With US ammunition stocks depleted by deliveries to Ukraine, the US military is looking for new manufacturers for 155mm howitzer shells. The Army recently conducted a market survey to identify US and Canadian companies that can manufacture up to 12,000 M795 155 mm high-explosive shells per month. The M795 is the standard shell for Army and Marine Corps 155mm howitzers and would be the primary ammunition for any US-designed 155mm aircraft sent to Ukraine, which already uses US-supplied M777 155mm towed guns and Canada. The US has sent 126 M777 guns and more than 800,000 155mm rounds to Ukraine since early September. Now the Pentagon fears that US ammunition stocks are reaching dangerously low levels. A Ukrainian soldier handles rounds for an M777 assault rifle in the Kharkiv region on July 28. Vyacheslav Madiyevskyy/Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images Meanwhile, as the Russo-Ukrainian War turns into a contest of artillery — which has emerged as the dominant lethal weapon on the Ukrainian battlefield — Kyiv is bound to demand more shells. Ukrainian forces were already firing 6,000 shells a day in June, Ukrainian officials said at the time. This is a good reason for the US military to increase the production of 155 mm ammunition. The Army’s Combat Ammunition Systems Project Manager is now conducting market research “to identify potential sources within the United States and Canada that can load, assemble and package (LAP) and deliver the M795 high-explosive (HE) projectile.” of 155 millimeters”. Among the requirements for potential manufacturers is to demonstrate “existing production capacity, projected monthly production and delivery capacity of 12,000 rounds per month, maximum monthly production capacity and whether they have made this item or similar items in the past,” according to the Army survey . Ukrainian troops fire an M777 in the Kharkiv region on July 28. Vyacheslav Madiyevskyy/Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images The government would provide “metal projectile parts, rotating tape covers, wooden pallets, jacking plugs, IMX-101 explosives, and TNT/PBXN-9 supplementary charges.” However, the contractor will have to procure “bulk TNT” himself. It is not clear how many shells the Pentagon plans to produce. In 2021, the military wanted to cut funding for the production of 155 mm shells that had been approved by Congress. Lawmakers recently approved $600 million in emergency spending for the Defense Production Act to expand US missile and missile production capacity, including “modernized and expanded large-caliber missile forging capabilities.” However, expanding ammunition production capacity may take a year or more. The Army’s Joint Munitions Command would not say whether the market investigation is aimed at expanding shell production or simply identifying new manufacturers. “Market research is used to identify potential sources of the item identified and can be used to support any number of service requirements,” spokeswoman Justine Barati told Insider. A Ukrainian soldier prepares M795 missiles in the Kharkiv region on July 28. REUTERS/Vyacheslav Madiyevskyy The M795 is an unguided projectile first developed in 1999. It is 103 pounds and 33 inches long and has an attached safety. The high fragmentation steel projectile is armed with 23.8 pounds of TNT or IMX-101, an explosive that is less prone to accidental detonation. The M795 has a kill radius of about 55 yards, although shrapnel can cause damage beyond that distance. It can be “used against personnel, trucks, electronic surveillance and target acquisition devices, supply points, command and control and communications (C3) facilities, and mechanized and armored forces,” according to US defense company General Dynamics. The M795 has a range of about 14 miles, longer than the 1950s-era M107 howitzer it replaced, but still far short of Russian weapons such as the BM-30 multiple rocket launchers, which have a range of 45 miles. Ukrainian troops fire an M777 on the front line in the Kharkiv region on July 21. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich The range difference is particularly important in the Ukraine war, where the side with the longer-range artillery can destroy the enemy’s firearms while remaining safely out of range of retaliation. The US has also sent M982 Excalibur 155 mm GPS guided missiles to Ukraine. Excalibur shells have a range of 25 miles and can hit within a few feet of their targets. GPS-guided rounds are much more expensive, costing about $100,000 each, making the much cheaper M795 more economical for the rate at which Ukraine fires its artillery. (The Pentagon now also plans to spend nearly $100 million to restock Excalibur.) The US is not the only one with an ammunition problem. Canada has sent 155mm missiles to Ukraine and is now asking South Korea to replenish its stockpile. Michael Peck is a defense writer whose work has appeared in Forbes, Defense News, Foreign Policy magazine, and other publications. He holds a master’s degree in political science. 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