The Israeli defense ministry has awarded Elbit Systems a follow-on contract worth $200 million for work under the country’s self-propelled howitzer program.
The contract follows an earlier one, worth $125 million, awarded to Elbit for the development of fully automatic self-propelled howitzer gun systems.
Israel’s new artillery system will be capable of automatic loading and laying. According to the applicable mission, the new gun system will automatically select the required projectile, propellant and fuze, load them and lay the gun to optimally engage targets.
The howitzer is expected to be revolutionary in that it will not require personnel in the turret.
Israel’s goal is to develop a cannon with a high rate of fire and an effective range of some 40 kilometers. The system is expected to be ready to start operations in the next ten years.
“We are proud to take part in building the future artillery formation of the IDF,” Bezhalel (Butzi) Machlis, President and CEO of Elbit Systems, said in March 2019 when the company received the first contract for work under the program.
“We believe that effective integration of precision, rapidity and autonomy together with a built-in connectivity to the communication and command & control systems will become the required standard.”
