105 mm M2A2 Howitzer

The M2A2 105 millimetre howitzer is a general purpose, towed, light field artillery weapon which consists of a barrel, recoil mechanism and carriage. The barrel consists of a tube assembly, breech ring, and locking ring. The barrel is mounted on a recoil sleigh assembly. The firing mechanism is a continuous pull (self cocking) type activated by pulling a lanyard. The cannon barrel is single-loaded, air-cooled and uses semi-fixed ammunition. The carriage is of the single axle and split trail type. The trails are divided during emplacement and are drawn together and locked during travel. A drawbar is provided for attachment to a prime mover. The carriage consists of an equilibrator, shield, elevating mechanism, cradle, gear, elevating arcs, traversing mechanism, top carriage, wheels, and trails. The recoil mechanism is a constant hydropneumatic type shock absorber system which is installed in the cradle of the carriage.