The Army Wants Its Extended Range Cannon Artillery to Shoot Faster The Army just inked five contracts that it hopes will pave the way for a faster rate of fire for its large artillery guns, such as the ERCA. Earlier this month, U.S. Brigadier General John Rafferty, the head of the Long-Range Precision Fires Cross-Functional Team, and Program Manager for Armored Fighting Vehicles Colonel Timothy Fuller briefed reporters about the efforts that are being undertaken to scale down the autoloader for the new Extended Range Cannon Artillery (ERCA). The service announced that it has awarded five companies with contracts to look for alternate ways to accelerate the weapon’s rate of fire.