The South Korean-made K9 Thunder (Kõu) self-propelled howitzer has been in use by the Estonian Defense Forces for four years. Today, it was fired at a target located approximately 30 kilometers away for the first time. This is also the maximum range for the standard ammunition of the system. A suitable location for the exercise was found in Ida-Viru County, where shots were fired from a forest near the village of Remniku on the northern shore of Lake Peipus, toward the Sirgala training ground, as reported by "Aktuaalne kaamera."

"It was important to find an appropriate firing site for the K9 weapon system and meet two safety requirements: that there be no permanently inhabited areas or major roads under the trajectory," said Maj. Allan Raidma, head of the Artillery Battalion.

The live-fire exercise had three main objectives.

"First, we don't yet know how the ammunition behaves at long distances, specifically its dispersion. Second, the forward observers were able to locate a specific observation point to track the target area and direct fire. Third, since the gun crews were staffed by active-duty personnel, this provided them with new knowledge and experience that we can integrate into soldier training," Raidma explained.

Despite the long range, the howitzer demonstrated exceptional accuracy, which would help conserve ammunition in wartime.

"If we can consistently achieve accuracy within about a 20-meter radius at the distance we fired today, we're no longer talking about an area weapon but rather a precision weapon," Raidma added.

Estonia currently has 24 K9 howitzers, with a dozen more expected to be added in the coming years.

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