The M109, popularly known as the Paladin, [6] is an American 155 mm turreted self-propelled howitzer, introduced in the early 1960s to replace the M44 and M52. It has been modernized several times, most recently to the M109A7. The M109 family is the most common indirect fire support weapon in the maneuver brigades of Western armored and mechanized infantry divisions. It has a crew of four: the section leader/commander, the driver, the gunner and the ammunition manager/loader.
M109 in the Museum of Military History in Vienna.
The British Army replaced its M109s with the AS-90. Several European armed forces have replaced or are currently replacing older M109s with the German PzH 2000. The United States introduced improvements for the M109 (see variants) and Switzerland (KAWEST). With the cancellation of the American Crusader, the non-line-of-sight gun, and the M1299, the M109A6 (“Paladin”) is likely to remain the primary self-propelled howitzer.
