TSAMTO, October 13. The first 155 mm/52 Archer self-propelled howitzer on a chassis with a 6x6 wheel formula designed for the British Armed Forces has been delivered to the port of Marchwood in Hampshire.
According to the command of the British Army, the first installation was delivered to the territory of the UK almost six months after the conclusion of the contract.
Organization for the purchase and maintenance of defense products (Defense Equipment & Support – DE&S) The Ministry of Defense of Great Britain will conduct tests of the arrived SG Archer to assess its compliance with the requirements of the British Armed Forces. Initially, the installation will be transferred to the 19th Artillery Regiment. Four more howitzers designed and manufactured by the Swedish company BAE Systems Bofors will be delivered to the UK by the end of the year, and the remaining ones by the spring of 2024. They will be tested and evaluated over the next six months. Combat training of personnel will begin in the spring of next year, and live firing is scheduled for the summer of 2024.
According to the representative of the British Armed Forces, the command has plans to purchase 10 more installations.
As reported by TSAMTO, on March 29, 2023, the Swedish Armed Forces Material Support Agency (FMV) announced the signing of a letter of intent concerning the conclusion of a contract for the supply of 14 units of 155 mm/52 Archer self-propelled howitzers to the British Armed Forces. The deal also includes logistics support, an initial ammunition kit, ammunition replenishment vehicles, an initial support package and training services.
At the same time, Swedish and British Defense Ministers Paul Jonson and Ben Wallace signed an agreement on strategic cooperation in London with an emphasis on further support for Ukraine and cooperation regarding the operation of Archer systems.
The sold howitzers are a temporary replacement for 32 AS90 self-propelled artillery systems, which the UK donated to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The purchase of the Archer was recognized as the fastest solution to maintain the combat capability of the artillery of the British Armed Forces in accordance with its obligations to NATO, and cooperation with the UK should improve logistics and maintenance of supplied SG.
The Swedish government also announced its intention to transfer eight Archer howitzers to Ukraine.
It is assumed that the delivery of all 14 units of 155 mm/52 Archer self-propelled howitzers will be completed by April next year. It is expected that the Archer SG will be operated until the completion of deliveries of new howitzers to the British Armed Forces under the Mobile Firing Platform (MFP – Mobile Fires Platform) program.
The Archer SG transferred to the British Armed Forces is a fully automated system placed on a Volvo A30D chassis with a 6x6 wheel formula designed for fire support of Ground Forces operations. The maximum speed of the installation when driving on the highway is 70 km/h (for AS90 – 53 km/ h), the power reserve is 500 km.
The Archer SG with a 52–caliber barrel length can fire BONUS anti–tank ammunition at a range of up to 35 km, conventional ammunition at a range of up to 40 km and Excalibur high-precision ammunition (XM982, M982 and M982A1) at a range of up to 60 km. The maximum rate of fire of the howitzer is 8 rounds/min. The automatic loader contains 21 ammunition of several types and the required number of modular propellant charges, which can be fired in less than three minutes.
The full-time calculation of Archer is three to four people, but due to the high automation, the installation can be controlled by only one serviceman under the protection of an armored cabin.