FEINDEF 2025: Norway's Nammo Develops New Breaching System to Overcome Antipersonnel Mines and Wire Barriers.

At FEINDEF 2025, the Nordic company Nammo showcased the Anti-Personnel Obstacle Breaching System (APOBS) Mk 7 Mod 2, a self-contained, single-use, expendable line charge designed for clearing narrow pathways through antipersonnel minefields and wire obstacles. APOBS was developed as a man-portable alternative to earlier breaching systems such as the Bangalore torpedo. The system can be deployed by a two-person team and is transported using two backpacks and a small soft pack, with a combined system weight of 125 pounds (56 kilograms).
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The Anti-Personnel Obstacle Breaching System (APOBS) Mk 7 Mod 2 can be emplaced in 30 to 120 seconds, with a setup typically completed in under two minutes. (Picture source: Army Recognition)

The Anti-Personnel Obstacle Breaching System (APOBS) Mk 7 Mod 2 can be emplaced in 30 to 120 seconds, with a setup typically completed in under two minutes. Once activated from a 35-meter standoff distance, a rocket motor launches the line charge, which deploys fragmentation grenades across the obstacle area. Detonation occurs approximately 10 seconds after launch, clearing a path 45 meters long and between 0.6 to 2.0 meters wide. This clearance effect would otherwise require 27 Bangalore torpedo sections. The APOBS is intended to neutralize or destroy antipersonnel mines, IEDs, pressure plates, command wires, multi-strand razor wires, fences, and barricades.

The APOBS uses either Delay Mode or Command Mode to initiate the rocket motor, and it does not include any electrically initiated devices, which ensures compliance with the Hazards of Electromagnetic Radiation to Ordnance (HERO) safety standard. The system meets the requirements for insensitive munitions outlined in MIL-STD-2105 and fuze board safety as defined in MIL-STD-1316. It incorporates a Forward and Alternate Fuze for redundancy. The explosive components include grenade warheads, PBXN-10, PBXN-8, and detonation cord. APOBS is shipped and stored in environmentally sealed containers to maintain performance and ensure a minimum shelf life of 15 years and a minimum operational service life of 12 years. Each pallet, which measures 762 x 1,118 x 1,080 millimeters, holds two stackable units with a total pallet weight of 291 kilograms and a shipping weight of 230 pounds.

The APOBS program originated from a joint operational requirement defined by the U.S. Army Engineer School at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. This requirement was formalized in 1994 through a joint document signed by both the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps. During early testing, the initial grenade attachment mechanism proved ineffective, prompting the Naval Surface Warfare Center to sponsor a redesign of the system. This led to the adoption of a woven nylon overwrap for the line charge. The Mk 7 Mod 1 entered service in 2002, followed by the Mk 7 Mod 2 in 2006. The system was specifically designed for both deliberate and rapid breaching operations conducted by dismounted troops through antipersonnel minefields and wire barriers. Its fielding replaced the heavier and more manpower-intensive Bangalore torpedo, which requires up to 12 personnel and cannot be deployed from a standoff position.

The use of mine-clearing line charge systems dates back to World War II, when initial systems such as the British Conger and the Canadian Snake were developed to provide a means for breaching minefields and obstacles in combat conditions. In the 1950s, the British Army introduced the Giant Viper, which used a rocket to deploy an explosive-filled hose over a minefield to create a vehicle path. The United States further advanced the concept with the M58 Mine Clearing Line Charge (MICLIC), a trailer-mounted system introduced in the late 1980s. MICLIC deploys a 100-meter-long explosive line charge to clear an 8-meter-wide path for vehicles. These systems significantly increased breaching efficiency but were designed for mounted units and not optimized for dismounted infantry operations, a gap addressed by the development of APOBS.

The APOBS replaced the heavier and more manpower-intensive Bangalore torpedo, which requires up to 12 personnel and cannot be deployed from a standoff position. (Picture source: US DoD)

Nammo, the company behind the APOBS, is a Norwegian-Finnish aerospace and defense group founded in 1998. It is co-owned by the Norwegian Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Finnish defense company Patria. Nammo’s headquarters are located in Raufoss, Norway, and the company maintains operations in Finland, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, Spain, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the United States. The group has four business units: Small and Medium Caliber Ammunition, Large Caliber Systems, Aerospace Propulsion, and Commercial Ammunition. Nammo acquired the U.S.-based munitions company Talley, Inc. in 2007. Its U.S. operations are managed through Nammo Defense Systems Inc., which has facilities in ten locations, including Mesa, Arizona.

Nammo’s product range includes ammunition in calibers from 5.56 mm to 155 mm, hand grenades, propellant charges, artillery shell bodies, and tank ammunition. It manufactures rocket motors and propulsion systems for several missile systems, such as the AIM-9L Sidewinder, AIM-120 AMRAAM, IRIS-T family, Penguin Mk2 Mod7, RIM-162 ESSM, and SM40 Exocet. Nammo also produces rocket propulsion components for space applications, including the P120 Booster Igniter for Vega and Ariane 6, and aluminum propellant tanks for the Vega AVUM upper stage. In 2019, the European Space Agency awarded Nammo a contract to develop a reusable rocket engine for the Heracles lunar lander ascent stage. The engine under study may use electrically driven pumps and allow in-space refueling.

The company is the only licensed manufacturer of the M72 LAW, with production lines in Raufoss and Mesa. The M72 has been produced since 1966, and Mesa also produces the M141 Bunker Defeat Munition for the U.S. Army and ammunition for the SMAW system used by the U.S. Marine Corps. On December 20, 2021, Nammo Defense Systems Inc. was awarded a $498 million contract for full-rate production of M72 variants and shoulder-launched munitions training systems. Other products in development include the THOR-ER ramjet missile engine and a submarine-launched variant of the Naval Strike Missile (NSM-SL), for which Nammo is contributing the rocket boosting system. It is also collaborating with Northrop Grumman on the Mk72 solid rocket motor for the Raytheon SM-3 Block 1B missile.

Operational use of APOBS has been documented during U.S. deployments in Afghanistan, where both US Army and Marine Corps units used the system to clear improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and antipersonnel obstacles during route clearance and assault operations. Its portability and fast deployment timeline made it suitable for rapid movement in areas where heavy equipment could not be brought in. The shift from systems like the Bangalore torpedo to APOBS reflects the evolution of dismounted combat engineering tools. APOBS allows breaching operations to be carried out with fewer personnel, less exposure to danger, and without requiring vehicles or heavy machinery. Its configuration meets modern operational requirements for dismounted forces operating in environments where minefields and wire barriers remain common.

The use of mine-clearing line charge systems dates back to World War II, when initial systems such as the British Conger and the Canadian Snake were developed to provide a means for breaching minefields and obstacles in combat conditions. (Picture source: US DoD)