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Leonardo DRS to deliver additional short-range air defense mission equipment packages

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According to information released on September 9, 2021, Leonardo DRS, Inc. announced that it has been awarded a contract by General Dynamics to provide additional Mission Equipment Packages (MEP) for Maneuver Short Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) Increment 1 (M-SHORAD Inc. 1) systems. The contract is valued at $204 million.
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The Mission Equipment Package of Leonardo DRS includes XM914E1 30mm cannon, M240 7.62mm coaxial machine gun, Stinger and Longbow HELLFIRE missiles as well as Rada USA’s Multi-Mission Hemispheric Radar (MHR) and several other enabling technologies.(Picture source Leonardo DRS)

Under the indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract, the company is expected to provide 59 additional MEPs (Mission Equipment Packages) for the program. This order follows the first delivery order for 28 production MEPs being delivered beginning early next year. These production contract awards follow a very successful rapid prototyping effort that completed an aggressive government test schedule and fielded four production-like systems in Germany.

Leonardo DRS Land Systems fully integrates the MEP before providing it to General Dynamics Land Systems, the platform integrator, and prime contractor. The M-SHORAD Inc. 1 MEP includes Moog’s Reconfigurable Integrated-weapons Platform (RIwP ®) turret with multiple kinetic effectors including the XM914E1 30mm cannon, M240 7.62mm coaxial machine gun, Stinger and Longbow HELLFIRE missiles. The MEP also includes Rada USA’s Multi-Mission Hemispheric Radar (MHR) and several other enabling technologies.

“Leonardo DRS appreciates the Army’s decision to procure the additional M-SHORAD Inc. 1 systems. The team is on track to deliver the mission equipment packages to General Dynamics Land Systems on schedule,” said Aaron Hankins, Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Leonardo DRS Land Systems line of business. “This capability is urgently needed for today’s battlefield, and we are excited to be a part of the team delivering it to our soldiers.”

Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) is an Air Defense Artillery capability that moves and maneuvers in direct support of Brigade Combat Teams (BCT) to destroy, neutralize or deter low altitude aerial threats, including Group 3 UAS, rotary wing and fixed wing aircraft. With Leonardo DRS’ M-SHORAD Mission Equipment Package (MEP) on a purpose-built Stryker, Warfighters maneuver with tactical units to detect, identify, track and defeat air threats.

Leonardo DRS to deliver additional short-range air defense mission equipment packages | Defense News September 2021 Global Security army industry | Defense Security global news industry army year 2021 | Archive News year (armyrecognition.com)
 
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Why didn’t they stick a torpedo on it while they were at it! That thing is fairly well equipped if with less ammo.
 
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Why didn’t they stick a torpedo on it while they were at it! That thing is fairly well equipped if with less ammo.
It should also have a little section to carry and deploy a UGV (named: Baby), which is also equipped with its own Hellfire-II ATGMs, 7.62 mm machine gun and small AESA radar.

The sensor load-out is pretty robust though: EO/IR and an AESA radar. The latter is understandably short-range, but apparently pretty good for VSHORAD applications with a 5-10 km range. If they can mass-produce this radar and bring its cost down to a low enough point, the VSHORAD space could change quite a bit. Imagine a mobile Saab RBS-70 NG unit with a built-in radar-plus-line-of-sight (electro-optical and laser) guidance system all in one Humvee-type vehicle. Or take it a step further and put a directed energy weapon for counter-drone defence.
 
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