M-SHORAD to include above-armour sights
US Army Stryker A1 vehicle with M-SHORAD equipment installed. (Photo: US Army/Cpt Jordan Allen)
L3Harris Technologies announced on 21 July that it has received a contract from Moog to deliver WESCAM MX-GCS sighting systems for Increment 1 of the US Army Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) programme.
Deliveries to Moog will begin in 2021. The value of the deal was undisclosed.
L3Harris will provide a total of 33 fully digital above-armour sighting systems, each of which will be integrated onto the Moog Reconfigurable Integrated-weapons Platform (RIwP) turret.
General Dynamics Land Systems is the prime contractor for M-SHORAD. The programme is designed to defeat mortars, rockets, short-range missiles and aerial targets such as UAVs and helicopters.
MX-GCS comprises a fully stabilised two-axis sensor gimbal that is capable of traversing 360 degrees and elevating through an arc of -71 to +74 degrees. Housed within this gimbal are an HD CMOS camera, a 3-5μm staring array thermal imager and a Class I eye-safe laser rangefinder.
According to Shephard Defence Insight, the laser rangefinder operates on a wavelength of 1.54μm at 1Hz with a maximum effective range of 10km.
Related Programmes in Defence Insight
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Land Warfare
-
UK government argues strife has little impact on steel supply but imports reign
Speaking in the UK Parliament, Defence Minister Luke Pollard said possible changes in the country’s steelmaking industry will have little impact on defence projects; while much of the steel in British vehicles and ships is imported.
-
Ukraine receives more Patriot batteries as Centauros break cover
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has announced the arrival of more Patriot air defence systems in his country. The development follows the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha calling for 10 more systems last month and Zelenskyy reiterating the need for more.
-
Norway orders improved NASAMS technology as more countries sign up
The country’s air defence batteries will be equipped with new command posts, wheeled communication nodes and radios. The system itself is in service with more than 14 countries with 13 systems in Ukraine.
-
Ukraine’s ground robot army still finding its feet
Ukraine’s quest to replace soldiers with robots is hitting technical snags. Shephard spoke with industry leaders about difficulties in the field and what solutions are in the pipeline.