BAE Systems Hagglunds’ latest CV90 IFV on show in Paris

BAE Systems Hagglunds is showing its latest CV90 infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) in Paris this week at Eurosatory. The vehicle has already been ordered by Slovakia (122 including variants) with IFV armed with the Northrop Grumman Bushmaster III 35mm dual feed cannon. The Czech Republic has ordered 246 (including variants) with IFV armed with the Northrop Grumman 30mm MK44S dual feed cannon.

CV90 Mk IV features a new turret with greater internal volume which was first fitted to the Royal Netherlands Army (RNLA) CV9035NL Mid-Life Upgrade which will be completed in early in 2027.

The first batch of RNLA upgraded vehicles were carried out in Sweden with the main production run being carried out by Van Halteren in the Netherlands. There is also an option on another 19 vehicles for the RNLA.

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The new turret will also be fitted with the latest production CV90 for the Swedish Army called CV90 Mk IIIC which be armed with the Bushmaster III 35mm cannon rather than the BAE Systems Bofors 40mm L/70 cannon fitted to all Swedish Army vehicles.

Features of new turret include a NATO Generic Vehicle Architecture (NGVA) and a central control panel that can be accessed by commander or gunner.

The 7.62mm machine gun (MG) is mounted externally on the right side of the turret to increase space, eliminating fumes inside the turret and allow for more ready rounds to be loaded.

On the same side behind the co-axial 7.62mm MG is a twin retractable launcher for the Spike-LR anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW).

On the sides and top of the turret is an active protection system (APS).

The gunner has an upgraded Saab sighting system while the commander has access to a roof-mounted telescopic mast which includes stabilised day and thermal cameras, as well as an eye-safe laser rangefinder. The sight also has an automatic target tracker (ATT) and automatic target detection (ATD) capabilities.

The CV90 chassis has been constantly upgraded and is fitted with a more powerful Scania V-8 diesel developing 960hp coupled to the latest Caterpillar X-300 series automatic transmission.

The latest CV90 IFVs for Norway and the Netherlands are fitted with Soucy International Composite Rubber Tracks (CRT) which are not only lighter but also quieter and offer a reduction in vibration.

For both Czech and Slovak contracts, BAE Systems will build first batch in Sweden and provide hulls for all vehicles. Local industry will build the turrets before integrating hulls and turrets.

The next big European IFV contract will be for Italy who requires some 1,050 vehicles for its A2CS programme to replace its locally built Dardo IFV and remaining members of the M113 series in service.

The already established Consortium Oto Melara/Iveco (COI) runs the key Italian AFV programmes with competitors expected to include BAE Systems Hagglunds (with CV90), General Dynamics European Land Systems (with ASCOD) and Rheinmetall (with Lynx).

On 11 June, KNDS announced that it was no longer in partnership with Leonardo regarding a potential partnership with the company.

Oto-Melara is now part of Leonardo and would likely offer its own turret as it had designed and built turrets for all Italian tracked and wheeled AFVs.

The CV90 family of vehicles is the bestselling IFV in Western Europe with the total order book standing at 1,700 in 18 different configurations and selected or in service with 10 countries.

Shephard's Eurosatory 2024 coverage is sponsored by: