Advanced technologies

Vincent P Grimes, defence writer and consultant, looks at how the US military is approaching the millennium through investment in technology and the development of new systems.

The US military and its supporting industrial base is developing new systems aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of the current generation of ground combat vehicles. It also is investigating technologies that will be integrated into the next generation of tanks, infantry combat vehicles, scout cars and armoured personnel carriers.

The US Army's push to expand its technological envelope is driven by the desire to maintain a qualitative edge over any potential opponent and a shift from a forward deployed force to one based on power projection.

Development of the future combat system (FCS), replacement for the M1A2 Abrams main battle tank, a new combat scout vehicle (FCSV) and future infantry vehicle (FIV) is just beginning. These programmes could be worth tens of billions of dollars to industry. According to officials the FCS may be more than a replacement for the Abrams. A senior army officer said the service is looking for a "system that is incapable of being duplicated by another country in the world for a sustained period of time".

Broad outlines of the desired FCS design are emerging and a 50-tonne vehicle armed with a 120mm cannon, possibly powered by an electric engine with cross-country mobility better than the M1A2 Abrams may be the outcome of the development process. Fitting the FCS with an active defensive countermeasures suite to counter enemy anti-tank missiles will increase the vehicle's survivability.

Efforts also will be made to cut the new combat vehicle's infra-red signature and radar cross-section. An unmanned turret containing only the main gun and sensors could be used to reduce the FCS's profile, further decreasing detectability and increasing survivability.

New scout sought

The future combat scout vehicle (FCSV) would provide support to the FCS. It would replace high-mobility multi-purpose wheeled vehicles (HMMWV) and M3 Bradley cavalry fighting vehicles now used throughout the US Army.

The FCSV mission statement was completed more than two years ago and then shelved. However, the service is looking to dust-off the new scout vehicle programme and begin a long-range development effort. Initial funding of $2 million may be sought in the fiscal year 1998 budget.

The development of the future combat system (FCS) will replace the M1A2 Abrams main battle tank

The FCSV is likely to be a three-man, light-weight, highly mobile vehicle transportable by C-130 Hercules tactical airlifters or carried by CH-47 Chinook and CH-53 Stallion helicopters.

While the US Army has not searched actively for international partners in its new development programmes, the British army also is seeking a new combat scout vehicle to enter service in approximately 10 years.

Beyond the future combat systems and future combat scout vehicle, the US Army has begun to define the requirements for the next-generation infantry fighting vehicle, an M2 Bradley replacement. The follow-on Bradley would not begin to enter service for more than 15 years.

Marines want new armoured vehicle

The US Marine Corps also is taking the first step toward developing a replacement for its current fleet of light armoured vehicles (LAVs). The Marine Corps Combat Development Command, Quantico, Virginia, is due to complete an operational requirements document for a future light combat vehicle. The current General Motors-built LAVs are projected to begin reaching the end of their service lives in 10 years.

The US military is developing new systems aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of the current generation of ground combat vehicles
GENERAL DYNAMICS LAND SYSTEMS DIVISION

Developing the requirements for future army and marine corps ground weapons systems is taking place as the Pentagon is embarked on several targeted initiatives aimed at fielding breakthrough technologies. These efforts include the composite armoured vehicle programme, hit avoidance demonstration effort, crewman's associate programme and target acquisition and identification initiative.

The M113 armoured personnel carrier is undergoing studies and tests to improve acceleration rate
TIM RIPLEY

The high-performance future tank study called for a dramatic reduction in the size and weight of the next generation of main ground combat vehicles. A smaller vehicle would not sacrifice essential warfighting capabilities and it is said lighter tanks are more strategically deployable, sustainable, and tactically mobile.

The M-2 Bradley fighting vehicle
US DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

The composite armoured vehicle programme is an army effort that focuses on developing lighter, more transportable and survivable ground combat systems. The use of composite structures is being investigated to reduce weight and cut a vehicle's infra-red, acoustic and electromagnetic signatures.

The programme is working toward minimum 33-per-cent-weight savings through the use of composites instead of traditional all-metal structures and armour. The technology demonstration programme is looking into areas such as non-destructive testing, producibility, repairability and structural and ballistic integrity.

Upgrading existing systems

The material and designs this programme is developing may be used on future upgrades of the Bradley infantry fighting vehicle and Crusader artillery system. Advanced composite technologies also may be used in the future scout vehicle programme.

The military is looking beyond passive defences ­ armour and signature reduction ­ to reshape the battle between tanks and anti-armour weapons. The avoidance demonstration programme is exploring technology necessary to field a system that will defeat direct and indirect fire weapons. The new defensive system will identify, track and destroy overhead attack and horizontal threats.

A sensor suite, that may include infra-red, laser warning, radar and passive missile warning sensors, will detect and target the threat.

Active protection systems, counter-fire, decoys, jammers, movement and obscurants will be used to defeat incoming enemy weapons. A hard-kill defence unit could be modelled after the Phalanx 20mm close-in weapons system fitted on many naval surface combatants.

The target acquisition and identification technology effort is aimed at developing systems that assist a combat vehicle's crew to acquire, identify and prioritise targets at extended ranges. It also will reduce crew workloads, improve lethality and enhance survivability.

The programme is looking at a sector searching second-generation thermal sight coupled with a co-operative target identification system, a global positioning system millimetre microwave moving target indicator radar, multifunction laser radar and target recognition processor to provide the leap-ahead combat performance that the US Army is seeking.

Man-machine interface

The army and industry also are investigating ways to improve the man-machine interface inside ground combat vehicles. Enhancing crew effectiveness is critical because the speed and volume of information generated by new sensor suites, weapons systems and communications/ data exchange equipment is increasing.

The crewman's associate advanced technology demonstration programme is focused on exploring the feasibility of operating combat vehicles with smaller crews while maintaining combat effectiveness.

The Bradley fighting vehicle currently is used throughout the US army

Advanced controls, information displays, expert systems, robotics and other technologies are being investigated in the drive to automate crew functions. Human interface technology has an important role in this initiative. Helmet-mounted displays, panoramic displays and voice interfaces are technology areas being investigated by the US Army.

The programme is building on work done by other technology development efforts, specifically leveraging the lessons learned from army/ industry helicopter crew station research. The combat vehicle community is looking to the aviation branch for information on crew station design and integration, interactive tactical environment management systems software support and cognitive decision aids.

The US Marine Corps is taking the first step toward developing a replacement for its current fleet of light armoured vehicles (LAVs)
GRIMES PHOTOGRAPHY

A recent three-year effort developed a combat vehicle crew miniature, high-resolution flat- panel head-mounted display. The system integrates new-drive electronics, interconnections, active matrix liquid crystal displays and optics with active matrix electroluminescent displays.

STAFF increases lethality

The US Army also is considering the future of the smart target activated fire and forget (STAFF) 120mm ammunition programme. The STAFF round has a sensor and explosively formed penetrator warhead. This combination gives it a greater first-round hit probability than conventional ammunition, especially against targets taking evasive action or masked by terrain features. The fire-and-forget round follows a ballistic trajectory with a forward-scanning millimetre wave sensor searching for enemy vehicles. As the weapon flies over a target, it rolls to align the warhead that is then fused and fires an explosively formed penetrator at an enemy vehicle's hull or turret top.

The army wants to capitalise on advances in electromagnetic technology for increasing the lethality and mobility of its land combat units.

Electromagnetic technologies offer the promise of substantially increasing the velocity ordnance fired. Higher velocities mean shorter flight times, increasing first-round hit probabilities and the kinetic energy imparted to the round. Sub-scale demonstrations with 30mm rounds have proven a 25-per-cent-increase in muzzle kinetic energy.

A focused technology programme is underway to design and fabricate a sub-scale pulsed alternator that is powerful and compact enough for the next generation of ground combat vehicles.

Electric power

Technology studies and demonstrations for electrical propulsion on ground combat vehicles are continuing. The US Army and the Defense Advanced Projects Research Agency have three different efforts underway: a Bradley infantry fighting vehicle fitted with hybrid electric-drive motor system; modifications to an electric drive already installed in a M113 armoured personnel carrier; and a feasibility study of an all-electric armoured scout vehicle.

The hybrid electric-drive Bradley system uses large alternating current motors to power the vehicle's tracks. The power comes from an engine-driven generator and a bank of batteries.

Officials believe electrically-driven combat vehicles will have better acceleration and more efficient fuel consumption than their diesel-engine-powered cousins. A hybrid propulsion system also could allow full power in the entire range of engine speeds for improved slope climbing. An electric vehicle's reduced engine noise and heat generation would lower acoustic and infra-red signature, thus increasing the level of survivability.

The goal of the M113 hybrid power system project is to further improve the testbed's acceleration rate, already twice that of conventionally powered models. The all-electric vehicle study is based on the projected requirements of a highly mobile and stealthy combat scout platform.

Continuing modernisation efforts

The work being carried out in technology demonstration projects for drafting the initial requirements and concepts for the future combat system, future combat scout vehicle, and future infantry vehicle comes as the US Army is engaged in a series of programmes to enhance its existing ground combat force.