FN Herstal will provide between 1,000 and 4,000 LWMGs to the Norwegian Army. (Photo: FN Herstal)
The Norwegian Defence Material Agency (NDMA) awarded an IDIQ contract to FN Herstal to provide the Norwegian Armed Forces with newly manufactured 7.62x51mm light machine guns.
The agreement was formally announced on October 26 on the official EU database, but the contract award was decided in June 2021.
FN Herstal will supply Norway with lightweight machine guns (LWMGs) plus spare parts, tools and other materials in a seven-year baseline framework agreement with options for an additional 20 years.
The contract calls for up to 1,000 machine guns with the possibility of an additional 3,000. Likewise, the value may range from NOK100 million to NOK700 million ($11.89 million to $83 million) over the life of the contract.
The machine guns will be used primarily by Norwegian infantry in various operational conditions. They will be enhanced by optical systems and accessories such as lasers, torches and night vision equipment.
The armoured vehicles are fitted with 12.7mm heavy machine guns and came off the production line with specific Estonian requirements. Only the communications subsystems and some other minor equipment were added to vehicles in Estonia.
The newly disclosed Thales UK Vehicle Mounted SquadNet Radio (VMSR) offers full interoperability with the soldier radio variant to provide secure and reliable voice connection.
Full electrification of their land and air vehicles may be beyond modern militaries for now. But how close are they to the tipping point of the widespread use of electric vehicles?
The contract follows news released in 2023 that a first customer had taken into service Pearson Engineering’s new Slice system enabling the interoperability of Front-End Equipment (FEE) between main battle tanks and dedicated engineering vehicles.
When compared to some other wheeled artillery systems Archer has the advantage of quicker deployment and relocation as the complete fire mission is carried out without the crew leaving the protected cab at the front.
The system had been previously proven to work against rotary and fixed-wing kamikaze drones, with Aselsan now working on new capabilities for Gökberk to counter UAV swarms.
Connect with us on socials
