o an artilleryman, accuracy is the name of the game. If he is accurate, he brings havoc on the enemy with little danger to his own ground troops. If not, he can kill his own men.
   The 2d Battalion, 4th Artillery performs in what many artillerymen might consider an accuracy nightmare. It is called "shooting the donut," and involves dropping hundreds of artillery rounds in the middle of a ring of U.S. infantrymen. It is close, continuous supporting fire that leaves no room for error. The artillery must be quick to be effective and the slightest error can cost friendly lives.
   Before being committed to combat, all artillery battalions and batteries go through training tests. One of the toughest parts of the battery test is putting a given number of rounds in a circle, which is similar to shooting the donut. The circle is two to three times larger, and the best of the units rarely put all the rounds in the circle.
   As a comparison, a professional basketball player can put eight of ten foul shots through the hoop, while the 2d/4th must put 2,000 of 2,000 rounds in the donut. If the player misses, the game is lost. If the artillery misses, lives are lost.
   To be that accurate, there must be tremendous teamwork.

   The artillery team is composed of three parts:
 the forward observer, the Fire Direction Center and the firing battery.
    The forward observer adjusts fire on the ground with the infantry or from overhead in an aircraft. He is normally a lieutenant with less than two years of experience in the army and a tremendous responsibility. His job is to call for the artillery support and adjust it to obtain the desired result. First Lieutenant Burton Williams is a forward observer and an experienced man in shooting the donut.
   Williams claims, "…that the most difficult part of being an FO is getting the initial round on target; we start by firing a spotting round and then adjust from there. Once the artillery is on target, our work is confined to moving it around."
   Asked about how time consuming the task is, considering the accuracy that is required, he said, "The key to success is quickness; this is the case for the artilleryman. Get the enemy before he has a chance to escape. I have taken part in several encirclements, and in each case there was detailed coordination on everyone's part. If it is done right, there is less chance of any friendlies getting injured.
   "Believe me, the situation can get tight for the FO. He has to make quick judgements in directing the fire and his judgements have to be right."