Saab has launched its new anti-tank ammunition round for the Carl-Gustaf weapon during a live firing customer demonstration in May at Karlskoga, Sweden. The new round, designated HEAT 758, has been designed to defeat heavy armoured vehicles equipped with Explosive Reactive Armour (ERA). Vehicles protected by ERA are increasingly more common on the battlefield. HEAT 758 features a tandem warhead; the initial charge neutralises the ERA installed on the outside of the armoured vehicle, allowing the main charge to then successfully penetrate the main armour. The main charge can defeat up to 700mm of armour, enough to defeat the heaviest armoured vehicles. An undisclosed Carl-Gustaf customer has ordered HEAT 758 and production is underway.
“This round is our response of developments of the battlefield where reactive explosive armour has become a major problem for regular munitions trying to defeat armoured vehicles. HEAT 758 is an example of how Saab continues to generate ever more capable products while decreasing the armoured vehicle threat to the operator,” says Michael Höglund, head of Saab’s business unit Ground Combat.
HEAT 758 uses Saab’s Firebolt technology, meaning it can communicate with the Carl-Gustaf M4 weapon in which it is loaded and with the Fire Control Device 558 (FCD 558) used to aim the M4, thereby simplifying the workload on the gunner while increasing first-round hit probability. When an HEAT 758 round is chambered in a Carl-Gustaf M4 fitted with an FCD 558, the two components are able to exchange information. The round identifies itself to the FCD and communicates propellant temperature – a crucial parameter in accurate targeting. Using a toggle on the FCD, the gunner is able to choose either direct fire or airburst, and this information is electronically communicated to the fuze inside the round before firing. The gunner uses the same toggle to enter the range to target.
Equipped with information on range, round type, propellant temperature and the required mode, the FCD 558’s ballistic computer calculates the best possible trajectory to achieve success. When this accuracy is combined with the increased lethality of the HEAT 758 round, the result is devastating effect on the enemy. Thus the workload of the Operator and the Assistant gunner is significantly reduced, while the flexibility is increased. The Assistant Gunner no longer needs to manually set the fuze and the team can deal with fluid situations effectively. The combination of the new FCD with rounds capable of communication has proven very effective. New rounds with added capabilities are on the roadmap, and the communication interface – designated “FireBolt” – may even be introduced on legacy rounds, to enable communication with the FCD 558 Fire Control Device and Advanced sights.
