Archer Artillery System

The Archer Artillery System, or Archer – FH77BW L52, or Artillerisystem 08 is a self-propelled gun system for Sweden and Norway. The heart of the system is a fully automated 155 mm/L52 gun howitzer and a M151 Protector remote controlled weapon station mounted on a modified 6×6 chassis of the Volvo A30D, all-terrain articulated hauler. The crew and engine compartment is armoured and the cab is fitted with bullet and fragmentation-resistant windows. The system also includes an ammunition resupply vehicle, a support vehicle, BONUS submunitions and M982 Excalibur guided projectiles.

Development

The project began its life in 1995 as earlier studies for a self-propelled system based on the FH 77. 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 A30D articulated haul truck (6x6). 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 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 with the exception of the remote weapon system which is made by Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace. 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 was planned to enter service in 2011 but was delayed until October 2013. This because of unforeseen technical problems.

The Swedish Army received its first four pre-serial production FH-77 BW L52 Archer systems on 23 September 2013, and the first guns finally entered service on 1 February 2016.

The Norwegian government withdrew from the project in December 2013.

In 2019, a new configuration of the Archer, with the howitzer mounted on a RMMV HX2 8×8 tactical truck, was revealed. Interestingly, Sweden ordered a number of HX2 trucks in 2014, with deliveries commencing in 2017. On January 23, 2020, Janes reported that BAE Systems Bofors had begun trials for the HX2 variant.

Vehicle platform

The vehicle platform is a modification of the Volvo A30D 6×6 articulated all-terrain hauler vehicle. Operators control the entire gun system in any weather from the safety of the armored vehicle cabin which is fitted with bullet and fragmentation-proof windows. The cabin seats up to four personnel. The howitzer is operated by three or four crew but can be run by a single operator.
The system also includes a munition carrier consisting of a removable, modified standard container mounted on a ballistic-proofed all-terrain lorry. The unit cost is approximately $4,500,000.

Ammunition

The vehicle carries 21 155mm projectiles in the fully automatic magazine. Reloading the magazine from the accompanying munitions carrier takes about 10 minutes using the purpose-built lifting device. 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 . Due to the glide wings of the precision-guided Raytheon/Bofors M982 Excalibur rounds, the range of the gun is extended- in excess of . The Excalibur shell is corrected in flight towards a pre-programmed trajectory by a GPS guidance system.
For armoured vehicles, the Bofors 155 Bonus is used.

Deployment

The system is designed for high strategic, operational and tactical mobility. The vehicle can reach road-speeds of up to , is capable of traversing snow up to a depth of , is rail transportable and can be air-transported in C-17 or A400M 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 -1° to +70° vertically and −85° to +85° horizontally. The initial deployment time and the redeployment times less than 30 seconds. The system provides precision strike and high sustained firepower for support and for deep firing operations with more than 25 t of ammunition per gun and 24-hour operation. The howitzer has a continuous fire rate of 75 rounds per hour, an intensive fire rate of 20 rounds (i.e., a full magazine) in 2.5 minutes (effective rate, 480 per hour), and a salvo fire rate of three rounds in 15 seconds (effective rate, 720 per hour). The MRSI capability, multiple round simultaneous impact, is up to 6 rounds. Direct-sighting can be used for target ranges up to .

General characteristics

*Length: 14.1 meters
*Width: 3.0 meters
*Height: 3.3 meters without the Protector mounted, 3.9 meters with.
*Weight: 30 metric tons (30 Mg)
*Speed: 65 km/h
*Range: 500 km
*Crew: 3-4 (commander, driver, 1-2 operators) but in case of emergencies a driver and a gunner can operate the vehicle.
*Armament: 155-mm/L52 gun howitzer, Kongsberg Protector remote weapon system.
*Rate of fire: 8–9 rounds/min in Multiple round simultaneous impact-mode, which means that several shells are fired in succession with different trajectories so they hit the target simultaneously.
*Weapon range (main gun): 30 km with standard shells, 40 km with base-bleed, in excess of 50 km with Excalibur
*Protection level of armour: 7.62 mm armour-piercing rounds, mines up to 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 Finnish APC Pasi.

Operators

* Swedish Army – 48 in service, 24 originally ordered for Royal Swedish Artillery Regiment (9th Artillery regiment). Decided to buy additional 24 Norwegian export systems on 20 September 2016. 24 additional Archers are intended to be ordered, increasing the total to 72.

Cancelled orders

* Norwegian Army – 24 ordered for Royal Norwegian Artillery Battalion. The order was cancelled in December 2013 for not meeting needs within the time remaining available. Norway later chose to purchase the K9 Thunder in December 2017.
* The Croatian Army stated a requirement for up to 24 systems as a replacement for their 2S1 Gvozdika, which were nearing the end of their life-cycle; but due to the economic crisis that occurred between 2008 and 2012 a decision on a new artillery system was postponed. The Croatian MOD eventually chose surplus PzH 2000 over the Archer System as it was deemed to be a cheaper alternative to the Archer. 15+simulator Ex-German PzH 2000 refurbished pieces were purchased for $54 million, to enter service in 2015/16.

Potential future operators

* The US army has shown interest in the Archer system. The system was displayed in Camp Atterbury in November 2021. Deputy chief of staff for programs, lieutenant general Erik Peterson, visited Sweden to inspect the system in April 2022.
* Switzerland shortlisted Archer for the final round of its Future Artillery System competition June 2022.
* On 31 August 2022, Sweden's foreign minister Ann Linde announced Sweden was evaluating sending Archer systems to Ukraine. On 25 October 2022 the analysis by the ministry of defense was complete, concluding that Sweden could spare 12 Archer systems.

See also

* ATMOS 2000
* A-222 Bereg
*2S22 Bohdana
*CAESAR
* DANA
* G6 Rhino
* AHS Kryl
* Nora B-52
* PCL-09
* PCL-161
* PCL-181
* PLL-09
* Type 19
* ZUZANA

References

;Notes

External links

Swedish Defence Materiel Administration: ARCHER – Artillery system

Swedish Artillery RegimentBAE Systems in Sweden A unique Forestry carrier conversion Article in mil.seArcher at the Royal Swedish Artillery Regiment (A9)
;Video links
*{{youTube, E3QoVvtPqXY, BAE Systems promotional video of Archer Artillery System

Self-propelled artillery of Sweden
Field artillery
Bofors
155 mm artillery
Wheeled self-propelled howitzers
Military vehicles introduced in the 2010s