Spain, this type of ammunition is manufactured by Explosivos Alaveses, S.A. (EXPAL). In September 2019, this company published a statement pointing out that EXPAL's 155mm Extended Range ammunition had successfully passed the reception tests of the Spanish Army, noting that it can extend the range of the Spanish artillery up to 40 km. The ammunition is also used by other NATO countries, and in the case of Spain it has been developed in collaboration with the General Directorate of Armament and Material (DGAM) of the Ministry of Defense.

EXPAL reported that in 2018 it signed an agreement with the Army to supply ammunition extended to the 155 mm SIAC 52 caliber and M109A5 39 caliber howitzers: "The supply agreement consists of extended range projectiles equipped with base bleed unit, modular charges and EC-102 electronic fuze."