ArmyInform correspondents visited the firing positions of the artillerymen of the 55th artillery brigade “Zaporozhskaya Sech“ and saw with their own eyes the combat work of the French self-propelled artillery howitzer CAESAR.
Hidden in the steppe
We arrive at the indicated point, where the artillerymen are already waiting for us. They are just like us, in bulletproof vests and helmets. Because danger lurks from everywhere and may already be here.
“Follow us!“
We take up the position, unload, and our car retreats. We join the artillerymen.
„Here the safety rules are written in blood, so it's better not to break them!“
We set off. The car passes by the mines. Some mines have already been destroyed, and others are still being worked on, although they are getting closer and closer to the front. From time to time, high piles of waste are visible from the road. Between them are fields. The harvest has been harvested, but the winter crops have not been planted. Apparently, the local farmers are waiting to see what will happen here in the spring. The road is getting worse, the potholes are getting more and more numerous and deeper, as are the tracks of heavy trucks. We turn near one of the platforms, drive through the field. The car in front of us stops, the passengers get out of it, the car drives off. Then we get off.
We go out onto a platform, among the trees, and see the CAESAR self-propelled howitzer, hidden under a metal mesh canopy, over which a camouflage net has been thrown. The gun's crew welcomes us. Its commander, Sergeant Major Andriy, is of medium height, wiry. Behind the automatic loaders on his bulletproof vest, a phone and tablet stick out, necessary for his combat work. We greet him. Andriy says he is expecting a target. If we are lucky and there is a target, then we will get into position and we will be able to see CAESAR in action.
Fast, gentle and precise!
Meanwhile, Andriy talks about his gun. I have previously shot with the Soviet ones: "Jacinta-B", D-20, "Msti-B" and I can say that CAESAR is like a "Mercedes" and "Zhiguli" in comparison.
– And what is its biggest advantage?
— It is maneuverable. You arrive at the firing position with CAESAR, prepare, set up in a minute, quickly work out the target and move off, not waiting to see if there will be a return fire or not. Speed becomes an important advantage, as enemy Lancets and FPV drones fly farther and farther, the same goes for artillery, and now they are firing at us with guided aerial bombs.
So, do you really have one minute to prepare for firing?
— You will see with your own eyes as long as there is a target. In this regard, CAESAR works perfectly.
We arrived at the location, the gunner entered the coordinates, so we are ready to fire.
— What was your highest rate of fire in practice?
The same as with TTX, - 6 rounds per minute. You cannot fire faster than the manufacturer intended, because there are many sensors here that you cannot fool. And it is not necessary, because everything here is made for maximum safety when shooting. And convenience. The automatic loader helps a lot, because you do not need to load shells with your hands, they weigh a lot. Once our CAESAR was under repair and we were working with a locally produced cannon. I manually loaded 18 shells and tore a muscle in my stomach. So, even if they offered, I would never trade the CAESAR for anything else.
The crew of the CAESAR consists of four people. According to French regulations, there should be five, but then it becomes too cramped in the cabin, and for the crew it is a home where they live, especially now that it has become cold. They joke that when they enter the cabin they take off their shoes.
— When I worked with the old artillery, we had to constantly dig dugouts nearby so that we would have a place to live and hide during shelling. The CAESAR with its armored cabin is much more convenient in this sense.
— Have there been any shots where the armor has successfully protected you?
Ironically, at that very moment, you can hear a rather loud “babah“. No matter which side it is, I involuntarily lean over, and the shooters just look around.
— Once a Lancet shell flew towards us, hitting the knurling machine. We had minor injuries, one of the hoses broke, but the machine was not damaged, the damage was quickly repaired and work continued.
Andrey and his crew are working on an older version of CAESAR (produced in 2007) and say they would not like to switch to a new one.
— Because the new CAESAR is much bigger: it has four axles, not three, it is longer and taller, it is difficult to hide on the site, a much larger trench has to be dug, and it is not as maneuverable. And it has much more electronics, which increases the likelihood of some kind of failure. Of course, something can break on ours too, because we are actively working, and this is iron, it is not eternal. But we repair on site, our mechanics, who are trained in France, work on some breakdowns, and the company that carries out technical maintenance, deals with serious repairs.
- There is a stereotype that Western technology is too fragile for the conditions of our war.
— It all depends on maintenance. If it is maintained well, it works well. CAESAR is a delicate machine. But if you take care of it properly, follow all the maintenance rules, it works well.
Fire! shot!
Andrey finally gets the coordinates of the target.
— With two shells, we achieve a refusal of action. When enemy activity is noticed, we fire on this area to force them to abandon their plans.
— We move to a firing position!
Photo: Natalia Kravchuk / ArmyInform
The crew enters the cockpit, CAESAR quickly leaves its hiding place and heads for a pre-equipped firing platform. There are several such positions, they are constantly changing to confuse the enemy and prevent him from striking. According to Andriy, his CAESAR often participates in counter-battery battles, that is, it hits the enemy's artillery.
— We work on absolutely all kinds of targets: from rocket artillery to cannons. We worked against “Hyacinth“, and against “Msta“, we shoot at everything. We also hit mortars, anti-aircraft guns, even air defense systems. In the Vagledar area, we once fired at the “Strela” air defense system. It is clear that we hit and they hit us, so we have to act quickly.
CAESAR unexpectedly enters a forest strip. At first, it seems that it is driving straight through the trees, but then we notice a neatly cut gap in the wall of trunks. CAESAR enters it perfectly and passes under the arch of trees that cover it from above. The crew leaves the cabin. The gunner turns on the computer and lowers the hydraulic plate, which provides recoil during firing. The driver prepares the installation necessary to hit the target, and the loader programs the fuses that are screwed onto the shells. The gun commander dictates the coordinates of the target, the gunner enters them into the computer. The gun barrel rises and is aimed. The branches in front of it are cut off so that they do not interfere. CAESAR is ready to fire in exactly one minute. Second by second.
— Fire!
— Volley!
If it weren't for the headphones, it would be very noisy. The next shell is already in the automatic loader, which feeds it into the gun barrel. The fighting compartment closes.
— Fire!
— Volley!
Another "babah". Dry leaves begin to fall from the trees picturesquely. However, the team is not in the mood for romance. The dome rises, the barrel falls, the computer near the gun turns off. And CAESAR quickly leaves the firing position. The enemy has almost no chance of hitting it in return. They simply don't have time.
153 shots per day
— Mr. Andriy, what is the record for shooting in a day?
— The maximum number of shots per day was 153. But it's very difficult. My health is at minus 1. Now we constantly fire 60 shells per day, sometimes up to 90.
— But the CAESAR ammunition for one mission consists of only 18 shells.
— Yes. We fire them, go, reload and continue working.
— But 153 shells, that's 9 sorties per day!
— I'm telling you, it's difficult.
— How often do you have to change the barrel with such an intensity of shooting?
— It all depends on its condition. This barrel has already fired 4 thousand shells. But its condition is normal, we just take into account the allowance for wear. We have barrels that have fired 6 thousand shells. Our specialists will check the wear, if it is significant, then the barrel is replaced with a new one, which is provided by the French manufacturer.
- Is this the first barrel in your truck?
„What do you mean by the fact that the barrels of all the weapons have been changed three or even four times. After all, we work every day, seven days a week.“
— And what is the maximum firing range?
— We had 41 kilometers, this is with an active-reactive projectile. We usually work on targets at a distance of 14 to 36 kilometers.
— Have you been working with cluster munitions for a long time?
— Yes, since a few days ago. We shoot with them regularly.
— And the famous American “Excalibur“?
— We worked a lot with it. And we worked very well. When the enemy attacked Vägledar in the winter of 2023, we fired 52 Excalibur shells in one day. This is a very good shell. Because if you work with ordinary shells, you need 2-3 shots to aim. And with Excalibur, one shot was fired — and it hit the target exactly.
CAESAR returns to his hiding place on the site, where he will wait for new targets. During the day, the boys can rest a little, because they shoot most of the time at night. I ask permission to hold the shell in my hands. It weighs over 40 kilograms. I take it in my hands and understand that even with the presence of a loading mechanism, the loader's work is not easy.
Photo: Natalia Kravchuk / ArmyInform
We take a picture of the crew against the background of his truck: Andriy is the commander, Evgeny is the gunner, Kirill is the driver, Bogdan is the loader. If anyone does not know, CAESAR is an abbreviation of the French Cаmion Equipé d'un Système d'ARtillerie - "truck equipped with an artillery system". This truck brings a lot of problems to the enemy and is a great help to our infantry. We wish the boys success and luck in their difficult but much needed combat work.
Photo: Natalia Kravchuk / ArmyInform