WI Australia keeps M108s?

The US loaned the Australian Army a battery of 6 M108 Self propelled howitzers for a little while in 1966-7, maybe 6-12 months. They equipped 6 Troop, A Squadron, 3rd Cavalry Regiment, they were handed back and the Australian Army has never used SP artillery again.

WI the loan had been extended and Australia kept these M108s? The US was phasing out the M108 in favour of the M109 which used the same hull and turret, so maybe they just abandon or write off these M108s.

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It appears that they were just delivered to Aussie troops in Vietnam and a scratch unit was made up of Artillery, Armour and Infantry, 35 men in all. I don't know the exact role, but perhaps they were used as pseudo tanks to defend Nui Dat. FSB defence was a job for Centurions and later for the FSV with Saladin turrets, so that wouldn't surprise me. However if they were kept on strength then perhaps they could have been used in conjunction with the Centurions in some battles.
 
Perhaps Australia would have adopted large, wheeled SP guns like that 8-wheeled Czech SP gun or the huge South African 6-wheeled SP gun to cover the dry distances in the Australian outback.
 
I think we'd need to see the value of SP guns in battle before we need to think about upgrades or replacement. While the US and others were using the M109 with the 155mm gun, but Australia kept using the 5.5" gun until 1983, so we can't/won't upgrade to the 155mm gun until at least 1983.

I have in mind a little armoured unit in Vietnam made up of a sqn of Ferret/Saladin/Saracen wheels AFVs, a sqn M113s, a sqn of Centurion tanks and a battery of M108s. Awesome!
 
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