1/2008 - KSPG AG

Newsline
Around 300 high-ranking visitors came to “Rheinmetall Live 2007”
Highly effective protection of troops
Unterlüß/Düsseldorf. Following the first such event in 2005, Rheinmetall
Defence again invited national and international experts to attend its
skillful presentation of the group’s latest developments and products at
the Rheinmetall test range in Unterlüß, Lower Saxony. Delegations from
numerous countries came to the two-day “Live 2007” event. The “national
day” was attended by Dr. Peter Eickenboom, State Secretary in the Ministry
of Defence and Lieutenant General Hans-Otto Budde, Chief of Staff Army,
heading a group of specialists from all areas of the German armed forces
including senior officers responsible for current foreign assignments.
esides many representatives
of the military, Detlef
Moog, member of the
Rheinmetall executive
board, welcomed various
MPs from the German Bundestag
and officials from
the region. Following the “Protective
Shield” presentation two years ago and
the highly acclaimed presentation this
year, the event will very probably be repeated
in 2009 to showcase the latest
products from the Defence sector.
In spite of the serious nature of the
occasion that had
been organized to
show the systems
and equipment
available for the
protection of German
soldiers and
their partner nations,
the guests
nonetheless also
experienced lighter
moments. One
such memorable
moment occurred
during the presentation
of the world’s
only recoilless automatic
cannon – the
RMK 30 – developed
by Rheinmetall.
To demonstrate
the cannon’s
capability, the operating
team placed a
glass with dark liquid on the flat platform
below the cannon. Recoilless meant
that there would be practically no shaking
on the platform and hence no liquid
would be spilt from the glass….needless
to say, the team achieved exactly
what it had set out to do.
Focusing on the more serious aspects
of the presentation and the purpose of
the two-day event in his short welcoming
speech, Detlef Moog, the Rheinmetall
board member responsible for
these activities, very aptly noted: “The
threat to our soldiers on their missions
has not grown smaller since our last live
demonstration in 2005. Quite the contrary
is true – the dangers are rising so it
is all the more important that everything
possible should be done to protect
them and make solutions available to
the armed forces at short notice.”
Moog emphasized the group’s willingness
to show the maximum possible
initiative and support for the German
Bundeswehr, as has been the
case with the Protective Shield project
for the protection of field camps. “The
basic version of Protective Shield that
was developed with company funds
has been available for deployment to
mission areas of the German forces for
about twelve months.”
Assisted by the companies Thales,
Kongsberg, Securiton from Switzerland
and the engineering company Deisenroth,
Rheinmetall for the first time presented
completely new capabilities for
the wide array of land forces activities –
capabilities that had already been demanded
in connection with the transfor-
12
mation of the German Bundeswehr.
Combined to “complete solutions” –
as illustrated by the term „networking“
often used to describe this concept –
these are more effective against hostile
forces while at the same time affording
own troops greater protection,
improved survivability and more safety
against injury.
On huge screens placed directly in
front of them and in the extensive test
range at Unterlüß, onlookers were
shown three different scenarios highlighting
the effect achieved by networking
reconnaissance sensors with advanced
command systems and smart
weapons.
To give one example of a scenario to illustrate
how this works: the new command
capability in combination with improved
reconnaissance and advanced
target engagement with the aid of highperformance
radio waves. An airborne
drone reconnoiters the main supply
route before a
convoy uses it.
The reconnaissance
results are
transmitted to the
ground station in
real time. An advance
guard of
the convoy secures
the route on
the basis of the
reconnaissance
data provided.
The ground station
has identified
a suspicious
wreck by the
roadside and informs
the motorized
guard about
this. One of its
escort vehicles
equipped with
high-performance
radio technology directs electromagnetic
waves at the object to neutralize
hidden booby traps. The Improvised
Explosive Device (IED) does not
explode meaning that the danger no
longer exists. To make sure that this is
true, another vehicle from the advance
guard launches a small robotic vehicle
to reconnoiter the wreck in greater detail.
Finally, the object which has been
reconnoitered and found not to present
a danger is pushed aside by an armored
engineer vehicle.
Photos: Christoph Schuhknecht / Composing: René Dahlmanns