Defense Technology International - April 2008 - (Page 18) DISPATCHES GLOBAL MOTHER LODE Modified armored vehicle manages urban operations MAXIM PYADUSHKIN• SINGAPORE ST KINETICS CONCEPT T Engineering Ltd. of Singapore has developed a concept vehicle that’s designed to maximize the use of network-centric capabilities, unmanned reconnaissance vehicles and soldiers in urban combat. Called “Mothership,” it is based on the Terrex 8 X 8 armored infantry fighting vehicle. Mothership, on display at the Singapore air show in February, demonstrates interfaces between unmanned platforms and command-and-control systems as well as sensor-to-shooter capabilities, says Patrick Choy, executive vice president of ST Engineering. The modified Terrex armored infantry fighting vehicle functions as a node for intelligence data transmitted by Mothership’s array of unmanned vehicles. Equipped with an advanced battlefield management system, Mothership processes the data and uses the information to direct and support its infantry squad. ST Engineering regards the Terrex vehicle as an ideal candidate for the con18 S ST Engineering’s network-centric Mothership processes data to link sensors and shooters. cept. It has a base weight of 14,500 kg. (32,000 lb.), carries a payload of 9,500 kg., and is designed to be readily airtransportable. The vehicle’s most prominent feature is a modular top deck that permits a rapid change in configuration. Terrex was developed by ST Kinetics, the land and specialty vehicles division of ST Engineering, and by Timoney Technology of Ireland. The Mothership version is equipped with an optical infrared surveillance system and also relies on external, mostly unmanned, reconnaissance devices. The system was on display at the show with several types of unmanned vehicles developed by the company. For aerial surveys, ST Engineering provides the FanTail UAV. The drone is 115 cm. (45.2 in.) long and has a takeo weight of 6.5 kg. Its modular design allows for various payloads. The UAV’s ducted rotor, powered by an internal combustion engine, provides high-speed horizontal flight and low-speed hover in vertical orientation, making it a viable option for urban operations. The company says the UAV can be carried inside the Terrex vehicle and launched vertically from the top hatch. FanTail has an endurance of 30 min. in hover mode and delivers real-time intelligence data over a range of 8 km. (5 mi.). Another airborne surveillance platform that can be used with Mothership is much smaller and far more portable. The device is a 40-mm. grenade round equipped with a metal oxide semiconductor camera. It was developed by ST Kinetics, which produces a range of 40-mm. ammunition. Known as the Soldier Parachute Aerial Reconnaissance Camera System (Sparcs), it can be used with any 40-mm. launcher. Sparcs can be fired to a height of 160 meters (525 ft.). The camera provides images of a targeted area as it descends by parachute. The images are wirelessly transmitted to Mothership where they are stitched together to produce a broad aerial image. Among the unmanned vehicles from ST Engineering that can be used with Mothership is a small, remotely-controlled tracked platform that transports audio and video sensors to a distance of 1 km. Data from this and other unmanned surveillance platforms are transmitted to a data-managing post inside the Terrex troop compartment. Information is combined and processed and then transmitted to the vehicle’s deployed infantry squad, which is equipped with another network-centric element from ST Engineering—the Advanced Combatman System, an analog of the U.S. Army’s Land Warrior System. In its standard version, Mothership transports 10 soldiers and one unmanned vehicle. More remote-controlled surveillance platforms can be carried inside the vehicle by reducing the size of the infantry squad. ST Engineering expects that Mothership will also be e ective as a separate combat unit. Noting the relatively weak defensive armament of the vehicle—a remotely-controlled weapon station with 40-mm. automatic grenade launcher and 7.62-mm. machine gun—Choy says that with its versatile reconnaissance sensors, Mothership should be able to detect and suppress targets long before the enemy finds it. ST Engineering says the system has been tested and will be initially o ered to the Singapore armed forces. I AviationWeek.com/dti DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL APRIL 2008 http://AviationWeek.com/dti
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