BAE Systems yesterday announced the recent firing of the 1,000th round from the Future Combat Systems’ Non-Line-of-Sight Cannon (NLOS-C) firing platform.
NLOS-C is a 155mm auto-loading cannon that would replace the Crusader, also a BAE vehicle, terminated by the Army in 2002. NLOS-C development saw benefits from the knowledge gained in the Crusader program.
The first of a planned eight FCS Manned Ground Vehicles to be fielded, for fiscal year 2009 the Army for the first time requested $110 million for NLOS-C production vehicles. The Army budget request provides for manufacturing and assembly of the initial six NLOS-C platforms to be fielded in FY 2010. It also procures long-lead hardware for the second increment of platforms.
Another $90 million was requested for NLOS-C research development test and evaluation.
Congress, which has long supported the program, in FY ’07 made an effort to insulate NLOS-C from larger issues of FCS funding and schedule to ensure fielding (Defense Daily, Oct. 13, 2006).
BAE will continue NLOS Cannon firing platform testing with a goal of firing 4,400 rounds through the system by spring 2008 to receive a safety certification for the fully automated howitzer.
Lessons learned from the firing platform are being applied to building the first FCS Manned Ground Vehicle, the NLOS-C pre-production prototype, scheduled for delivery by summer 2008.
“The data we’ve gathered from these tests are being directly applied to the prototype chassis and gun assemblies we are now building and will begin integrating later this winter,” Mark Signorelli, NLOS-C program manager at BAE, said.
NLOS-C is being developed in partnership with the FCS Lead Systems Integrator team of Boeing [BA] and SAIC [SAI]. “FCS MGVs will provide the Army with a new family of networked vehicles, based on a common chassis, that will feature next-generation survivability and sustainability features,” Roger Bescancenez, Boeing Integrated Product Team leader for FCS Manned Ground Vehicles, said.