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Video by Staff Sgt. Emilie Lenglain

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Inside the M109 Paladin: what it takes to load the gun

U.S. Army V Corps

April 21, 2026 | 9:42

U.S. Army Spc. Jonathon Palmer, driver, Sgt. Steven Rodriguez, gunner, Spc. Patrick Pierson, assistant gunner, assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment, NATO Forward Land Forces (FLF) Battle Group-Poland, speak about loading the M109 Paladin at Bemowo Piskie Training Area, Poland, April 21, 2026. The M109 Paladin is the U.S. Army’s main armored 155mm self-propelled howitzer, built for mobile, long-range fire support in intense combat. The NATO Forward Land Forces (FLF) Battle Group-Poland is enhancing its warfighting readiness at the Bemowo Piskie Training Area, Poland. This multinational unit, critical to the defense of NATO's Eastern Flank, consists of U.S. Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment, and the 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment; the Romanian Land Forces' 348th Air Defense Battalion; the Croatian Armed Forces' 17th Contingent; and the British Army's Light Dragoons. This integrated training demonstrates the alliance's commitment to collective defense and interoperability. (U.S. Army Reserve video by Staff Sgt. Emilie Lenglain)

SHOT LIST:

(00:00:00 - 00:03:06) Spc. Jonathan Palmer speaks about training on the M109 Paladin
(00:03:07 - 00:10:03) 155mm caliber rounds
(00:10:04 - 01:00:23) Spc. Jonathan Palmer speaks about how to load the round
(01:00:24 - 01:10:22) Spc. Patrick Pierson speaks about the rammer tray
(01:10:23 - 01:59:10) Breech is opened and Spc. Patrick Pierson speaks about how to load
(01:59:11 - 02:05:29) closing of the breech
(02:05:30 - 02:28:22) opens breech and Spc. Patrick Pierson speaks about the engine
(02:28:23 - 02:48:22) Sgt. Steven Rodriguez speaks about electrical switch/servo amp
(02:28:22 - 03:18:27) ram swings up to the breech
(03:18:28 - 03:40:12) Spc. Patrick Pierson speaks about the process of loading and firing a round
(03:40:13 - 04:57:17) Sgt. Steven Rodriguez speaks on the roles of the four personnel who make up the gun crew
(04:57:18 - 05:12:14) Spc. Jonathan Palmer explains the training
(05:12:15 - 05:39:16) Sgt. Steven Rodriguez speaks about the training called a “Table VI”
(05:39:17 - 06:31:03) Spc. Patrick Pierson speaks to what happens after the round is placed in the breech
(06:31:04 - 06:51:16) Sgt. Steven Rodriguez speaks about the microclimate conditioning system
(06:51:17 - 08:07:09) Spc. Patrick Pierson and Sgt. Steven Rodriguez speak about the primer and firing mechanism
(08:07:10 - 08:15:00) close up of primer being placed into primer belt
(08:15:01 - 08:31:04) Spc. Patrick Pierson speaks about what happens after grabbing the primer
(08:31:05 - 08:36:09) 155mm caliber rounds and their weight
(08:36:09 - 08:50:19) Spc. Patrick Pierson manually moves the rammer tray to the breech
(08:50:20 - 09:42:13) Spc. Patrick Pierson places a 155mm caliber round onto the tray and discusses all processes that happen to fire the round