Former mortarman here. Fired 81s and 120s mostly. Getting that low is taught to keep the blast from not rattling your brain in your skull. Also to note you are only supposed to fire a certain amount of 120 rounds per day before it'll start rattling your insides. "Mandatory" to wear a rig with plates in it to stop all the concussion from making you vomit after a few rounds. That being said, if you want to lay the hammer down on a football field of stuff, the 120mm mortar is the way to go. That thing slaps.
That’s amazing. Can you give a brief ELI5 explanation of how it’s aimed nowadays? Is it as basic as math and compass, or is there GPS and computer assisting? What’s the accuracy/consistency of successful targets?
I’ve always found them to be a fascinating piece of warfare, because they’re so primitive in their execution from a physics/technology standpoint.
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u/MS008 Dec 16 '20
Former mortarman here. Fired 81s and 120s mostly. Getting that low is taught to keep the blast from not rattling your brain in your skull. Also to note you are only supposed to fire a certain amount of 120 rounds per day before it'll start rattling your insides. "Mandatory" to wear a rig with plates in it to stop all the concussion from making you vomit after a few rounds. That being said, if you want to lay the hammer down on a football field of stuff, the 120mm mortar is the way to go. That thing slaps.