M777 live firing at the Mahajan Field Firing Ranges in Rajasthan saw Indian Army gun crews engage and destroy all designated targets using the direct firing method during Exercise Yudh Abhyas 2026, with the US contingent visiting the gun positions after the shoot.

The Ultra Light Howitzer crews engaged targets in line of sight, according to the Indian Army, which said the detachments displayed professionalism, precision and battle readiness through the serial.

M777 live firing on the Mahajan ranges

After the firing, US Army personnel moved to the gun positions and interacted with officers and troops of the ULH Battery.

The Army said the visit allowed an exchange of professional knowledge and best practices between the two sides. Accounts of the training published afterwards said Indian artillery personnel took their US counterparts through M777 operating procedures and live-fire techniques, while US soldiers and leaders observed the firing, exchanged technical knowledge and discussed artillery operations. The same accounts described the shoot as bilateral artillery training aimed at refining procedures and building interoperability for combined operations.


The serial followed an earlier M777 lecture cum demonstration at Mahajan, which took crews through gun deployment, local defence and shoot and scoot drills under simulated counter bombardment. The M777 live firing moved that sequence from the classroom to the range.

Why direct fire

A howitzer normally fires indirect, lobbing shells at targets the crew cannot see, with fire corrected by an observer forward.

Direct fire is the other mode. The gun is laid straight onto a target in its own line of sight, such as a bunker, a sangar or a vehicle, and the detachment sees the strike. It demands fast laying and accurate first rounds, since the gun is also exposed to the target it is engaging. Indian gunners have a long history with the method; during the Kargil conflict, artillery pieces were brought into direct fire on enemy positions on the heights, a legacy the Regiment of Artillery still marks at Gun Hill, Point 5140.

The gun on the firing line

The M777 is a 155 mm, 39 calibre towed howitzer built largely of titanium and aluminium alloys. At about 4,200 kg, it is light enough to be slung under an IAF Chinook and flown to positions that heavier guns cannot reach, which is why the Army bought it for its mountain formations.

India ordered 145 guns under a government to government agreement with the US. The first were handed over in November 2018, according to BAE Systems, which delivered 25 fully built while the remaining 120 were assembled in India by Mahindra Defence Systems.

The guns now equip seven artillery regiments, according to reports.

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Yudh Abhyas 2026 across two theatres

The 22nd edition of the India-US Army exercise opened at Auli and is running across the Uttarakhand heights and the Mahajan ranges near Bikaner, with a focus on Integrated Battle Groups in mountainous and semi-mountainous terrain. The US side has published its own coverage on the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service, and the Indian Army has released imagery of the Mahajan shoot.

Combat record from Operation Sindoor

The gun arrived at Mahajan with combat use behind it. During Operation Sindoor in May 2025, an M777 regiment was air-mobilised in secrecy into the Northern Command area, lifted by IAF Chinook and Mi-17 V5 helicopters, in what was reported as the Army's first such move for an artillery unit. The guns were used against terrorist camps across the border and fired Excalibur precision rounds, rated to about 40 km, according to reports. Orders for additional Excalibur rounds were reportedly placed after the operation.