Chinese state-owned media revealed on 7 May that the China North Industries Group Corporation (Norinco) 155 mm PCL-181 wheeled self-propelled howitzer (SPH) has entered service with a brigade under the People’s Liberation Army Ground Force’s (PLAGF’s) 80th Group Army.
Footage released by China Central Television (CCTV) showed the SPH being used during day- and night-time live-fire drills at an undisclosed location near the Bohai Sea in China’s northeastern Shandong Province.
A screengrab from footage released by CCTV on 7 May showing several examples of the PCL-181 SPH during a live-fire exercise conducted by a brigade under the PLAGF’s 80th Group Army near the Bohai Sea in China’s northeastern Shandong Province. (CCTV)
The TV report showed at least 14 examples of the SPH engaging what appeared to be simulated targets near the shoreline, with CCTV saying that the exercise was meant to “test the fire response capability of the new weapon system”.
Besides the 80th Group Army, which is under the PLA’s Northern Theatre Command, the PCL-181 has also been seen in service with brigades in the 83rd Group Army, which is under the PLA’s Central Theatre Command; in the 74th and 75th Group Armies, both of which are under the Southern Theatre Command; in the 73rd Group Army, which is under the Eastern Theatre Command; and in the Tibet and Xinjiang military commands, both of which are under the Western Theatre Command.
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