General Dynamics LR-PGK Guides XM1113 155mm Projectile Beyond 50 km in U.S. Army Test.

General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems has guided U.S. Army XM1113 155 mm rocket-assisted projectiles beyond 50 kilometers with its Long-Range Precision Guidance Kit during live-fire trials at Yuma Proving Ground, the company announced on September 2, 2026. The test points to a way for U.S. cannon artillery to strike enemy guns, command posts, air defenses, and logistics targets at extended range with greater precision while reducing reliance on dedicated guided projectiles.

The LR-PGK demonstrated accuracy beyond 50 kilometers despite the growing ballistic errors associated with longer projectile flight, although GDOTS did not disclose exact miss distances or circular error probable. If that performance proves repeatable across operational conditions, the kit could increase the effectiveness of extended-range 155 mm ammunition by reducing dispersion and the number of rounds needed to defeat high-value targets.

Related Topic: U.S. Army Award Positions GDOTS to Deliver Vulcano-Derived 155mm Projectile for Precision Fires Beyond 70 Kilometers

General Dynamics’ LR-PGK successfully guided a U.S. Army XM1113 155mm rocket-assisted projectile beyond 50 kilometers, advancing long-range precision artillery capability (Picture Source: U.S. Army)

General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems has demonstrated its Long-Range Precision Guidance Kit guiding U.S. Army XM1113 155 mm rocket-assisted projectiles beyond 50 kilometers during live-fire trials at Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. The September 2026 test gives the Army a potential route to combine extended-range ammunition with precision correction, increasing the distance at which cannon artillery can engage enemy artillery, command posts, air-defense systems and logistics targets without relying solely on dedicated guided projectiles.

GDOTS announced on September 2, 2026 that LR-PGK had achieved accuracy beyond 50 kilometers while significantly exceeding legacy precision-guidance requirements, although the company did not disclose the exact circular error probable, number of rounds fired or individual miss distances. Those omissions are important because the operational value of the system will depend less on a single maximum-range shot than on whether the same precision can be repeated across different charges, weather conditions, cannon types and electronic-warfare environments.

The demonstration is technically significant because extending the range of a 155 mm projectile increases the challenge of maintaining accuracy. XM1113 uses rocket assistance to increase downrange performance, but longer flight times magnify errors created by muzzle velocity variation, atmospheric conditions, cannon position, projectile manufacturing tolerances and target-coordinate uncertainty. LR-PGK is intended to correct part of that accumulated error during flight, potentially reducing the number of rounds required to achieve a desired effect at ranges where unguided ammunition would normally generate much wider dispersion. The Army has previously associated the Long-Range Precision Guidance Kit with accuracy requirements below 30 meters circular error probable, with a more demanding objective below 10 meters, placing the program well beyond the accuracy standard historically associated with earlier course-correcting fuzes.

XM1113 is central to this capability because it was developed as the Army's modern replacement for the older M549A1 rocket-assisted projectile and is designed to provide greater range from existing and future 155 mm cannons. Army documentation has previously indicated ranges around 40 kilometers from 39-caliber artillery and above 50 kilometers from 52-caliber guns, while the new General Dynamics demonstration confirms that the projectile can be controlled accurately beyond the 50-kilometer boundary when paired with LR-PGK. GDOTS has not identified which cannon, barrel length, charge or muzzle velocity was used at Yuma, meaning the firing should not yet be interpreted as proof that an operational M109A7 Paladin or M777A2 can launch an LR-PGK-equipped XM1113 beyond 50 kilometers. That technical distinction matters because the Army's existing 39-caliber fleet faces different ballistic limitations from the 52-caliber self-propelled howitzers being examined for future service.

For current M109A7 and M777A2 units, the most immediate value of LR-PGK may be improved precision near the outer limits of their existing engagement envelope rather than a dramatic increase in maximum range. A projectile that arrives closer to the intended coordinates on the first salvo reduces ammunition expenditure, decreases the time a firing unit must remain in position and lowers the number of resupply movements required to sustain operations. Those effects directly influence artillery survivability because modern counter-battery radars, unmanned aerial vehicles, acoustic sensors and electronic surveillance can locate firing units quickly after a mission begins. A battery able to achieve the required effect with fewer rounds can displace sooner and reduce the window available to enemy counter-battery systems, making precision an important component of survivability rather than simply a measure of target accuracy.

The longer-term opportunity is more closely connected to the Army's Mobile Tactical Cannon program, which is intended to introduce a more mobile 155 mm self-propelled howitzer with extended range, faster firing cycles and improved survivability. A 52-caliber cannon combined with XM1113-class rocket-assisted ammunition and LR-PGK could create a layered improvement in artillery performance: the longer barrel increases muzzle velocity, the rocket motor adds energy after launch and the guidance kit corrects trajectory errors that become more consequential at longer distances. This combination is more operationally important than any individual component because it can increase both reach and usable accuracy while preserving the ability to fire conventional high-explosive ammunition in volume. The Army's decision to continue investing in extended-range ammunition after ending the Extended Range Cannon Artillery gun program also indicates that long-range projectile technology remains central to its artillery modernization strategy even as the service changes the type of self-propelled howitzer that will employ it.

LR-PGK could also alter the cost structure of precision artillery if it allows the Army to convert compatible conventional and rocket-assisted projectiles into more accurate weapons without manufacturing every round as a dedicated guided munition. Purpose-built precision projectiles remain valuable against high-priority targets, but prolonged high-intensity combat requires a much larger volume of artillery ammunition than can realistically be supplied by a small inventory of highly specialized rounds. A guidance kit that can be attached to multiple 155 mm projectile types would give commanders more flexibility in matching ammunition cost and performance to the target, especially for counter-battery missions, command posts, radar sites, electronic-warfare equipment, air-defense positions and logistics concentrations. General Dynamics has said the LR-PGK architecture is compatible with XM1113, M1128 and future rocket-assisted projectiles, suggesting that the company is positioning the kit as a common precision component across several artillery ammunition families rather than as a solution restricted to a single round.

Electronic warfare will be one of the decisive factors in determining whether that concept remains effective against a peer opponent. The Army has required enhanced anti-jam performance from the Long-Range Precision Guidance Kit, and GDOTS says the system has already undergone laboratory and live-fire testing against operationally relevant threats, but neither the company nor the Army has publicly released enough data to judge how the guidance kit performs under sustained satellite-navigation interference. This matters because the targets most likely to justify long-range precision artillery, including command centers, air-defense batteries and electronic-warfare units, may also be located inside heavily contested navigation environments. A guidance kit capable of achieving excellent accuracy under uncontested GPS conditions but losing effectiveness under strong jamming would provide a much narrower battlefield advantage, making navigation resilience, alternative guidance inputs and electronic protection as important as the 50-kilometer range figure itself.

Long-range precision also depends on the Army's ability to detect, classify and locate targets quickly enough to exploit the ammunition's reach. A guided projectile cannot correct inaccurate target coordinates, and a mobile enemy self-propelled howitzer or command vehicle may leave its position before a long-range round arrives if the sensor-to-shooter process is too slow. The real combat value of LR-PGK will consequently depend on integration with counter-battery radar, unmanned aerial reconnaissance, electronic intelligence, digital fire-control networks and higher-echelon sensors capable of generating accurate targeting data at extended distances. This makes the Yuma demonstration part of a broader artillery kill chain in which cannon range is only one element; communications speed, target-quality data, firing-unit mobility and ammunition availability will determine whether the U.S. Army can repeatedly exploit a 50-kilometer precision capability under combat conditions.

The Yuma test establishes a meaningful technical threshold, but the next stage will be more demanding than demonstrating maximum range. General Dynamics will need to show consistent accuracy across multiple rounds, compatibility with different 155 mm cannons and projectiles, reliability under extreme temperatures and firing conditions, resistance to electronic attack and production economics suitable for large-scale Army procurement. If LR-PGK can meet those requirements, the combination of precision guidance, rocket-assisted ammunition and future 52-caliber self-propelled howitzers could expand the Army's cannon-artillery engagement zone while reducing the number of rounds needed for individual targets. That would give U.S. artillery formations a deeper and more survivable precision-fire capability while preserving the massed firepower required for sustained operations against a technologically advanced opponent.

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Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group

Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.