103rd ( Lancashire Artillery Volunteers ) Regiment Royal Artillery 103rd ( Lancashire Artillery Volunteers ) Regiment Royal Artillery is a British Territorial Army Artillery unit , whose purpose is to provide reinforcements for units that use the 105 mm L118 Light Gun and AS90 . By Army 2020 , one unit will re - role to Re - role to Light Gun . Formation . The Lancashire Artillery Volunteers were first raised in 1859 as part of the Volunteer Force raised in response to threats of French Invasion . A total of 23 Artillery companies were raised initially . However , in Manchester , numerous units that would later form the Lancashire Artillery Gunners had existed from as early as 1804 , when the Duke of Gloucester inspected the Heaton Artillery Volunteers before they were shipped off to the fronts of the Napoleonic Wars . More than half a century later , numerous battalions of the King ' s Regiment and the Prince of Wales ' s Volunteers were rebadged as the Lancashire Gunners . 20th Century History . During the First World War , the Lancashire Artillery Volunteers served as a mixed - regiment , consisting of both Artillery Brigades and Infantry Battalions , divided into twenty - five separate units . By World War II , the regiment had been down - sized to just seventeen Artillery Brigades . The Lancashire Artillery Volunteers held a distinguished record , with two Victoria Crosses and numerous other medals and honors to its merit . In both World Wars the Regiment served in many theatres , including the Western Front , the South - East Asian Front African Front of World War I and the Battle of France , Defense of India , Invasion of Sicily , Invasion of Italy , Operation Overlord , French Campaign , Battle of the Bulge , Ruhr Pocket campaign , Operation Plunder , and Invasion of Germany in the Second World War . By 1955 , the regiment had been expanded to 33 Territorial Gunner Regiments based in north - western England . In 1967 , only seven Regiments remained and these were amalgamated to form 103rd ( Lancashire Artillery Volunteers ) Light Air Defence Regiment Royal Artillery ( Volunteers ) , The West Lancashire Regiment ( T ) Royal Artillery and The South Lancashire Territorials ( Prince of Wales ' Volunteers ) Royal Artillery . Since its re - formation in 1967 , Officers , Warrant Officers , NCOs and soldiers of 103rd Regiment have volunteered and served in support of the Regular Army in Bosnia , Borneo , Belize , Canada , Kosovo , Kenya , Latvia , Iraq , Northern Ireland and Afghanistan . In 1977 , the Regiment changed its designation to 103rd ( Lancashire Artillery Volunteers ) Air Defence Regiment Royal Artillery ( Volunteers ) upon being equipped with the blowpipe missile air - defense weapon . Consequently , upon the enhancement of the Territorial Army , another Battery of the Home Service Force and a fourth Air Defence Battery were raised . In early 1987 , the Regiment converted to the javelin surface - to - air missile , a substantial improvement over the BLOWPIPE . In 1992 , as a result of the Options for Change , the Regiment lost one Air - Defence Battery ( 213 Air - Defense Battery , which was amalgamated with HQ Battery at St Helens ) and Regimental Headquarters were moved from Deysbrooke Barracks , Liverpool , to St . Helens to be co - located with 213 / HQ Battery . Modern - Day . In 2001 , the Regiment was ordered to transfer from Air Defence to the Field Artillery as a Light Gun Regiment . The changes have seen the Light Aid Detachment REME ( V ) move from Widnes to each Battery having its own REME Fitter Section . 213 / HQ Battery has gone into suspended animation , the 209th Battery split into 2 Troops , D Troop in Manchester and G Troop in St . Helens , and its title is to be 209th ( The Manchester and St Helens Artillery ) Battery Royal Artillery ( Volunteers ) . In the future under Army 2020 , 209 ( Manchester & St Helens ) Battery Royal Artillery will increase to a battery size . 210 ( Staffordshire ) Battery Royal Artillery from 106 RA will join this regiment , and re - role to a light gun battery . 103 RA will pair with be paired with the regular 4 RA under the 1st Artillery Brigade Equipment . The 103rd Regiment is equipped with the 105mm Light Gun , a versatile , air - portable and air - mobile artillery piece that can be carried around the battlefield slung under a SA 330 Puma or a CH - 47 Chinook helicopter . It has been in service since 1975 , when it was developed to replace the 105mm Pack howitzer . Detachment of 6 personnel , Weight 1 , 858 kg , Length 8 . 8m , Width 1 . 78m , Height 2 . 13m Ammunition HE , Smoke , Illuminating , Target Marking , Maximum Range ( HE ) 17 . 2 km ; Anti Tank Range 800m , Muzzle Velocity 709 m / s , Shell Weight 5 . 1 kg , Rate of Fire 6 rounds per minute .