Mortar carrier

An American M1129 Mortar Carrier

A mortar carrier, also known as a self-propelled mortar, is a self-propelled artillery vehicle carrying a mortar as it's primary weapon. Mortar carriers cannot be fired while on the move and some must be dismounted to fire.

The mortar’s sole mission is to support the cavalry troop.^{[clarification needed]} Mortars have no logistical tail or reinforcing mission that would delay operations as is often the case with artillery.

Mortar carriers have traditionally direct contact with the enemy. Many units report never using secondary weapons in combat.

History

Prior to the Iraq War, American 120mm mortar platoons reorganized from six M1064 mortar carriers and two M577 fire direction centers (FDC) to four M1064 and one FDC.^[1] The urban environment of Iraq made it difficult to utilize mortars. New technologies such as mortar ballistic computers and communication equipment and are being integrated. Modern era combat is becoming more reliant on direct fire support from mortar carrier machine guns.

References

1. ^ https://www.knox.army.mil/center/armormag/currentissues/2006/ja06/4ward06c.pdfMortar Platoon Training Focus to Meet the Evolving Battlefield

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army.