AUSA 2021: Saab positions itself for IAM with industrial tie-up
The US Army is familiar with the AT4/M136 shoulder-fired launcher. (Photo: Saab)
Saab teams with a US manufacturing partner to pursue Individual Assault Munition requirement.
Saab announced during the AUSA 2021 exhibition in Washington DC on 11-13 October that it has signed an exclusive strategic teaming agreement with precision ordnance specialist Action Manufacturing Company, to offer US domestic production of the proposed Saab solution for the US Army Individual Assault Munition (IAM) programme.
Action Manufacturing will manufacture and produce the weapon at two sites in Pennsylvania.
‘This decision to offer US production is part Saab’s international growth strategy and aligns with other decisions for domestic production in the US market, as with the aerospace sector for T-7A and in the Surveillance Radar sector with AN/SPS-77 [Sea Giraffe],’ Saab noted in a statement.
The Swedish company is offering its M136/AT4 shoulder-fired weapon — used by the US Army since the 1980s — for the IAM requirement.
The US Army began the IAM initiative in the 2010s as a rationalisation effort under its Force 2025 reform programme. It requires a shoulder-launched weapon that weighs 4.5-6.8kg, is up to 40 inches (101.6cm) long and can be fired in confined environments.
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