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MDM 22 – GM Defense

Wednesday, May 11th, 2022

GM Defense had a very impressive display which included a non-defense vehicle which may pique your interest of the art of the possible.

Based on the Chevrolet Silverado truck, this Chevy Off-Road Concept Vehicle is an example their ability to design a fully integrated solution leveraging a GM commercial derivative with the ability to scale to any level of production.

The vehicle offers off-road capabilities, control and performance rooted in a production-based foundation and off-the-shelf performance enhancements.

It offers increased payload capacity and capability to hold lightweight armor when compared to the recently adopted Infantry Squad Vehicle which is not armored.

The frame was shortened and a custom-designed, 4130 chromoly tubular safety structure was integrated while the modified chassis was wrapped with a custom, lightweight body.

It is powered by a Chevrolet Performance LT4 crate engine, a 6.2L supercharged V-8 that’s rated at 650 hp. It’s backed by a 10L90 10-speed automatic transmission that sends torque to a two-speed transfer case and distributes it to 37-inch-tall off-road tires mounted on 20-inch beadlock wheels. The vehicle also includes the Chevrolet Performance Big Brake Upgrade System.

Posted in MDM, Mobility | 9 Comments »

New Soldier-Protection Turret Developed for Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle

Thursday, April 28th, 2022

PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. — Soldiers are getting a chance to evaluate and train with a new armored turret system for the Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle, the latest U.S. Army platform within the high-priority Next Generation Combat Vehicle modernization program.

The new Objective Commander’s Weapon Station integrates with all five variants of the AMPV: a general-purpose vehicle, mission command vehicle, mortar carrier, medical evacuation and medical treatment vehicles. The AMPV is currently in low-rate production.

The OCWS system, which addresses the ongoing need to develop advanced armor protection and capabilities for Soldiers, is part of the broad sweep of modernization efforts within the U.S. Army. The advanced protection kit has a new armor alloy and a titanium hatch design.

The OCWS turret protects the vehicle commander, who operates as the gunner on the top side of the vehicle. Essential features include periscopes, motorized rotation and a spacious interior that allows the gunner to perform complex missions under protection. The weapon mount on the system gives the gunner full access to the suite of crew served weapons, providing a range of firepower options.

The OCWS was developed and prototyped by engineers at the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Armaments Center at Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey. The Armaments Center reports to the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, which is part of Army Futures Command.

“The OCWS is definitely one of our more sophisticated turret systems,” said Thomas Kiel, who leads the engineering activity for U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps armored and tactical vehicle turrets within the DEVCOM Armaments Center Force Protection team. “The AMPV was developed to operate on the front lines of the battlefield, and our team had to accommodate the challenging requirements associated with that,” Kiel added.

The OCWS includes a combination of opaque and transparent armor that is specially configured to provide advanced protection and situational awareness for the Commander. The Armaments Center works closely with DEVCOM’s Army Research Laboratory to ensure that the high performing armor materials are lightweight, affordable and readily available.

“Our initial prototype was integrated with the vehicle at the test site for a formal user evaluation,” said Narayan Bhagavatula, Program Lead for Gunner Protection Systems within Program Manager Soldier Lethality, also located at Picatinny Arsenal.

Experienced warfighters, program managers and Picatinny engineers participated in a Human Systems Integration event at the Aberdeen Test Center for a complete evaluation of every aspect of the new turret. “It is critical that the OCWS meets the needs of the Soldier,” said Bhagavatula. “User feedback is the most important aspect of our development process.”

At the Soldier-centered event, the turret team gathers all comments and recommendations from Soldiers and incorporates them into the design. Engineering analysis of the updated computer models follows each design change.

“We’re able to really push the envelope on system complexity and performance because of recent advances in modeling and simulation,” said Kiel. The engineers work closely with the Gaming, Interactive Technologies & Multimedia team at the Armaments Center to evaluate computer models within a virtual environment that simulate various battlefield scenarios, from dense urban combat to open terrain, under certain weather conditions.

In collaboration with Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey, the Armaments Center is acquiring new simulation technologies and toolsets that make it possible to evaluate the overall effectiveness of new weapon systems through fully immersive environments.

“Through advanced modeling, we can predict the behavior of our turrets under extreme stress, as well as understand how the system will be used during combat,” said Kiel. “The engineering data we generate is treated as a weapon system and is managed and secured as such,” he added.

The DEVCOM Armaments Center has the lead within the DOD in the development of Tactical Vehicle Turret Systems. More than 50,000 systems have been fielded on a variety of platforms, including the Humvee, Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles, the MRAP All-Terrain Vehicle and others. Objective Gunner Protection Kit Turrets are standard for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle.

At least 14 patents have been issued related to the development of turret systems, including three that were selected as Army’s Greatest Inventions. AGI awards are considered somewhat of a “Soldier’s Choice Award” because nominations are judged by a panel of noncommissioned officers with recent combat experience as well as practical, hands-on experience.

The Product Data Management team at Picatinny is responsible for processing and maintaining all aspects of weapon system data, which is used throughout the Armaments Center enterprise for various functions such as prototype fabrication, structural modeling, and cost analysis. “The technical data itself is a strategic asset for the U.S. Army and a crucial component in achieving military advantage,” Kiel said.

“We built all of the prototype OCWS turrets in-house over the last 18 months,” said Bhagavatula. “Meeting the aggressive test schedule was a top priority, along with finalizing the technical data package for the start of low-rate production,” he added. Assembled within its Prototype Integration Facility, the Armaments Center provided 20 OCWS turrets for test and evaluation.

The AMPV with OCWS has undergone reliability, availability, and maintainability testing at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona, as well as live-fire testing at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland.

Follow-on operational testing of the AMPV with Soldiers is underway.

By Ed Lopez, Picatinny Arsenal Public Affairs

Posted in Armor, Army, Guest Post, Mobility | 1 Comment »

Jankel Receives Follow-on Order of Toyota LC200 pickup Variant

Monday, April 25th, 2022

Jankel, a world-leader in the design and manufacture of high-specification defence, security and NGO protection systems, has announced the receipt of a follow-on order for x10 of their twin-cab pickup variant Toyota LC200. The order comes from an undisclosed customer who previously purchased armoured variants of the same vehicle; a contract that was announced in February 2021. In addition to these 10 vehicles, Jankel has recently received orders totalling a further 20 armoured LC200 vehicles from undisclosed customers, globally, sweeping up the last of the LC200 available stock.

With the Toyota LC200 base platform having now gone out of production, the customer secured the base vehicles for this project using Jankel’s “buy now – armour later” scheme to ensure they had sufficient stock of the outgoing LC200’s, prior to conversion. Jankel are highlighting this conversion as an example of how they can adapt any vehicle to meet customer needs and fill specific capability gaps in the specialist protected vehicle market. With no new LC200’s now available, The Jankel pickup design has the potential to become an after-market modification carried out on in-service LC200’s.

Jankel has integrated an existing and proven pickup design with the also proven and certified, Jankel LC200 base platform. Bringing together the strengths of both designs into one offering has resulted in the variant extending the operability through a gain of an additional 650mm in wheelbase. This combined with a heavy-duty rear axle upgrade delivers an increase in Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM-4495kg) and payload (up to 1500kg depending on specification), whilst retaining the existing crew-cab dimensions and space. The technique of lengthening the chassis and incorporating the modular and adaptable flatbed pickup pod is easily adapted to other commonly armoured light vehicles.

In addition to the increased payload and the usable flat 1900mm x 1700mm load bed space, the vehicle can be configured to deliver a number of automotive and user-orientated tactical capability enhancements such as: run-flats; improved brakes; tuned suspension; EMC suppression; fire suppression system; 24v communications installation; door deadbolts; escape hatch; gun ports; weapons mounts; tactical lighting, lightweight Jankel mesh seats and a PA/siren. The lightweight flat-bed can be delivered with a canopy or a hard-top and includes folding/removable sides and integrated modular storage bins.

Looking ahead, Jankel are currently developing their armoured LC300 design that is scheduled for a product launch later in 2022. The result of an extensive design, development and testing programme, Jankel’s new LC300 will deliver ‘best in class’ protection, safety, capability and functionality. Leveraging Jankel’s considerable experience in the field of Civilian Armoured Vehicles (CAVs) gained over many years of high-quality service to the defence, security and NGO sectors, the new LC300 will be an exciting addition to Jankel’s range.

Andrew Jankel, Chairman at Jankel Group said: “We first developed the new pickup variant of our Hot Formed Armoured LC200 as a result of receiving an order from an existing customer in 2021 and we’re delighted to have received this follow-on order for an additional x10 un-armoured variants, underling their confidence in Jankel to deliver”. He added: “Looking ahead, we’ll be launching our armoured Toyota LC300 later this year which is undergoing an extensive design and development programme. We have listened carefully to our customers evolving needs and I believe it will be a best in class, quality product”.

Posted in International, Mobility, Press Release | 3 Comments »

British Army to Get Another 100 Boxer Wheeled Armoured Vehicles

Monday, April 11th, 2022

The Boxer success story continues. The British government, represented by the European procurement organization OCCAR, and ARTEC, a consortium of Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW), have signed a contract extension to supply the British Army with an additional 100 Boxer wheeled armoured vehicles. The contract encompasses three previously ordered variants of the Boxer: the infantry carrier, the command vehicle and the field ambulance.

In issuing the order, the United Kingdom is exercising an option contained in the contract signed in 2019 for the Mechanised Infantry Vehicle (MIV) procurement project, which includes 523 Boxer wheeled armoured vehicles in several variants.

ARTEC will be supplying the vehicles to the UK via OCCAR, the intergovernmental Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation. The bulk of Boxer production will take place in Britain. Series production is currently getting underway in Germany, after which most of the Boxer vehicles already ordered will be produced in British factories of Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land and KMW subsidiary WFEL.

The additional vehicles just ordered will also be produced in both the UK and Germany. Here, the partners will be drawing on the knowledge and components of the established and expanding British supply chain, which already forms the basis of the first lot of 523 vehicles.

A modular vehicle – versatile and battle-tested
The Boxer is a highly protected 8×8 wheeled armoured vehicle. Its modular architecture enables a greater number of variants than any other vehicle system.

To date, some 1,500 vehicles in twenty different versions have been ordered by Australia and four NATO countries: Germany, the Netherlands, Lithuania and the United Kingdom. Australia, a close partner of NATO, has already taken delivery of a first shipment of 25 Boxer vehicles.

Founded in 1999, ARTEC GmbH is a joint venture of Krauss-Maffei Wegmann GmbH & Co. KG, Rheinmetall Landsysteme GmbH and Rheinmetall Defence Nederland B.V. The company coordinates series production and serves as the point of contact for export enquiries for the Boxer.

Posted in Advertiser, Contracts, International, Mobility, Press Release | Comments Off on British Army to Get Another 100 Boxer Wheeled Armoured Vehicles

10th SFG(A) Tests Timbersled

Thursday, April 7th, 2022

The Originals recently tested out some “new tech” for cold weather/mountain mobility.

This is a Timbersled, which is a converted motorcycle that provides an unmatched level of maneuverability but comes with a bit of a steeper learning curve than snowmobiles.

Posted in Mobility, SOF | 1 Comment »

IWA 22 – Allradwerk

Monday, March 7th, 2022

Austria’s Allradwerk refurbishes and sells surplus military vehicles like the Pinzgauer series and G-Wagen. Displaying with renowned Bavarian hunting outfitter Frankonia they have unveiled their electric modifications to these icons.

They promise 120 Km at peak performance of 18kwh.

www.allradwerk.at

Posted in IWA, Mobility, Power | 1 Comment »

Military Multi-Tool: Rheinmetall Presents HX 8×8 High-Mobility Multipurpose Excavator System with CSM Industry of Slovakia

Sunday, February 27th, 2022

In cooperation with the Slovak company CSM Industry, Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles (RMMV) has unveiled a new high-mobility multipurpose excavator vehicle based on the HX 8×8. The new variant derives from RMMV’s tried-and-tested family of logistic vehicles, which are in service worldwide. It carries an UDS 214 excavator build-on, a proven system made by the crane and excavator maker CSM based in Tisovec, Slovakia. The HX 8×8 Excavator is specially designed for combat engineer operations and disaster relief missions.

Able to pivot 360 degrees, the build-on features an extendable telescopic arm that attains a length of up 14.60 metres. It can use various tools: besides the excavator shovel, a hook or hydraulic drum cutter are possible. This universally deployable device can lift loads of up to 7.5 tons and can thus serve as an auxiliary crane. If desired, the excavator operator’s cab can be protected in accordance with common STANAG levels and fitted with a ventilation system.

Like RMMV’s entire HX family, the HX 8×8 is a military off-the-shelf vehicle designed to withstand the most gruelling military conditions, assuring excellent mobility even in the toughest terrain. When ready to operate, the basic version of the vehicle weighs 28 tons.

Its MAN D2676 diesel engine generates an output of 387 kW or 540 hp, giving the HX 8×8 a top speed of 90 km/h. The vehicle can handle inclines of 60 percent and wade through water up to 1.5 metres deep. If desired, the HX 8×8 can be equipped with Rheinmetall’s protected Integrated Armoured Cabin (IAC) or prepared for its optional use. The vehicle can also be fitted with a remotely operated weapon station for self-defence.

Belonging to the HX family – of which more than 16,000 vehicles are now in service worldwide – offers advantages with respect to maintenance, repairs and training. Numerous NATO nations already own HX family trucks, resulting in synergy effects particularly during multinational operations.

The HX 8×8 Excavator is another example of Rheinmetall cooperation with European and other international partners. Nor is this limited to technical teamwork. By cooperating with Rheinmetall, CSM stands to benefit from access to new export markets.

Moreover, the Düsseldorf-based technology enterprise offers Slovakia additional options for cooperating with local industry. One possibility would be the production of infantry fighting vehicles in the NATO country. This relates to an offer to Slovakia by Hungary to produce the state-of-the-art Lynx KF41 family of tracked armoured vehicles developed by Rheinmetall. The Lynx family is a compelling choice not only on account of its performance parameters. It also sets a new standard when it comes to defence cooperation between NATO member states and other partner nations. Hungary opted to procure the Lynx in 2021, with a large share of the vehicles to be manufactured in Hungary in cooperation with Rheinmetall. If neighbouring Slovakia, also a NATO member, choses the Lynx, a large share of its new fleet of vehicles would also be produced locally, meaning that it would benefit from far-reaching cooperation in the defence technology domain, resulting in greater value added as well as safeguarding and expanding the country’s defence technology capabilities.

www.rheinmetall.com

Posted in Advertiser, Mobility, Press Release | Comments Off on Military Multi-Tool: Rheinmetall Presents HX 8×8 High-Mobility Multipurpose Excavator System with CSM Industry of Slovakia

Mobility and Firepower: Rheinmetall Presents the Lynx 120 Mechanized Fire Support Vehicle

Monday, February 21st, 2022

Rheinmetall has just unveiled the latest addition to the company’s Lynx next-generation combat vehicle family. The Düsseldorf-based technology group has now developed a mechanized fire support variant of the Lynx KF41 IFV. Called the Lynx 120, this unique platform merges a tried-and-tested turret concept and the proven 120mm smoothbore cannon with the Lynx KF 41 chassis. The new mechanized fire support variant of the Lynx offers the user outstanding fire support and anti-tank capabilities.

Thanks to a well-balanced blend of lethality, protection, mobility and survivability, the Lynx 120 is the perfect additional battlefield asset for Lynx platform users. Featuring off-the-shelf components, meticulous engineering reduces the vehicle’s weight, while customizable protection packages round out the package. The vehicle architecture has been simplified and provides an open ‘plug-and-play’ capability for future upgrades, while complying with, and adapting to, NATO standards.

Because armed forces have to cope with future challenges such as high-tech combat systems at a time when conventional solutions and concepts have reached the limits of their performance, the Lynx 120 is designed to deliver maximum lethality and firepower on tracks paired with the latest defence technologies to keep adversaries at bay.

Utilizing the Lynx KF 41 modular chassis and a scalable large-calibre turret concept, the Lynx 120 is a high-performance solution, harbouring vast growth potential and an assured overmatch capability. Just a couple of weeks ago, Rheinmetall Defence Australia unveiled a combat support vehicle (CSV) variant of the Lynx: now there is the fire support version as well.

The basic idea behind the Lynx 120 design concept is to provide a combat system that offers maximum operational performance in combination with logistic advantages within a reasonable timeframe at a realistic cost.

The vehicle’s main armament is a Rheinmetall 120mm smoothbore gun, derived from the main armament of the Leopard 2. It can fire state-of-the-art DM11 programmable high-explosive (HE) projectiles. Its secondary armament includes a coaxial machine gun. Moreover, the commander’s independent weapon station will feature an additional .50 cal. machine gun.

A 360° camera system with automatic target detection and tracking reduces the crew’s workload in all operational scenarios.

Special protection modules enable a mission-specific response to ballistic threats, improvised explosive devices, explosively formed penetrators and artillery fire, and can be quickly mounted with limited tools. Moreover, the Lynx 120 can be readily equipped with the proven, already fielded Rheinmetall Active Defence System, or ADS, to defeat rocket-propelled grenades and antitank missiles. Additional armour packages and active protection systems can be provided on request.

Various nations are interested in acquiring the Lynx as a next-generation replacement for their aging inventories. The platform is currently a strong contender in Australian and Slovak IFV modernization plans and is competing for the USA’s Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV) programme. Hungary became the launch customer in 2021. Going beyond strictly military aspects such as increased interoperability and capability upgrades, major localization elements form an integral part of these procurement plans, aimed at boosting local industry and creating jobs.

Posted in Advertiser, Mobility, Press Release, weapons | 1 Comment »