Soldiers are using a new Mortars App that makes it easier to plan and control mortar fire from tablets or smartphones.
Mortars are man-portable indirect fire weapons that lob explosive shells at high angles onto targets that the crews often cannot see directly, making fire-control calculations — the math that soldiers use to aim and adjust each shot — important. Running the numbers quickly is also important.
The new app, which came after years of development and replaced outdated legacy programs, was designed to be intuitive, portable, and easy to update. Troops are already embracing the system, picking it up with little training and offering feedback for future upgrades, according to a press release from Picatinny Arsenal.
The Mortars App was originally introduced three years ago as a replacement for the Mortar Fire Control Software and the Lightweight Handheld Mortar Ballistics Computer, both legacy systems that were tied to older, bulkier platforms. The app lets soldiers calculate fire-control solutions from devices as small as Samsung phones, reducing the amount of equipment troops need to carry.
Picatinny Arsenal said the app’s development came as the Pentagon recognized that its previous mortar fire-control systems were becoming outdated or difficult to transport and use. There were also technical issues with the systems because departing developers were taking their institutional knowledge with them.
Early on, developers tried to build an Android version using legacy systems, but it fell short. Active planning for the current Mortars App began in 2020, and a workable iteration was available to soldiers for download and use by 2023.
That version of the app was considered better than the previous attempt but still flawed. Further modifications led to another iteration of the app, which finished formal testing in 2024 and was cleared for full release in March of this year. It’s currently the standardized software for M32A2 fire control across Army mortar units.
Per the release, feedback from troops has suggested the app is easy to use. The 82nd Airborne Division, for example, was able to pick up the Mortars App with little training. Soldiers have also said the app is both modern and intuitive while still rooted in the processes of legacy systems, meaning there’s not much of a learning curve.
As the app continues to grow its user base, US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command is able to push out updates and improve user experience. The app can also be used across devices.
The Mortars App is one example of how the Army, as well as the broader US military, is embracing Silicon Valley-style development practices for new weapons and technologies, increasingly moving legacy systems to apps and programs. The Army’s work on its new command and control system has similarly broken functions such as fires, ammunition, and supply tracking into software tools soldiers can use in the field.
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