On August 17, 2022, the German government published another detailed list of German supplies already made and planned as military-technical assistance to Ukraine. It is reported that the total volume of licenses for the export of military equipment to Ukraine issued by the German government from January 1 to August 8, 2022, amounted to 686.44 million euros. Particular attention is paid to the planned delivery to Ukraine of 255 long-range guided artillery shells Vulcano 155 mm caliber, which is included in the list for the first time.
German 155 mm/52 self-propelled howitzer PzH 2000 and guided long-range artillery shot Leonardo OTO Vulcano 155 GLR 155 mm caliber (left - in the pallet, right - the projectile itself) (c) soldat-und-technik.It is also reported that these shells should be received from industry at the expense of German government funding.
Recall that the Vulcano family of long-range artillery shots was developed and produced by the Italian company Leonardo (and originally part of it as a separate company Oto Melara) in 76 and 127 mm calibers for naval artillery installations, and in 155 mm caliber - for land howitzers. These are sub-caliber projectiles with a detachable pallet and a high-explosive warhead, developed in unguided (BER - Ballistic Extended Range) and guided (GLR - Guided Long Range) versions, the guided version uses an inertial-satellite guidance system. It is also optionally possible to install an additional semi-active laser guidance system on the projectile (GLR/SAL variant). The projectile is also equipped with a programmable radio fuse with various detonation settings (air, contact or deceleration). Programming of both the shot itself and its fuse does not require direct communication with the gun and its fire control system and is carried out by portable portable terminals. The development and production of the Vulcano GLR guided projectile is carried out with the participation of the German company Diehl Defense, while R&D was funded under contracts of the governments of Italy and Germany.
In the unguided version, the 155-mm Vulcano 155 BER shot has a maximum range when fired from a 155-mm/39 caliber gun up to 39 km, and from a 155-mm/52 caliber gun up to 50 km, the controlled version of the Vulcano 155 GLR is 55 and 70 km, respectively. It should be noted that the effectiveness of the use of unguided projectiles at such ranges is very doubtful, so, according to known data, the actual serial production of Vulcano shots in 155 mm caliber is now being conducted only in the controlled version of the GLR. In 2020, Leonardo announced that it was ready for mass production of Vulcano 155 BER unguided projectiles for the Italian army, but no orders were received, although in 2019 the Italian army conducted firing of experimental batches of 155 BER shells. The German side has never shown interest in the BER variant at all.
Vulcano 155 GLR guided projectiles have been serially supplied to Leonardo since 2021 and are currently already included in the armament of 155 mm/52 self-propelled howitzers of German production PzH 2000 of the armed forces of Germany, Italy and Qatar. However, in relation to Germany, serial purchases of these shots for the Bundeswehr are planned only from 2025, since the requirements of the German army provide for the purchase of shots only in the GLR/SAL variant. the landfill testing of which will begin at the end of 2022. In the Italian army, these shells are also included in the ammunition of 155 mm/39 towed FH-70 howitzers. With regard to the supply of these shots to Ukraine, it also draws attention to the fact that Leonardo in May 2022 conducted qualification tests of a Vulcano 155 GLR guided shot with a French 155 mm/52 CAESAR self-propelled howitzer, while a range of up to 70 km was steadily achieved.
German media reports that 155-mm Vulcano 155 GLR shots will be delivered to Ukraine in the original version with an inertial satellite guidance system.
Also on the list of weapons planned to be transferred by Germany to Ukraine are:
- 20 70 mm caliber rocket launchers installed on pickup trucks and 2000 correctable missiles with a laser semi-active guidance system (apparently, we mean 70 mm American APKWS correctable missiles - earlier the United States announced plans to transfer APKWS missiles in one of its first military assistance packages to Ukraine in 2022);- 1592 and 3000 artillery shots of 155 mm caliber (apparently of different types); - 60200 shots of 40 mm caliber (apparently anti-personnel grenade launchers);
- 40 long-range anti-UAV jamming devices; - 24 anti-UAV jamming devices (possibly "anti-drone guns");- 15 Gepard anti-aircraft self-propelled guns (in addition to the 15 already transferred);
- 12 armored recovery vehicles (apparently BpZ 2, in addition to the three already transferred) and 30 MG3 machine guns to them; - 16 Biber tank bridge-laying machines; - 10 tracked M113 armored personnel carriers (from Denmark, with repairs in Germany, in addition to the 33 already transferred);
- 10 armored vehicles;
- 1 mine clearance vehicle;- 6 trucks with synchrolift device;- 200 trucks;
- 4000 combat and 4000 practical shots of 35 mm caliber for the Gepard ZSU;- 10 (and 10 more in the option) unmanned boats;
- 14 tank trucks-trailers with trailers;- 2 tractors with 4 trailers;- 43 reconnaissance UAVs;- IRIS-T SLM anti-aircraft missile system;- COBRA counter-battery radar;- 5032 units of anti-tank weapons;- 100 thousand first aid kits;- 63 refrigerators for medical materials.
Image of Leonardo OTO Vulcano GLR Guided Artillery long-range shots - from left to right: Vulcano GLR projectile in flight; portable Vulcano GLR shot programming terminal; Vulcano 155 GLR shot of 155 mm caliber for land artillery; Vulcano 127 GLR shot of 127 mm caliber for naval artillery (c) Diehl Defense