#UGV

On the 17th of November, 2021, the Twitter account Lee Ann Quann reported that the Vietnamese Army was in the midst of testing a brand new homemade UGV (Unmanned Ground Vehicle). The tweet included a video of what appears to be a cobbled-together unmanned treaded miniature drive section with an AK pattern rifle mounted to the top of the vehicle via an articulating gimble. According to the tweet, the PAVN intends to use the UGV as a “sentry” that would flush infiltrators from trenches to reduce battlefield casualties.

Kalashnikov Media has published a video and pictures from the recently conducted equipment tests. The company’s experts have tested a number of products in extreme low-temperature conditions. The tested equipment includes uniforms, submachine guns, desert patrol vehicles, patrol bikes, unmanned and remote-controlled vehicles. Perhaps the most impressive pieces of equipment tested by KC specialists are the unmanned ground vehicles (UGV) called Soratnik and Nakhlebnik.

A couple of months ago Interfax news agency reported that according to Russian military officials they are going to adopt an unmanned ground vehicle called Nerekhta (name of a town in Russia). The Russian military has been testing a number of similar UGVs during the past couple of years. Besides Nerekhta, they were also testing UGVs called Soratnik (made by Kalashnikov Concern) and Uran-9 made by a company called “ 766 UPTK“.

When the subject is the future of infantry, the conversation inevitably turns to one thing: Powered, armored exoskeletons. Since the publication of Heinlein’s Starship Troopers in 1959, the concept of an armored suit with enhanced mobility from an internal power source has fascinated military futurists, quickly solidifying as a military fiction staple, and even appearing repeatedly in official “future soldier” concepts from armies and companies around the world.

BAE Systems has announced a new robotic unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) that could assist future infantry units with tasks ranging from explosives ordnance disposal (EOD) to casualty evacuation (CASEVAC), and even target suppression. The robot, called “Ironclad”, comes in two variants, and is projected to have at least four modular equipment packages, including a machine gun installation, advanced sensor modules, robotic arm, and stretcher mounts.

Milrem, an Estonian defense company, has recently come out with a hybrid diesel-electric drive UGV (unmanned ground vehicle) called the THeMIS.  For their armed versions, they have partnered with ST Kinetics, and are utilizing ST Kinetics’ highly-capable ADDER remote weapon station complete with CIS50 machine gun.  The CIS-50 has dual gas pistons and a dual-feed system to quickly switch between types of ammunition, and the ADDER is an excellent remote weapon system that incorporates auto-stabilization, tracking, thermal imaging and advanced sensors.  The ADDER can also accommodate an M240 7.62mm machine gun or the CIS-40 AGL with air-bursting munitions.  It is unclear at this time whether or not the THeMIS can handle the dual-weapon version of the ADDER, though it does have a maximum payload of 750kg.