By Eric H. Biass

The world-wide megamergers of the past few years have often invaded the headlines and monopolised people's attentions to the extent of somehow dwarfing smaller but continuous efforts on the part of certain companies which, in the meantime, have been successful in constituting consolidated entities. Rheinmetall's DeTec is a perfect example of such an endeavour. Certainly, the acquisition of STN Atlas in 1997, and more recently of the seemingly "unrockable" Swiss company Oerlikon Contraves, got their share of ink, but other transfers like that of Buck Neue Technologien was more kept to "connoisseur level". DeTec's series of consolidation operations were clearly not the result of the "take-over for the sake of taking over and getting bigger" syndrome and its consequent series of spin-offs that are an evident result that one had bitten off more than one could chew. In the case of DeTec, the logical chain of thoughts is perfectly summarised as a "system of systems house" by Dr. Ernst-Otto Krämer (see box).

As a result, DeTec is able to provide its expertise in four defence domains,

• weapons and ammunition
• land systems
• naval systems
• simulation and training,

which we shall try to illustrate with examples of recent achievements as we walk through this industrial gallery.

Weapons & Munitions

Oddly enough, the core of the Group, Rheinmetall, sees its name appear only once in the organisational chart herewith (under the Weapons and Munitions subheading), which goes to show that the supremacy could only have been earned through excellence. The core in this instance is large guns, a field in which Rheinmetall started to earn itself a strong reputation at the turn of the century, not only in Germany, but also in Britain and Norway - and by 1902 in the United States as well, where 50 rapid fire gun systems were ordered. There is no need to dwell on any tedious historical background here as there were the obvious weapon production halts and diversifications imposed by post-war periods but, on the whole, the broad image that spans across the 20th century's lifetime of the firm is that of a gun the calibre of which has never ceased to grow.

Currently being developed as a cost-effective solution to provide relief to ships or light boats that have to cruise through pirate-infested areas, the Mauser MLG 27 is a non-deck penetrating gun mount. Self-contained and autotracked by built-in stabilised day and infrared cameras, it is remotely controlled through a simple video monitor console.

Today the two pillars of the firm are the 120 mm smooth bore and the 155 mm rifled guns produced for the Leopard 2 and the SP2000 respectively (an interesting anecdote is the fact that Rheinmetall's expertise crossed the Atlantic once again at the other end of the century, but this time in the form of a license for the production of the Abrams tank gun in the United States). Today the gun is still in production - a fresh line is to start for the new production of Leopardos in Spain - and is even seeing further development with a stretched length of 55 calibres. This barrel, known as the L55, is relatively easy to retrofit to existing turrets. Tank performance can also be improved by the rounds it fires, an area in which Rheinmetall plays an important role. Due to the potential health hazard of depleted uranium rounds, Rheinmetall has concentrated on heavy metal technology for its amour-piercing munitions and makes its own tungsten rods for APFSDS rounds - a powder metallurgy technology inherited from NWM De Kruithoorn. The resultant high-performance munition is currently being produced only for the Swiss Army as the LKE2, but could one day appear in the German Army nomenclature as the DM53.

The Oerlikon Contraves Ahead short range air defence system is designed to leave very little escape room to an attacker: the accurately and individually time programmed Ahead rounds are set off in such a way that a salvo of 25 rounds can simultaneously create a dense cloud of 3800 tungsten pellets right in front of an incoming target, turning it into a useless sieve. The Ahead is typically fired by existing GDF005 twin guns or the new 35/1000 Revolver seen in the title picture.

The Panzerhaubitze 2000 production is in full swing. At the time of the author's visit at Unterlüss, example number 65 was being test fired at the Heide 1 range prior to its delivery to the Bundeswehr (in a new move, the manufacturer is requested to fire ten practice rounds with full report guarantee on each unit before delivery). This massive, 55-tonne 155 mm self-propelled gun system sports an L52 barrel which gives it a range of 30 km with standard Nato ammunition. Its introduction into service (Germany has placed an order for 185 units) has begun to generate genuine interest - as opposed to curiosity - from nations seeking powerful howitzers. The PzH 2000, as it is also dubbed, is about to join the AS90 and the Zusanna in a competitive test campaign in Finland.

For this purpose, the German company has already tested it in a -40°C chamber after having fitted it with a Sundstrand auxiliary power unit, to enable to preheat autonomously before being put into operation. Finland has a requirement for 72 howitzers, orders for which could be expected in a 2003 to 2004 time frame. Here too, a broad range of projectiles is available, but definitely worth highlighting in this context is the SMArt round developed by Giws (a joint Rheinmetall-Diehl consortium). The truly SMArt howitzer round has the privilege of being the first of its kind to have entered production in the Western World. As unbelievable as it may seem, the SMArt enables a PzH 2000 to engage a tank formation with very serious chances of scoring many bulls-eyes at a range of 28 kilometres. This incredible challenge is made possible by the two submunitions carried by the 155 mm cargo round. Put into simple words, when the latter reaches the armour concentration area, two submunitions equipped with dual sensors (millimetric and infrared) are released and allowed to spin down under a parachute. Whilst doing so, the sensors scan the ground in a closing spiral pattern, triggering off the self-forging penetrator warhead as soon as they sense that a pattern matching that of the pre-set stored algorithm has crossed their path below.

The Light Mortar 120 mm Wiesel 2 is an ideal complement for airborne troops involved in rapid deployment actions. The prototype is seen here with its outriggers still in the driving position. Key to the challenge that consists in firing a 120 mm mortar from a four-tonne platform are the two massive recoil absorbing struts that can be seen flanking the canting barrel unit.

Rheinmetall DeTec set foot in the medium calibre arena the moment it took over control of Oerlikon Contraves - this was in the third quarter of 1999. In the process it also added another feather in its SMArt munition cap as the Swiss firm had also developed such a round, but to deal with airborne threats this time. Oerlikon Contraves is reputed world wide for its 35 mm air defence systems (guns, radars and fire control systems). The most recent products being promoted today are the Ahead programmable munition and the new 35 mm, 1000 round-per-minute revolver canon devised to fire it (amongst other natures) as part of the Skyshield or naval Millennium (featured in our title picture) air defence systems.

The Ahead is quite unique in that it is actually programmed after it has been fired. The accuracy that results from this procedure thrusts the good old barrel again straight to the forefront of air defence technologies. Unlike missiles, the Ahead round is not jammable, offers phenomenally fast reactions against even the smallest ground attack missiles and can provide a fully automated low level protection to high value areas or ships.

An interesting aspect of the Ahead is that its induction programming system can really be adapted to other calibres. This has actually been done as part of a feasibility test in conjunction with the case-telescoped ammunition currently being developed by CTI. All that is needed is to attach three programming induction coils to the muzzle of the gun and fit a programmable fuze to the base of the round. South Africa is currently adapting the Ahead principle to its naval LIW 35DPG gun.

Land Systems

Land Systems in the Rheinmetall DeTec group is very much the affair of MaK, and leaving the PzH2000 for the Wiesel might sound like switching from Goliath to David. However, MaK is involved in the production of numerous other vehicles, notably recovery, engineer, bridgelaying and mine clearing vehicles based on main battle tank chassis.

The Wiesel 2 in firing position with rear outriggers deployed. The system is ready to fire within 30 seconds of stopping; firing rate is three rounds in 20 seconds though 18 rounds can be fired in three minutes at sustained fire regime.30 rounds can be stored on board. Elevation is up to +85 degrees, azimuth +/-30 degrees off vehicle centreline, maximum range is 6 km with current rounds but is expected to increase to 8 km with a new round now being developed.

Focusing back on current developments and on the future, the further development of the diminutive vehicle by MaK reflects one of today's main concerns amongst Western forces - and more particularly of the European armies - which is to combine punch + deterrence with mobility + light weight. In this respect, the Wiesel 2-based mortar, officially known as the "Light Mortar 120 mm Wiesel 2", makes perfect sense. The Wiesel 2's reduced size only becomes really apparent when one stands next to it: it can roll into a Transall or a CH-53 and yet is being used in this project to carry a 120 mm mortar. As can be seen from the illustrations herewith, the vehicle has reached a very advance stage of maturity and has been successfully test fired. Following further refinements, a first test vehicle will be delivered for German troop testing in early 2001, followed by a second in late 2002. This could lead to production models rolling off the line in early 2005. Both Britain and the United States have shown a keen interest in the weapon system for their fast reaction forces.

The STN Atlas Cosys combat system uses multiple function consoles similar to these and handles track data received through the combat system data bus from the surveillance sensors and the data link system. The picture compilation process is supported by automated correlation and data fusion functions. The "Threat Evaluation and Weapon Assignment" functions allow automatic or manual control and management of the tracker and weapon resources. A number of multiple-function consoles offer an ergonomic man-machine-interface to the Command Team for combat planning, execution and support functions. Target engagement is also executed via the MFCs operating the trackers and weapons in their specific fire control modes. In the field of submarine command and weapon systems, the new Isus 90 is also expected to become a company hallmark in the years to come.

The Wiesel 2 Mortar has a crew of three (driver, loader and commander) which remains under cover at all times. When the vehicle comes into firing position, outriggers are descended to take recoil forces and the loader fits the required round and propellant charges into the muzzle of the barrel which is horizontal on the roof, in front of him. The barrel assembly is then swung upwards at the pre-set elevation and the round fired. Such simplicity of use can only be achieved with sophisticated fire control electronics. The vehicle, for example, is fitted with an "autocorrector" that is able to sense if the aimpoint has drifted by as little as two mil between firings and makes the necessary corrections.

Presumably, turret specialist Kuka and vehicle manufacturer Henschel will in due time join the Land Systems group. A formal agreement on the merger of these two companies with Rheinmetall DeTec was sealed but still needed approval from Brussels at the time of writing.

Naval Systems

STN Atlas has for years been one of the world's most renowned suppliers of naval combat systems. Based in Bremen, the company is owned up to 51 per cent by DeTec, the remaining 49 per cent being in the hands of BAE Systems. The way the company is staffed - about 70 per cent being engineers and technicians - is enough in itself to describe its technological level. A last figure puts the final coloured touch to the portrait: a DM 1.2 billion turnover, half of which is generated by the export market.

This view of two of the three STN Atlas driving simulators at Adelheide shows the room height required by a typical simulator with its projection systems hovering way above the cab in a complex overhead rigging. In the foreground, the latest Atmos development reveals its much lower profile and unique inverted vee-over-vee "rock-and-roll" arrangement. The result is a most compact unit that has, according to the author, the added advantage of providing the most realistic driving sensations experienced so far.

One of the products that have confirmed this fully deserved position is the Cosys - a combat system so cleverly devised as modular equipment that it can suit the needs of small offshore patrol vessels all the way up to large destroyers. The Cosys is designed to operate in conjunction with a wide variety of surface and underwater sensors and weapons, but a key element of the design is a high level of automation that enables a strong reduction of required operators.

However, surface ship and submarine command and control systems are only one of STN Atlas' five naval fields of activities that also include:

• Underwater vehicles (particularly glass fibre data link controlled re-usable or single-shot mine disposal vehicles, as well as the development of autonomous underwater vehicles incorporating "computer intelligence" that enables them, inter alia, to inspect pipelines or cables)
• Sonars (both active and passive for surface and underwater boats - 360° bow and flank array - as well as tube-shaped active and passive towed arrays)
• Mine Hunting sonars and systems and civil VTS (mine hunting sonars - either hull mounted or ROV carried for operation in other water layers - and navigation expertise have led to this departments' success in "vessel traffic services" (VTS) for the surveillance of maritime traffic in harbours, coastal waters and straits.
• Naval weapons (torpedo technology [the heavy DM2A3 used by Germany and Norway], new technology torpedo drives, tri-national lightweight torpedo development).

Simulation

When one discusses data processing systems, which command and control systems are, simulation never seems to be too far away. This is because basically, all that is needed to turn the first into the second is to generate simulated signals and inject them into the lines normally used by the real sensors. It is a simplified picture, of course, but it explains that the logical chain is pretty similar. This is also why most STN Atlas simulators are not PC-based but faithful full-scale replicas of, for example, an entire ship bridge mounted on a motion platform surrounded by computer-generated visual systems.

It is hardly surprising, therefore, that the firm should have similar command of equally large replicas, such as those of power plant control rooms, battlefield and now, of lorry driving cabs.
As STN Atlas puts it, "the German Army constitutes the country's biggest driving school, delivering approximately 40 000 driving licenses per year". Quite in line with a growing trend around the world, the German Army has thus embarked on a lorry driving simulation programme with a view to not only reducing costs but also regaining popularity with villages and population that are unfortunate enough to be located in the vicinity of such driving school facilities. STN Atlas has immediately seen yet another opportunity to hone its expertise in a new simulation field and has bid for the order. From the outset the firm developed and built three different types of simulator which the author was able to "put through their paces" - or perhaps the opposite - at the German Army Simulator Facilities in Adelheide. The common denominator of the three simulators is a real, full size lorry cabin. The main differences between the three prototypes lays in how the motion is imparted to the cabins.

The Ace seen here is proof that STN Atlas also masters army command and control equipment. The Ace, which enables a commander to have knowledge of a tactical situation and the exact position of own and enemy forces. It was recently used in German Fennek recce vehicles deployed as part of the Sfor effort in Bosnia.

One concept is pretty straightforward and conventional whereby the cab rests atop a typical six-degree of motion Moog actuating unit. While it provides all the shifting and rolling required to shake the careless driver at a reasonable cost, it has one main disadvantage: a lorry cab is already a pretty tall affair in itself, but mounted on a motion system added to the fact that the fixed video projection system needs to tower way above the metal roof for best results one ends up with pretty steep requirement in terms of head room.

A way of circumventing such problems is to mount the video systems on the platform and anchor the motion system - Moog and Fokker, this time - on the "waistline" of the platform rather than under. This prototype provides wonderfully realistic motion as one definitely looses the sensation that "it's not happening under one's seat". Onboard Barco image retro-projection completes the illusion effect.

Another way of doing things is so obvious that one cannot avoid thinking why it hadn't been done before: simply rest the whole above platform cum Barco 60 Hertz image projectors on two inverted sets of shallow vee-shaped bases (see pictures) and let it roll up and down at will and in any direction. In addition, a cabin shaker can be added. The enormous advantage of this Atmos (Atlas motion system) design is long stroke motion which does not lead to any of the wash out effects of conventional systems (but extravagant GTI-style lorry driving is guaranteed to induce dizziness after a few minutes). Known as the ADS400, its design leaves ample rear access, enabling an entire cab to be swapped for another type in about thirty minutes

It goes almost without saying that each one of the three simulators is monitored from the control room where the instructor can not only see what the driver is doing but also "spy" on the struggling student for studying odd reaction. The entire driving sequence can later be replayed and even displayed as a bird's eye view to enable the driver to better visualise trajectories.

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