Rheinmetall and Textron presented an unmanned air defense missile system
Promising air defense missile system from Rheinmetall and Textron at the AUSA-2023 exhibition
The military industry of different countries is now actively working on promising air defense systems designed to respond to the growing threat of unmanned aerial vehicles. To solve such problems, a variety of samples and products are offered, and another one was recently shown. The companies Rheinmetall and Textron, based on ready-made components, have built a promising unmanned anti-aircraft missile and gun system.
Premiere screening
On October 9-11, the next conference of the Army Association AUSA-2023 was held in the USA. This event is one of the main American platforms for demonstrating promising developments in the field of land weapons and equipment. Among the conference participants were again the American branch of the German company Rheinmetall Defense and the American company Textron. During the exhibition, they showed several already known samples, as well as a new interesting development.
At AUSA-2023, a promising air defense system designed to combat small and medium-sized UAVs was presented for the first time. This is a tracked combat vehicle on a Ripsaw chassis from the American company Howe and Howe Technologies / Textron, equipped with a Skyranger 30 cannon turret from Rheinmetall. A characteristic feature of the as-yet unnamed complex is the absence of a crew - all control is carried out remotely or autonomously by the standard means of the vehicle.
As part of the exhibition, they showed an experimental or mock-up model of a missile and gun system, and also revealed its main tactical and technical characteristics and combat capabilities. What stage the project is at, how far it has progressed and what results it shows have not been specified. At the same time, representatives of the development companies did not forget to mention the great commercial prospects of the complex.
View of the board
It can be assumed that American Rheinmetall Defense and Textron will not delay testing and will try to send an experienced air defense missile system to the test site in the near future. He will have to show real capabilities and confirm compliance with the calculated characteristics. After this you can count on receiving orders. Time will tell how soon potential customers will appear.
Technical appearance
From the point of view of the general architecture, the new air defense missile system from the Rheinmetall and Textron companies is a combat vehicle on a tracked chassis with a fully rotating turret carrying machine gun, cannon and missile weapons. A curious feature of the project is the use of ready-made components and modules, as a result of which the development was mainly reduced to their integration.
The basis for the new air defense missile system was the American-developed Ripsaw M5 chassis. A chassis modification with a hybrid power plant and remote control is used. The combat module instruments are integrated into the standard control and communication equipment, thereby ensuring overall control of all systems by the operator. Availability of reservation is not specified.
When used as part of an air defense missile system, the M5 chassis does not undergo any changes. The standard power plant, chassis with a specific suspension, etc. are retained. The dead weight of such a chassis reaches 10 tons. The combat module weighs another 2,5 tons. With a combat weight of 12-13 tons, the complex must reach a speed of more than 40 km/h.
The Skyranger 30 combat module is mounted on the chassis. This is a full-size turret with an armored hull that provides bulletproof and fragmentation protection. The module is arranged in such a way that all units are located above the shoulder strap, and no space is required inside the carrier vehicle.
An oscillating installation with a 30-mm automatic cannon from Oerlikon is mounted in the front part of the turret module. The use of projectiles of different types is envisaged, and the best results should be achieved through ammunition with a programmable fuse and air detonation. The gun mount has a coaxial machine gun for self-defense. On the roof at the left side in the stern there is a rising launcher for modern MANPADS missiles. All-round horizontal guidance and elevation of the gun at large angles are provided.
The automated control system includes a number of necessary devices. On the forehead and sides of the tower there are small-sized all-round phased arrays with a detection range of tens of kilometers. An optical-electronic station is placed on the roof of the tower for target tracking and guidance. weapons. There is a full-fledged control computer that collects various information, calculates firing data and controls the use of weapons.
The Skyrenger-30 module maintains constant communication with the operator at a remote control station. In addition, it can operate as part of larger air defense systems, receiving air situation data, target designation and commands. To optimize the processes of duty and combat work, several modules can be controlled by one control center and perform basic procedures autonomously.
Combining benefits
In general, the new project from Rheinmetall and Textron is about combining two well-known and advertised models of equipment of different classes to obtain an interesting self-propelled combat vehicle. The developers claim that the resulting air defense missile system has high tactical and technical characteristics and is capable of effectively solving all assigned combat missions.
Skyranger 30 combat module
Indeed, the chosen development approach allows us to combine the best aspects of ready-made components in one project. At the same time, there is a risk of “integration” and their disadvantages, but it can be reduced through competent development and refinement of the design.
First of all, Rheinmetall and Textron implemented the modular capabilities of their products. Thus, the Ripsaw chassis is positioned as a potential carrier of various loads, and a new combat module has been found for it. The Skyranger 30 product, in turn, can be mounted on different platforms. As part of the new project, the circle of possible carriers has been expanded.
Due to the M5 chassis, the resulting air defense missile system has high mobility and maneuverability characteristics. At the same time, the combat module corresponds to its payload capacity and even leaves some reserve power necessary to improve performance at the current stage or for further modernization.
The presented air defense missile system, apparently, retains all the main advantages of the Skyranger 30 combat module. This product, alone or in a group, is capable of monitoring airspace, identifying and hitting air targets. At the same time, during development, special emphasis was placed on combating small objects, such as UAVs. Developments of this kind were combined with other modern solutions.
Reportedly, the standard radar and OLS of the Skyrenger-30 product make it possible to find and track air targets within a radius of tens of kilometers. Ensures detection of even small-sized objects with low RCS. A standard fire control system can aim a gun with high accuracy. At the same time, air-blasted projectiles make it possible to create a cloud of fragments at a specific point in space, thereby sharply increasing the likelihood of hitting a target.
Skyranger turret on Boxer chassis
Apparently, the new air defense missile system, like the basic combat module, is capable of operating in network structures. In this case, several complexes can be controlled by one operator or control point, both in motion and in a firing position. Part of the routine operations will be entrusted to automation, while the person will only have general control and issuing permission to fire.
The new air defense missile system is completely unmanned. Due to this, the design of the chassis and turret is simplified while obtaining all the necessary characteristics. In addition, remote control reduces risks for operators - damage to the complex’s fire weapons does not pose a direct threat to them.
Pending verification
Thus, the Rheinmetall and Textron companies combined two interesting modern developments and received an anti-aircraft missile and gun system with distinctive capabilities. In the near future, this product will undergo the necessary tests and demonstrate its real potential. Based on the results of these events, development companies will be able to begin a full-fledged advertising campaign and search for buyers.
What the future of the project will be is unknown. In the meantime, we can say that the field of specialized air defense systems to combat UAVs continues to develop, and new projects are appearing in it. At the same time, the development of technology and technology already allows us to create the most interesting samples in various respects. However, the excessive degree of novelty of such projects requires extensive testing, and only after that drawing conclusions.
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