During the Fires Symposium event, the Director of Programs at AM General in the United States, Mike Evans, announced the transfer of one of their 105mm self-propelled howitzers, the Hawkeye, to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. This shipment took place in April and involved a two-week operator training process upon delivery.
Evans stated, “We recently installed a Hawkeye Mobile 105 artillery system in Ukraine (…) We shipped it in April and trained for two weeks. This system will be one of the first soft-recoil systems in combat. It will be engaged in combat to test it on real targets.”
The Hawkeye artillery systems are known for their high mobility and versatility, integrated into Humvee 2-CT vehicles for easy transport and maintenance. According to AM General’s specifications, the system can be deployed, fire two rounds, and relocate in just three minutes.
Originating from collaborative efforts between AM General and Mandus Group, these field artillery systems are designed to be transported by a variety of U.S. military aircraft, including transport planes and heavy helicopters, with combat airdrop capability. This capability significantly facilitated the donation of a platform to Ukraine.
Technically, the 105mm caliber howitzers are capable of high-precision operations at high speeds, supporting missions requiring both direct and indirect fire. They have an effective range of approximately 11,500 meters with conventional projectiles, extendable up to 19,000 meters with rocket-assisted projectiles.
Key features include a recoil reduction system for enhanced accuracy, an M137A2 optical telescopic sight, and a DFS-02 direct fire sight camera from Sekai Electronics. Navigation systems include an S67-1575 -76 GPS antenna from Sensor Systems Inc. and an LN-270 inertial navigation system from Northrop Grumman.
*Image Credits: AM General
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