I don’t understand how they can accurately aim artillery. When they fire the whole machine moves a great deal and it would seem any calibration of its position would be lost.
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Finnish mortar platoon leader here.
We did everything very simply manually in 1995 when I was there, no GPS, no computers to calculate. As far as I recall the procedures, here is a very simplified version of things:
You setup your mortars facing to the general direction you want to shoot. Then a compass direction is measured as accurately as you can, with map, 25 meter measure and some calculations – this way you will be able to place a stick (yes a real stick) in front of each mortar.You will place a pin to a map where your mortars are.
When ready to shoot, you will receive coordinates (from observer who sees the target, normally some guys in the front who can actually see enemy, now most likely a drone) where you are going to shoot, you place another pin there. With an artillery measure (calculation stick of sorts) you calculate the compass direction you are supposed to shoot, to SIMPLIFY, 000 north, 090 east, 180 south, 270 west. (The circle is divided in 0-6000 in reality). So lets say you get direction to shoot to 110. Lets say you placed your stick from mortars in direction 090 and this is where you are aiming. Since you want to shoot to 110, you turn your mortars 20 degrees to right. There is an aiming device on each mortar to accomplish this.
After you shoot first rounds out, a forward observer calls you and tells “you are 200m short, 100 meters left, please correct”, so you either lower your tubes to make grenade fly a bit higher, or you could add more gunpowder. Then you turn the tubes 2 degrees right (so some calculated amount), and shoot again. You receive “good hits, shoot full salvo”
very simplified explanation! there are lots of variables to it, weather, ammunition type, different powders, wind.. now they have computers to calculate the parameters but I’m sure they still teach manual calculations also
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