The US is expanding production of guns: Defense Express reported on the state of the American military-industrial complex

The US is expanding production of guns: Defense Express reported on the state of the American military-industrial complex Angela Figin

The United States of America plans to organize a second source of production of 155-mm artillery barrels for M777 howitzers and M109 self-propelled artillery units. The reason is the unprecedented demand caused by the active use of this artillery.

Currently, there is only one single enterprise in New York State that produces artillery barrels, Oleg Katkov, editor-in-chief of Defense Express, told 24 Channel. It can't squeeze out more than 30 artillery barrels a month, so the Pentagon decided to create a new production facility elsewhere.

“The Americans are clutching their heads”

The US Department of Defense has now allocated $161 million to open a new barrel production line. According to the Pentagon's budget document released on December 17, 2024, the US is seeking to increase production from 10 barrels a month to at least 30.

The head of the US Armored Command, Michael Lalor, named a period of 12 to 18 months to create a new production line after receiving funding. After all, right now this is only a budget request from the Pentagon and it still needs to be worked out by Congress.

As the editor-in-chief of Defense Express noted, in fact, this situation is not only about Ukraine. Because during the entire time, Ukraine received approximately 200 barrels for the M777 and M109 howitzers, but the US has about 1,500 artillery systems in the 155-mm caliber in its artillery park, of which 900 are M777. At the same time, they produce 30 barrels per month.

The US grabbed their heads, saying, how come the Americans produce 30 barrels per month, which is not enough even for Ukraine, and here we are somehow going to fight with China, – said Katkov.

The Western military-industrial complex, according to him, is still in a liturgical sleep. In addition, it is known that the resources of the artillery barrel are limited. According to the passport, the M777 has a barrel resource of 2500 shots. However, their resource turned out to be much greater than was declared when these howitzers were accepted into service.

Currently, the United States has increased the rate of production of 155-mm artillery barrels for M777 howitzers and M109 self-propelled artillery units, which is directly related to the use of these systems by Ukraine, which can fire up to 2-3 thousand shots daily.

By the way, KNDS Deutschland has opened a joint venture in Ukraine for the repair and maintenance of German weapons used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.