ARCHER Artillery System - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Archer Artillery System or Archer - FH77BW L52 is an international project aimed at developing a next-generation self-propelled artillery

Self-propelled artillery

Self-propelled artillery vehicles are combat vehicles armed with artillery. Within the term are covered self-propelled guns and rocket artillery...

system for Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

and Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. The heart of the system is a fully automated 155 mm/L52 gun howitzer

Howitzer

A howitzer is a type of artillery piece characterized by a relatively short barrel and the use of comparatively small propellant charges to propel projectiles at relatively high trajectories, with a steep angle of descent...

and a "Lemur" Remote controlled weapon station mounted on a modified 6x6

Six-wheel drive

Six-wheel drive, 6WD or 6x6 is a drivetrain configuration of six wheels, all of which are driven simultaneously by the vehicle's engine. Unlike four-wheel drive drivetrains, the configuration is largely confined to off-road and military vehicles, particularly heavy-duty ones...

chassis

Chassis

A chassis consists of an internal framework that supports a man-made object. It is analogous to an animal's skeleton. An example of a chassis is the underpart of a motor vehicle, consisting of the frame with the wheels and machinery.- Vehicles :In the case of vehicles, the term chassis means the...

of the Volvo

Volvo Construction Equipment

Volvo Construction Equipment is a subsidiary and business area of AB Volvo. Volvo Construction Equipment develops, manufactures and markets equipment for the construction and related industries.- Overview :...

A30D, all-terrain articulated hauler

Articulated hauler

An articulated hauler is a type of dump truck used to transport loads over rough terrain. The vehicle usually have all-wheel drive and consists of two basic units, one generally called the tractor and the rear section, called the hauler or trailer section, which contains the dump body...

.
The crew and engine compartment is heavily armoured and the cab is fitted with bullet and fragmentation-proof windows. Aside from this, the system consists of an ammunition resupply vehicle, a support vehicle, BONUS Sensor-fuzed Artillery Shell and the M982 Excalibur guided projectile.

Development

The project began its life in 1995 as earlier studies for a self-propelled system based on the FH 77

Haubits FH77/A

Haubits 77 is a Swedish 155 mm howitzer. It was developed and manufactured by Bofors. It was available in two versions, the original with a sliding block mechanism, and the later FH77 B export version with an interrupted screw breech.-Overview:In the 1960s Sweden started to look for a...

. Further test systems received the designation FH 77BD and FH 77BW. By 2004, two prototypes had been ordered based on a lengthened version of the FH 77B mounted on a modified Volvo Construction Equipment

Volvo Construction Equipment

A30D dump truck (6×6 Volvo chassis). In 2008, Sweden ordered a first batch of seven units, while Norway ordered one. In August 2009, Norway and Sweden ordered 24 Archers each, in a cooperative deal.

The Howitzer

Howitzer

was developed for the Swedish armed forces following a contract awarded to Bofors (now BAE Systems Bofors) in 2003 by Försvarets Materielverk (FMV), the Swedish defence acquisition agency to build two demonstrator howitzers.
The prototype FH77 BW L52 self-propelled howitzers entered firing trials in Sweden in 2005 and 2006.
In September 2006, the FMV placed a contract for detailed design work on Archer and, in January 2007, a contract for the next development phase. The Swedish Army has a requirement for 24 systems (two battalions).
Following In September 2008, the Swedish government approved the final development and procurement of the Archer artillery system.
In November 2008, Sweden and Norway signed a co-operative agreement for the development of the Archer system and, in January 2009, awarded BAE Systems a contract to complete development of the artillery system.
A final prototype is scheduled for completion by September 2009, which is expected to be followed by a contract for 48 systems – 24 for Sweden and 24 for Norway.
Archer is planned to enter service in 2011.
The Archer system is a development of the earlier 155mm towed FH77 L39, of which more than 700 were produced and are in service with the Swedish, Nigerian and Indian armed forces.

Vehicle platform

The vehicle platform is a modification of the Volvo A30D 6×6 articulated all-terrain hauler vehicle

Articulated hauler

. The vehicle cabin and engine compartment are fully armoured and the cab is fitted with bullet and fragmentation-proof windows. The cabin seats up to four personnel.
The howitzer is operated by three or four crew.

Ammunition

The vehicle carries 20 155mm projectiles in the fully automatic magazine and an additional 20 projectiles for reload.
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 km. The range of the gun is extended to 60 km with the precision-guided Raytheon / Bofors XM982 Excalibur round.
The Excalibur shell is corrected in flight towards a pre-programmed trajectory by a GPS guidance system.

Deployment

The system is designed for high strategic, operational and tactical mobility.
The vehicle can reach road-speeds of up to 70 km/h, is capable of traversing snow up to a depth of 100 cm, is rail transportable and can be air-transportable in the new A400M

Airbus A400M

The Airbus A400M, also known as the Atlas, is a multi-national four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft. It was designed by Airbus Military as a tactical airlifter with strategic capabilities. The aircraft's maiden flight, originally planned for 2008, took place on 11 December 2009 in...

aircraft.
A large hydraulically operated stabilizer is installed in the rear of the chassis and is lowered with the vehicle in the selected firing position.
The gun elevation and traverse ranges are 0° to +70° and -75° to +75°.
The initial deployment time and the redeployment times are each less than 30 seconds.
The system provides precision strike firepower and high sustained firepower for support and for deep firing operations with more than 25t of ammunition per gun and 24-hour operation.
The howitzer has a continuous fire rate of 75 rounds an hour, an intensive fire rate of 20 rounds (i.e. a full magazine) in 2.5 minutes, and a salvo fire rate of three rounds in 15 seconds.
The MRSI capability, multiple round simultaneous impact, is up to six rounds. Direct-sighting can be used for target ranges up to 2,000m.

General characteristics

Length: 14.1 metres
Width: 3.0 metres
Height: 3.3 - 3.9 metres
Weight: 30 tonnes
Speed: 70 km/h
Range: ~500 km
Crew: 4 (1 driver, 3 operators) or 2 (1 driver and 1 operator) in case of emergencies
Armament: 155 mm/L52 gun howitzer
Rate of fire: 8-9 rounds/min with MRSI (Multiple Round Simultaneous Impact) capability, which means that several shells are released in succession but hit the target simultaneously.
Range (of artillery fire): 30 km with standard shells, 40 km with base-bleed
Base bleed
Base bleed is a system used on some artillery shells to increase their range, typically by about 30%.Most of the drag on an artillery shell comes from the nose of the shell, as it pushes the air out of its way at supersonic speeds. Shaping the shell properly can reduce this greatly. However,...

, 60 km with Excalibur
XM982 Excalibur
The M982 Excalibur is a 155 mm extended range guided artillery shell developed by Raytheon Missile Systems and BAE Systems Bofors...
Protection level: 7.62 AP, Mines 6 kg (Level 2 STANAG 4569)
Emergency driving: all wheels - emergency driving equipment (Hutchinson AMVFI) makes it possible to drive with all wheels punctured; it also provides greater protection if the vehicle hits a blast-pressure mine - the same system is used on the all-terrain vehicle Sisu.

Operators

Norwegian Army

Norway achieved full independence in 1905, and in the first century of its short life has contributed to two major conflicts, the Cold War and the War on Terror. The Norwegian Army currently operates in the north of Norway and in Afghanistan as well as in Eastern Europe. The Army is the oldest of...

- 24 ordered Swedish Army

Swedish Army

The Swedish Army is one of the oldest standing armies in the world and a branch of the Swedish Armed Forces; it is in charge of land operations. General Sverker Göranson is the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Army.- Organization :...

- 24 ordered for Royal Swedish Artillery Regiment

Artilleriregementet (new)

Artilleriregementet , formerly Bergslagens artilleriregemente , is the only artillery regiment in the Swedish Armed Forces. Its new organisation was laid down in 2000 in Kristinehamn and in 2005 was the regiment moved to Boden....

(9th Artillery regiment, abbreviated as A 9)

External links

Video links

http://www.army-technology.com/projects/archerhowitzer/

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