Lighter, hybrid, & highly automated: the Army’s next-gen armor
Experimental Robotic Combat Vehicles and virtual designs for Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicles are exploring bold new possibilities.
By SYDNEY J. FREEDBERG JR.
on October 12, 2022 at 10:09 AM
Rheinmetall Lynx concept demonstrator for US Army OMFV (Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle) program. (Danielle Callender/Rheinmetall)
AUSA 2022 — All five teams competing for the Army’s next-gen troop carrier have slimmed down to smaller designs and gone to hybrid-electric drive, two generals told reporters on Tuesday.
The Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle will also have active protection against anti-tank missiles, like the Javelins and NLAWs that have decimated Russian armor in Ukraine. And OMFV will feature extensive automation (hence the name “optionally manned”), piggybacking on the progress of the wholly unmanned Robotic Combat Vehicles that troops are already testing in the field.
Together, RCV and OMFV could bring a future armored force that’s lighter, stealthier, less gas-guzzling, and less dependent on exposing human beings to enemy fire. That would make mechanized units more deployable, easier to resupply, and more effective in combat — if, of course, the technology and funding materialize on time.
https://breakingdefense.com/2022/10/lighter-hybrid-highly-automated-the-armys-next-gen-armor/
