Puma Tracked Infantry Fighting Vehicle, Germany

The Projekt Systems and Management (PSM) consortium, based in Kassel in Germany, is developing the Puma tracked infantry fighting vehicle for the German Army under a programme authorised by the German Federal Parliament in 2002. The PSM industrial consortium is owned by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Rheinmettall Landsysteme. The Puma programme was formerly known as the Igel and the Neuer Schuetzenpanzer (NsPz).

The German Bundestag approved low-rate initial production of the first five vehicles in December 2004. The first prototype vehicle and systems demonstrator was rolled out in December 2005 and delivered in May 2006. Five preproduction vehicles were delivered in 2007 and army trials began in early 2008.

In November 2007, the German parliament approved the procurement of 410 vehicles and a contract award is expected in 2008. The first serial production Puma is scheduled to enter service in 2010. The Puma vehicles are to replace the Rheinmetall Landsysteme Marder 1 infantry fighting vehicles which entered service in 1971 with the German Army and will soon reach the end of operational life.

The development programme includes the build and test of a number of major Puma subsystem demonstrators. These include demonstrators to test: the armour protection, the weapon and ammunition handling and flow system, three versions of the turret and three versions of the chassis.

Turret 1 has been successfully built and tested the weapon operation out of the vertical axis. Turret 2 is being constructed in order to test the optics and stabilisation. Turret 3 will be constructed and tested to the final agreed design configuration.

The first version of the chassis, F1, will be used for driving tests and the second and third versions, F2 and F3, are being built to the final chassis design and will be used as demonstrator models.

New hull design

The hull is a new design rather than a derivative of an older system. Rheinmetall is responsible for the development and design of the chassis. The vehicle is operated by a crew of three (commander, gunner and driver) and carries up to eight equipped troops in the rear troop compartment.

The vehicle is of modular construction which allows it to be fully air transportable on an A400M aircraft.

Puma weapons

The vehicle is armed with a remotely controlled weapon station, developed by Kraus-Maffei Wegmann, which is fitted with a dual feed Mauser 30mm MK 30-2 cannon. Rheinmetall is responsible for the integration of the Mauser cannon and the ammunition handling system. The MK 30-2, which is in production for the Spanish Pizarro and Austrian Ulan IFV, has a rate of fire of 700 rounds a minute and a range of up to 3km.

The cannon fires 30mm APFSDS-T (armour-piercing fin-stabilised discarding sabot - tracer) rounds with a muzzle velocity of 1,385m/sec.

The rounds, developed by RWM Schweiz AG (formerly Oerlikon Contraves Pyrotec) and being qualified in Switzerland for deployment in the Swiss and Austrian armed forces, have entered volume production. The round is not fitted with a depleted uranium penetrator and is non-toxic.

The MK 30-2 cannon also fires the FAPIDS-T (frangible armour-piercing incendiary discarding sabot - tracer) round that is deployed against hard and soft targets.

A new round, the 30mm air burst munition (ABM) by RWM Schweiz AG is undergoing qualification trials with the German Army for use on the Puma.

The ABM round (173mm long, 30mm diameter) contains an electronic timer, an ejection charge and 135 cylinder-shaped tungsten alloy bars or projectiles. The electronic timer is programmed by inductive coupling through a device installed in the muzzle of the cannon. The timer initiates the ejection charge which releases and disperses the tungsten projectiles before impact with the target.

Eurospike is offering the Spike-LR fire-and-forget anti-tank missile for the German Army requirement for a guided missile system to arm the Puma armoured vehicle.

Self protection

In August 2006, EADS Defence Electronics was awarded a contract for the MUSS Multifunctional Self-Protection System for the Puma vehicles. MUSS consists of a missile warner with ultraviolet sensor (based on the EADS MILDS airborne missile warner), laser warner, central computer and electronic / pyrotechnic countermeasures.

MUSS can handle four threats simultaneously and is effective in 360° azimuth and 70° elevation.

Puma engine

The vehicle is fitted with a new high power density 892 series diesel engine developed by MTU. The MTU 892 series is rated at 800kW which provides the Puma with a power-to-weight ratio of 25.4kW/t.

The running gear is decoupled so the vehicle has low noise and vibration characteristics. Krauss Maffei Wegmann is responsible for the vehicle's hydropneumatic suspension system. Diehl has been selected to supply the tracks.

Armour variants

The vehicle is built with the option of three levels of protection to suit the operational requirements. The versions weigh 29.4t, 31.45t and 43t.

The basic level 1, 29.4t, version provides protection against explosively formed projectile (EFP) mines, top attack artillery projectiles and has all round protection against 14.5mm kinetic energy rounds and RPG-7 rocket propelled grenades.

The front and flank of the vehicle are fitted with a higher level of protection against 30mm kinetic energy rounds.

Level A has been selected as the baseline armour protection for the Puma IFV for the German Army. Level A gives all round protection against 14.5mm machine gun rounds and artillery fragments. The front and flank are protected against 30mm cannon rounds. The front armour protects against hollow charge rounds. The vehicle is also protected against 10kg blast and EFP mines. The German Army Puma with level A protection has a combat weight of 31.45t and is air transportable in the A400M aircraft.

Additional armour modules can be fitted to the hull and turret to provide level C protection. With level C armour protection the combat weight is increased to 43t. It would be necessary to deploy four A400M transporters to carry three Puma infantry fighting vehicles fitted with level C armour protection, the fourth aircraft lifting the additional modular armour fits.