REGI ON AL M I L I T A R Y
a total of 54 production systems which each carry 26 rounds have been delivered to the Singapore Armed Forces. Across the border, Malaysia acquired 18 unguided AVIBRAS ASTROS II rocket systems from 2001 from Brazil, Malaysia recently awarded a contract for a further 18 Astros IIs to equip a second regiment to be operational at the end of 2010 or early 2011 and will form a Army’s Rocket Brigade. A third regiment is also planned under the 10th Plan. Using the SS-80 rocket targets at ranges of 90 km can be engaged. Avibras is now working on an enhanced version of the Astros II, called Astros 2020, which will have a digitized command-and-control system and the ability to fire the latest long-range, autonomously guided Tactical Missiles which have a maximum range of 300 km. Malaysia has also acquired eight 2R2M 120mm Mortars for use with the Army’s ACV-S 300 mortar carriers IFVs in a $18.7 million deal. A maximum range of 13 km is achieved using a rocket-assisted projectile or 8.1 km using a standard TDA HE projectile.
Singapore is fielding 18 HIMARS to complement the Singapore Technologies Kinetics 155 mm/39 calibre Primus self-propelled artillery system © US DoD
Precision Procurement
The M982 Excalibur 155 mm guided artillery round programme recently saw its unit cost rise when the US scaled back its purchase for Excalibur Block I Increment Ia and Ib rounds considerably. In August, Raytheon was awarded funding to continue development M982E1 Excalibur Block 1b, designed to develop Excalibur to reduce costs, increase reliability with ranges rising to 40km. Raytheon will begin production of Excalibur 1b shells in 2012. Canada and Australian have both acquired Excalibur, initially for use in Afghanistan. Rather than introduce new rounds, existing dumb rounds are having an intelligent upgrade to enable precision engagement. The US Army selected ATK to produce such a weapon with its Precision Guidance Kit (PGK) for the 155mm rounds. This adds a GPS based navigation and fixed canard guidance which simply screws Elbit System’s turntable mounted, auto-lay equipped CARDOM into the existing rounds fuze (Computerised Autonomous Recoil Rapid Deployed Outrange well with a an accuracy of Mortar) 120 mm smoothbore recoiless mortar system can engage sub-50m, with the company targets at over 7km - © Elbit Systems demonstrating a 21.1 meter CP at over 20km range using conducted with eighteen M549A1 rounds in a Competitive fly-off. IAI’s TopGun Course Correction Fuze uses four canards to achieve a claimed CEP of less than 20m. TopGun is at TRL8 and is being developed by MAFAT and IAI with a first shooting planned for February. By comparison, the CEP of an
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ASIAN MILITARY REVIEW
unguided 155mm rounds at 40km is 361m and 91m at 10KM, Elbit have introduced an upgrade to the M109 which enhances precision which is now in service. IAI Tamam are responsible for integrating the PLGR and AMANP INS unit for IDF M109s. IAI are now participating in the Asian market with their latest TMAPS INS systems developed with the IDF and has an accuracy of less than 1mil and is also entirely ITAR free. Other precision rounds include the SMArt 155 mm developed by Diehl and Rheinmetall acquired by Australia, Greece, Switzerland and the UK and the Bonus topattack PGM developed by Nexter Systems (France) and BAE Systems Bofors which in
Malaysia recently awarded a contract for a further 18 Astros IIs to equip a second regiment
service with France and Sweden. The KBP Instrument Design Bureau’ 155mm laser guided round is in service with India with the Bofors 155 mm FH-77B artillery systems and has been used operationally in Kashmir. Elisra are currently developing version 13 of software for the Divisional Artillery Command and Control System variant developed for Switzerland under the country’s INTAFF programme which was fielded in 2001. The new software will be delivered later this year and provide a new MMI and NATO MIP interoperability. Switzerland also acquired the company’s V-STAR terminal in 2009 to support the integration of UAV imagery into INTAFF teams. The systems is also in service with several African and Asian customers and the company are in the process of developing a 3D mapping improvement to the system.