When did the ITOW start reaching US units in Germany in numbers?

[Bobby]

So the ITOW started procurement in '78 and apparently finished in '81, but the baseline TOW is still an option even in '82 scenarios. My personal estimates are that the ITOW was standard for units in Germany by '79 and the rest of the ground force got them by '81.

[The_Capt]

On 10/25/2021 at 4:56 PM, Bobby said:

So the ITOW started procurement in '78 and apparently finished in '81, but the baseline TOW is still an option even in '82 scenarios. My personal estimates are that the ITOW was standard for units in Germany by '79 and the rest of the ground force got them by '81.

Not sure where you are getting those dates:

https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Defense_Department_Authorization_and_Ove/JsWVbhn-7U8C?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=ITOW+ammunition+procurement+1982&pg=PA698&printsec=frontcover

Pg 698 kinda lays out the ITOW procurement story.  ITOW was at IOC in 1981, which normally does not mean fully fielded (that would be FOC).  I know we dug out numbers at one point and they showed a transition in the 1979-1983 timeframe.

This one:

https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Department_of_Defense_Appropriations_for/LZ0cAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=I-TOW+US+Army+procurement+1981&pg=PA257&printsec=frontcover

Says the I-TOW was fielded in 1981 so again not sure how wide spread it was initially but 1979 appears too early based on these documents.

Then here on pg 120:

https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Department_of_Defense_appropriations_for/6w5tYmngxRkC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=TOW+US+Army+procurement+1980&pg=PA120&printsec=frontcover

Looks like the ITOW program was initiated in 1979.

[BeondTheGrave]

Re the confusion, a quick check on the Wikipedia page also has the wrong dates (1978) and I think it has to do with the difference between the first series TOW, an enhanced or modified TOW, and the ITOW which are all different weapons. The OG TOW was first deployed in Vietnam in 1972 as an experimental weapon. But AFAIK there were not many changes made between that version and the one that eventually got sent to Germany, and in fact hundreds of TOW missiles were sent to Vietnam. But by the mid-1970s several faults with the TOW had been discovered. This actually became an important issue for Army planners as about the same time they decided that ATGMs were a major new battlefield system they also decided that their new hot ATGM toy wasn't good enough. The big two problems they decided were first penetrating power and second was range. The US Army believed (rightly or wrongly) that the TOW wouldn't hack it against T-64s and -72s, the protection of which had only filtered westward after the initial TOW had started delivery. The first upgrade phase was an enhanced TOW, though to my knowledge it never got a fun name like eTOW. It had some improvements but was really a stopgap measure while the Army focused on the real upgrade which was ITOW. IIRC the eTOW only delivered on a few upgrades including better penetration, but the ITOW was the real generation upgrade in systems performance. Sometimes you see it described as the TOW2, at least during the development phase, and I actually prefer that name. Thats a bit of an error I guess. 

Anyway as to the phasing youre both right. TOW1 -> Early 70s. eTOW -> Late 70s. ITOW -> early 80s. In the game's timeframe I dont think any TOW1s would have still been around, at least in terms of paper TOE. Naturally you probably still would have found them in depots and with lower priority units. IIRC the eTOW is just a different missile, the launcher and all its systems are still 100% compatible with TOW1 gear. So just an ammunition change. 

Edited November 3, 2021 by BeondTheGrave

[Halmbarte]

Which CMCW units get the iTOW? 

 

H

[akd]

Official TOW program history from Redstone Arsenal:

Quote

There are six versions of the TOW missile. The original missile—the BGM-71A Basic TOW—was fielded in 1970. It had a 3000-meter range and was 6 inches in diameter except for the warhead which was 5 inches. The second missile to be built, the Extended Range TOW, was delivered in 1978. Delivered in 1981, the BGM-71C Improved TOW (ITOW) warhead included an extended probe for greater standoff and penetration. The BGM-71D TOW 2 weapon system, a product improvement program (PIP) initiated in 1979, incorporated a full caliber (6-inch) warhead with extendable probe on the missile. To compensate for the added weight of the warhead, the missile flight motor was redesigned with 30 percent more total impulse. Improved guidance link capability to enhance performance in a degraded environment and guidance link hardening against electro-optical countermeasures were added to the existing launcher.

...

November 1978  Texas Instruments delivered the first AN/TAS-4 TOW production night sight.

November 1978 The M65 TOW missile subsystem contract was awarded to Hughes Aircraft.

1979  The first M901 Improved TOW Vehicle (ITV) entered the Army inventory. This was the first Army antiarmor system that allowed operators to use the weapon system totally protected by armor.

September 1979 Deployment of the AN/TAS-4 TOW production night sight began with fieldings to training bases in CONUS and USAREUR.

1980   Deployment of the AH-1S modernized COBRA helicopter to U.S. Army Forces Command (FORSCOM) units began.

1980 Hughes Aircraft Company began the design of the TOW 2 missile.

January 1980  The AN/TAS-4 TOW night sight achieved IOC.

April 1980 The TOW/DRAGON Project Office was redesignated the TOW Project Office, following the termination of project management for the DRAGON weapon system. The DRAGON was relegated to Level II management in the Weapon Systems Management Directorate (WSMD).

September 1980 The first FORSCOM units received the TOW night sight.

September 1980   The Improved TOW (ITOW) program, started in August 78, was redefined to include both the ITOW and TOW 2 missiles.

30 March 1981 The MICOM Commander approved a full release for the ITOW. The initial operational capability for the ITOW was met after the first deployment to USAREUR.

June 1981   The M65 TOW/COBRA was first fielded to the U.S. Army National Guard.

17 June 1981 COL Neil S. Williamson, III, retired from his position as TOW PM. He was replaced by COL Byron L. Powers on this same date.

9 October 1981    DA approved the type classification of standard for the TOW 2, full production of the TOW 2 missile, retrofit of the existing Basic TOW stocks, and modification of the Basic TOW launchers.

March 1982   MICOM awarded Hughes Aircraft a contract for the full-scale engineering development effort to integrate the TOW 2 with the Bradley Fighting Vehicle System (BFVS).

28 March 1983 The BFVS achieved IOC with the first deployment to Fort Hood, Texas.

5 May 1983  The Hughes Aircraft Company delivered the first TOW 2 missile to the Army at a ceremony held at the company’s plant in Tucson, Arizona.

July 1983  The TOW 2 was first deployed to the U.S. Army Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia.

September 1983 The first BFVS was deployed to USAREUR.

9 September 1983  The MICOM Commander approved a full release for the TOW 2.

October 1983 The IOC date was met with the first deployment of the TOW 2 to USAREUR.

https://history.redstone.army.mil/miss-tow.html

Note that iTOW is also fully compatible with the original TOW system.  TOW-2 required the newer AN/TAS-4A sight for tracking.  The older missiles were forward compatible.  One area where we are probably too generous is giving every TOW launcher in Europe in mid-1979 a TOW night sight.  Hopefully in the future there will be options for TOW without thermals.

[MikeyD]

I have an old 1983 picture book with a photo of a M901 in Germany. The caption says US  units received the M901 ITV in 1981. There's a second photo of an M901 on maneuvers 16 September 1981. I've got the Hunnicutt book covering M901 somewhere. Initial production was considerably earlier but it took awhile for European forces to see them.

[domfluff]

Which would suggest that their current QB rarity settings are too low - since from memory the M901 has zero rarity in all four years.

[Double Deuce]

It's been a long time ago but iirc, when I got to Germany (Baumholder) in June 1983 we still had the M150's in 2/68 Armor, 8th ID. We were always at the end of the queue for new vehicles and had only just got the M60A3 about 2 months before I got there. I believe we got the M901's in my first year there so late '83, early '84.