Artillery Loadouts [was Re: The elusive Columbiad]

ScottSaylo@aol.com wrote:
> the Civil War "Napoleon" a 12 pdr smooth bore field piece. It was a
> design built long after it's name sake was laid to rest, but since it
was a
> smoothbore in the dawn of rifled artillery it got nicknamed and God
knows the
> nicknames are much more important than the real names (and also more
> historically colorful)

Actually, this brings up a question that's been bouncing in the back of 
my head.

What's the current loadout of a 'typical' artillery battalion, and is
there any training about firing directly over open sights?  I just
finished
reading George Blackburn's 3 volume history of a Canadian artillery
regiment 
in WWII, where he discussed in some detail the training and use of said
regiment.  (25pdr Field Artillery)  

However in the modern era, the information I've been able to get my
hands
on doesn't go into any great detail, but it does suggest that nobody 
in Western militaries train for direct fire, and, thusly, loadouts are 
mostly HE plus 'Improved Munitions' for those countries that can afford
it.
(Militaries on the Soviet Model, however, do seem to train for direct
fire,
or all those SPGs attached to their tank and motor rifle regiments would
be pretty useless.)

Any comments?  I've always thought that artillery should train to 
fire over open sights, because you never know when you're going to be
attacked, but, then again, I'm just a damned civvie.  (8-)

Thanks,
J.

-- 
/ Jerry Han -  CANOE Canada - jhan@canoe.ca -
http://people.canoe.ca/jhan \
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 The opinions expressed are mine, and not necessarily those of CANOE
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