Norway orders K9 howitzers in latest win for
South Korean arms industry
By: Mike Yeo
MELBOURNE, Australia ― The Hanwha Land Systems K9 Thunder
self-propelled howitzer has scored another export success, with Norway being
the latest customer for the South Korean artillery system.
The Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency, or
Forsvarsmateriell, announced Wednesday it had signed a contract with Hanwha
Land Systems for 24 K9 155mm, 52-caliber self-propelled howitzers with an
option for 24 more.
The contract, which Forsvarsmateriell said was worth 1.8
billion kroner (U.S. $215.2 million), will also include an unspecified number
of K10 ammunition resupply vehicles. Delivery of the Norwegian K9s will start
in 2019 and is expected to be completed by 2021.
According to Brig. Gen. Morten Eggen, commander of
Forsvarsmateriell’s Land Systems Division, Hanwha Land Systems was the bidder
who best satisfied the Norwegian Army’s requirements. The military officer
added that the K9 Thunder will be an important component of the Army’s operational
capability.
The new howitzers will replace the M109A3GNM
self-propelled howitzer currently in service with Norway’s armed forces, and
the selection of the K9 comes after a competition alongside Germany’s
Krauss-Maffei Wegmann Panzerhaubitze 2000, France’s Nexter Caesar and RUAG’s
M109 Krait that also saw the contenders participate in trials held in Norway
during early 2016.
Forsvarsmateriell also announced it had struck an
agreement with Hanwha for lifetime logistical support for the howitzers, which
will also see the company establish a technical competence center at Norway’s
Bjerkvik Technical Workshop.
Hanwha will transfer test equipment, training materials
and technical knowledge to the workshop to enable the Norwegian Army to carry
out sustainment of its howitzers, as well to offer similar services to allied
nations who operate the K9.
In addition to South Korea, the K9 is also in service in
or has been selected by Finland, India and Estonia. Turkey operates the T-155
Fırtına, which uses several subsystems from the K9 including the chassis,
howitzer and automatic ammunition-feeding mechanism. Poland is producing the
chassis as part of its AHS Krab self-propelled howitzer program.
The Norwegian contract is the latest win for South Korean
weapons producers, who have seen a steady sales increase over the past few
years with their products carving a successful niche in the competitive global
arms market that had previously been dominated by big players like the United
States and Russia.
Sweden’s Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
reported that arms sales by South Korean companies included in its research
shows that exports hit record levels at $8.4 billion in 2016, up 21 percent
from the previous year.
K-9 Thunder: Details
No comments:
Post a Comment