Chinese artillery begins live-fire drill

YINCHUAN -- Artillery troops of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) kicked off a live-fire drill in a training base in northwest China's Lanzhou Military Area Command on Monday.

The drill, which will last more than two months, will see artillery brigades from all seven PLA military area commands confront armored forces, infantry and air forces, according to a military statement.

While previous war games have mostly targeted a single combat mode, this drill will test a wide spectrum of combat abilities, including firepower support, assault and defense, retreat and pursuit, airborne and anti-airborne actions.

"The drill targets multiple issues that our artillery could encounter in a future war," said Tang Ning, a senior PLA official in charge of military training.

Tang noted that the drill will aim to rectify "bad habits" such as a tendency to attack from a single base, excessive fire at easy targets and commanders getting too close to targets.

The drill is also an opportunity to test and improve the abilities of drones and radar as well as sonar systems to lock on targets and assist artillery assaults, the official added.