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Defence & Security News - (USA)
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| US government allocated funds for the Stryker 30mm gun upgrade | |||
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The House of Representatives and the US Senate Armed Services Committee agreed on a USD411 million fund for the upgrade of the Stryker combat vehicles with a 30mm gun, according to BreakingDefense.com. The formation that will have its vehicles upgraded is the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, currently deployed in Europe (Germany) in the aftermath of the crisis in Ukraine.
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 A Stryker vehicle with Kongsberg's remote weapon station with the ATK Mk44 30mm gun |
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Earlier this year, the Regiment carried out a “Dragoon Ride” mission, which involved the movement of 120 vehicles across the Baltic countries of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, by starting from and returning to Germany. Albeit the 2nd Cavalry Regiment is providing a valuable maneuvering capability to the heavier forces, it lacks the punching force due to the small calibre weapons used in the Strykers’ remote weapon stations. Of the allocated budget, USD314 mil. will be for the modifications required and USD97 mil. for the required research and development. A total of 81 vehicles are expected to be upgraded by General Dynamics. However it has not been know yet which type of gun will be. The acquisition will be implemented quickly as an Operational Needs Statement. It is expected that the vehicles will have been upgraded before 2020. Last year the US Army had conducted a proof of concept demonstration at Fort Benning, at the Army’s Maneuver Center of Excellence. The Stryker vehicle was fitted with a Kongsberg Medium Calibre Remote Weapons Station with an ATK Mk44 30mm gun and a co-axial 7.62mm machine gun. |
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