KMW from Germany to deliver training systems for Swedish army Archer self-propelled howitzers

The Swedish Defense Materiel Administration (FMV) has commissioned KMW (KraussMaffei Wegmann) to supply a further cabin for the Swedish Army’s vehicle egress trainer. The contract signing took place at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) in Orlando (Florida).

Components of the contract include the development, manufacture, and integration of an interchangeable Archer self-propelled howitzer system cabin for the existing system and an option for additional vehicle cabins. The Archer interchangeable cabin will be manufactured by Swedish partner W5 Solutions and is expected to be delivered by the end of 2024.

The training unit developed by KMW is capable of accommodating specially manufactured vehicle cabins and simulating rollovers. This allows the crew to train egress while the vehicle is in various orientations. The Swedish Army currently has a total of three vehicle egress training systems with which it trains egress from CV90 cabins.

The Archer Artillery System, or Archer – FH77BW L52, or Artillerisystem 08 is a self-propelled gun system for Sweden and Norway. The heart of the system is a fully automated 155 mm/L52 gun howitzer and an M151 Protector remote-controlled weapon station mounted on a modified 6×6 chassis of the Volvo A30D, all-terrain hauler. The crew and engine compartment is armored and the cab is fitted with bullet and fragmentation-resistant windows. The system also includes an ammunition resupply vehicle, a support vehicle, BONUS submunitions and M982 Excalibur guided projectiles.

Operators control the entire gun system in any weather from the safety of the armored vehicle cabin which is fitted with bullet and fragmentation-proof windows. The cabin seats up to four personnel. The howitzer is operated by three or four crew but can be run by a single operator. The system also includes a munition carrier consisting of a removable, modified standard container mounted on a ballistic-proofed all-terrain lorry. The unit cost is approximately $4,500,000.

The vehicle carries 21 155mm projectiles in the fully automatic magazine. Reloading the magazine from the accompanying munitions carrier takes about 10 minutes using the purpose-built lifting device. The howitzer can use NATO modular charges or Bofors Uniflex 2 modular charges. The Uniflex 2IM modular charge system consists of two sizes of combustible charge cases; one full-size and one half-size case, both filled with the same type of insensitive guanylurea dinitramide (GuDN) propellant. The modular charge system allows several increments of charge to be available and increases the gun system’s multiple rounds simultaneous impact (MRSI) capability and good range overlap between the increments. With BAE Bofors/Nexter Bonus rounds, the range is 35 kilometers (22 miles). Due to the glide wings of the precision-guided Raytheon/Bofors M982 Excalibur rounds, the range of the gun is extended- in excess of 50 kilometers (31 miles). The Excalibur shell is corrected in flight towards a pre-programmed trajectory by a GPS guidance system. For armored vehicles, the Bofors 155 Bonus is used.