Iron Sting, the advanced precision mortar munition that Israel uses against Hamas

@DefAviation ES 11·08·2023 · 6:08 0

Mortars have a reputation for being the most rudimentary and least accurate artillery pieces, but Israel has turned that concept around.

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In the past decade, Israeli company Elbit Systems began developing a new mortar ammunition known as Iron Sting, for use in heavy Keshet automatic mortars. >, mounted on armored vehicles M-113A3, and on modular low-recoil mortars Hanit, generally mounted on tactical vehicles of the Humvee type. Its development took ten years of work.

Elbit Systems reveals that the Iron Sting is "a precise, laser and GPS guided mortar munition" of 120 mm caliber, which is specially designed "to engage targets precisely, in both open terrains and urban environments, while reducing the possibility of collateral damage and preventing injury to non-combatants. Its operational use will revolutionize ground warfare and equip battalions with organic, accurate and effective firepower."

The head of research at the Directorate of Defense Research and Development of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, Brigadier General Yaniv Rotem, noted: "This laser and GPS- guided mortar munition provides troops with a precise firing capability that has only been implemented in missiles and air munition thus far. This is a very complex program and a groundbreaking system on the international level."

The Israeli Army has used this ammunition for the first time in its current war against Hamas. Its first operational use was carried out by the Sayeret Maglan, a special operations unit integrated into the 89th "Oz" Brigade of the Israeli Army, targeting a Hamas rocket launch site in the strip. from Gaza. This ammunition can be used against targets at a distance of 1 to 12 kilometers from the place where the mortar is located.

You can see here a video from Elbit Systems that shows the tests carried out with the Iron Sting two years ago, from a Keshet mortar mounted on an M-113A3 armored vehicle:

A few days ago, AiTelly published an interesting video showing how this works. mortar ammunition:

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Main image: Elbit Systems. An M-113A3 with a Keshet heavy mortar, about to fire an Iron Sting during testing.