Army releases market survey for ERCA-specific charges

The Army released a market survey Jan. 5 to determine whether any companies besides the planned vendor can supply the specialized supercharge and stub charges that will be required for the Extended Range Cannon Artillery to reach its full range.

Other potential suppliers, who must produce the charges in the United States or Canada, would need to deliver the charges beginning in fiscal year 2024, according to the market survey.

“The current requirements are planned to be restricted to General Dynamics – Ordnance and Tactical Systems (GD-OTS) St. Petersburg, FL,” the market survey stated.

ERCA is a new 58-caliber cannon that the Army has integrated with the newest generation of its M109 howitzer, with an expected range of 70 kilometers. Its barrel is nearly 30 feet long, whereas the Army’s existing 39-caliber howitzer barrels are a little less than 20 feet long.

But that range is only possible because of the other new technology the Army has designed alongside the cannon, Brig. Gen. John Rafferty, director of the long-range precision fires cross-functional team, has said. This includes new rocket-assisted projectiles and the upgraded charges.

Companies that respond to the market survey will need to provide the Army with a description of their experience building artillery charges and a possible supply chain. Technical data for the supercharge and stub charges will be released to competitors if a formal request for proposals is released, according to the market survey.

The supercharge will be necessary for the cannon to reach its 70 km range with extended-range projectiles, and it will increase the range of existing projectiles when they are shot out of the ERCA, according to the market survey. It is loaded into the cannon in two cloth bags.

Two different stub charges, primers that sit behind the rest of the charges, will be built for the ERCA, according to the market survey. The XM659 will mostly be used during training, to fire existing modular charges but not the supercharge.

The XM660, which will fulfill tactical requirements for longer shots, is twice the length and weight of the smaller stub charge. It can be used with both the existing modular charges and the supercharge, and it will contain some of the same propellant as the supercharge.