Gun receives remote control
Germany and Great Britain continue to develop howitzers
April 24, 2024, 1:42 p.m
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Artillery guns of the RCH 155 type are the first howitzers in the world to be able to fire on the move. Now Great Britain and Germany also want to equip the weapon with a remote control. British Prime Minister Sunak sees the beginning of a new chapter.
According to the government in London, Germany and Great Britain want to jointly develop a remote-controlled howitzer for future military ground operations. This was announced by the British government headquarters at 10 Downing Street on the occasion of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s visit to Berlin. Accordingly, it is about a further development of the RCH 155 guns, which are mounted on the four-axle Boxer troop transport from the German tank builder Krauss-Maffei Wegmann.
The howitzer can fire up to nine 155 mm caliber artillery shells per minute up to a distance of 40 kilometers. The RCH 155 is the world’s first howitzer that can fire while driving and is therefore better suited to evading enemy fire, Downing Street explained. The visit to Berlin is the inaugural visit to Germany for Sunak, who has been in office since October 2022. He arrived in Berlin on Tuesday evening after a visit to the Polish capital Warsaw.
In addition to increased cooperation in defense matters, according to British sources, the two heads of government also want to talk about cooperation in the energy sector and in the fight against organized crime. Among other things, it will be about the export of hydrogen as an energy source from Great Britain to Germany. “Today we begin a new chapter in our relationship, one that will make us safer and more prosperous,” Sunak said, according to the statement.
Britain and Germany stand side by side at this dangerous time for the world to maintain security and prosperity at home and across the European continent, the conservative politician continued. During his visit to Poland on Tuesday, Sunak announced an increase in his country’s defense budget to 2.5 percent of gross domestic product by 2030. NATO has so far set a target of two percent for its members.