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Crusader howitzer gets the axe

by Joe Burlas

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, May 8, 2002) -- Planned as the replacement for the M109A6 Paladin Self-Propelled Howitzer, the Crusader program has just been officially terminated by the Department of Defense.

Stating that it was a case of balancing the resourcing needs of fighting the current War on Terrorism with what is required for national military strategy in the future, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld made the announcement at a Pentagon press briefing May 8.

"This decision is about the reality of finite resources," Rumsfeld said. "It is necessary to make choices and those choices are not easy."

The cancellation of the Crusader has been the subject of several media speculative articles during the past two weeks. And within the past few days, a legislative talking points document surfaced that was highly critical of any move to cancel the program. That document was reportedly from a Department of the Army source.

Asked if he had subordinates create or circulate the document among Congress, Secretary of the Army Thomas E. White said, "Absolutely not." He went on to say that he found the language of the document offensive in general and offensive to the Army, specifically.

Who wrote the document and how it got over to the Hill is under investigation. The findings of that investigation will be reported to Rumsfeld late May 8, White said.

Responding to a question why he continued to publicly support the Crusader program when media reports were saying it was going to be canceled, White said he was not informed of a cancellation decision until 1:30 p.m. May 7. Money for the Crusader was part of the president's budget that was submitted in February.

"We support religiously the president's budget," White said. "I will support religiously the president's amendment (that cancels the Crusader's funding)."

Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz said the budget amendment will redirect Crusader funding to accelerate other Army Transformation technology research programs which promise early returns. Some of those programs might include the Excaliber artillery round and the Guided Multiple-Launched Rocket System, he said.

Like the Paladin, the envisioned Crusader would have fired different variants of 155 mm artillery rounds but have a higher rate of fire and increased survivability and mobility. Weighing about 20 tons less than the Paladin, two Crusaders could have been deployed via a C-5A or C-17 transport jet versus one Paladin. With the proposed use of robotics, a Crusader howitzer and ammunition resupply crew would be three people versus the current system's nine-man crew.

There were basically two problems with the Crusader, Wolfowitz said. It still wasn't light enough nor precise enough in delivering indirect fires to support DoD's vision for a more deployable and lethal force.

White said the Army has until May 20 to determine if other artillery Transformation programs will meet DoD's budget planning guidance for fiscal years 2004-2009, or come up with an alternative.

Seven years into development, no prototype of the Crusader exists, Rumsfeld said. The Crusader had been scheduled for production in 2006.