The Camion Équipé d'un Système d'Artillerie (English: Truck equipped with an artillery system) or CAESAR is a French 155 mm, 52-caliber self-propelled howitzer that can fire 39/52 caliber NATO-standard shells.
It is installed on a 6x6 or 8x8 truck chassis. Equipped with an autonomous weapon network incorporating an inertial navigation system and ballistic computer, the CAESAR can accurately strike targets more than 40 kilometres (25 mi) away using "Extended Range, Full Bore" (ERFB) ammunition with base bleed, or targets over 55 kilometres (34 mi) away using rocket-assisted or smart ammunition.
CAESAR | |
---|---|
Type | Self-propelled howitzer |
Place of origin | France |
Service history | |
In service | 2008–present |
Wars | War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Cambodian–Thai border stand-off Operation Serval Operation Chammal Battle of Mosul (2016–17) Battle of Baghuz 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine |
Production history | |
Designed | 1992–1999 |
Manufacturer | GIAT Industries (now Nexter Systems) |
Produced | 2004–present |
Specifications | |
Mass | 17.7 tonnes (6×6) 28.7-30.2 tonnes (8×8) |
Length | 10 m (32 ft 10 in) 12.3 m (40 ft 4 in) (8x8) |
Width | 2.55 m (8 ft 4 in) 2.8 m (9 ft 2 in) (8x8) |
Height | 3.7 m (12 ft 2 in) 3.1 m (10 ft 2 in) (8x8) |
Crew | 5-6 (3, emergency) |
Main armament | 155 mm/52-calibre |
Secondary armament | None |
Engine | Diesel |
Suspension | 6x6 wheel |
Operational range | 600 km (370 mi) |
Maximum speed | On-road: 100 km/h (62 mph) Off-road: 50 km/h (31 mph) |
The CAESAR was developed by French defense contractor GIAT Industries (now Nexter Systems) and has been exported to various countries. Units manufactured for the French Army use a 6x6 Renault Sherpa 5 chassis, while some export customers have opted for systems integrated on 6x6 Unimog U2450L or 8x8 Tatra 817 chassis.
In February 2022, the French government awarded Nexter a contract for the development of a new generation CAESAR system. Marketed by the company as the CAESAR Mark II (also commonly referred to as CAESAR NG in France), 109 systems are to be delivered to the French Army between 2026 and 2030.
CAESAR was developed in the 1990s as a technology demonstrator by the French state-owned company GIAT Industries, in cooperation with Lohr Industrie. It was first publicly unveiled in 1994. Four years later, a pre-production model underwent trials with the French Army.
In peacetime the production rate at Nexter was understood to be 10 CAESARs per year. The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine boosted demand. By early 2023 Nexter's factory in Bourges was producing between two and four units per month in continuous operation. The next milestone expected is to produce eight CAESARs a month by December 2023.
The gun uses a special kind of shell, the LU 211, which is produced at Les Forges de Tarbes, within the confines of the town arsenal. The forge was privatized in November 2021 by a French firm which had recently been recapitalized by 100M€. In 2020, the Minister of the Armed Forces signed a contract worth 25M€ for the plant to supply shells to the French Army for the decade. The privatization furnished 9M€ each year for the 2021–2024 period. In autumn 2021, the firm supplied an extra 2M€ to modernize the plant, which also produces 120 mm ammunition for the Leclerc MBT.
The CAESAR is a wheeled, 155 mm 52-caliber self-propelled howitzer. It holds 18 rounds and is typically operated by a crew of five, though if necessary the CAESAR can be operated by a crew of three. It can be transported by a C-130 or an A400M aircraft. It has a firing range of approximately 42 kilometres (26 mi) using an Extended Range, Full Bore (ERFB) shell, and more than 50 kilometres (31 mi) using rocket-assisted shells. The CAESAR has an autonomous weapon system featuring an inertial navigation system (the SIGMA 30), a ballistic computer and an optional muzzle velocity radar; the system is adaptable to any C4I system (fully integrated with the ATLAS FCS). At Eurosatory 2016, the CAESAR was exhibited with an automated laying system based on the SIGMA 30. Tailored for shoot-and-scoot tactics, the CAESAR is fast to set up, taking around 60 seconds for the crew to be ready to fire and 40 seconds to leave after the shots. It can fire six rounds per minute.
The CAESAR 8x8 uses a modified Tatra 817 8x8 chassis, allowing a higher degree of mobility. It is fitted with an unarmoured forward control four-person cabin as standard, with an optional fully-armoured cabin. Gross vehicle weight would depend on the level of armour protection but is about 30 tonnes. It is powered by a 410 hp diesel engine and can hold 36 rounds. It was unveiled by Nexter at DSEI 2015.
In February 2022, Nexter was awarded an initial €600 million contract by the French defence procurement agency (the DGA) for the development and acquisition of the CAESAR 6x6 Mark II new generation artillery system. The deal initiates a four-year development phase, after which the CAESAR Mark II (or CAESAR NG) will enter production. In January 2024, the DGA announced it had awarded Nexter an additional €350 million contract on December 30, 2023. 109 CAESAR NG systems are to be produced for the French Army. Nexter, the industrial prime contractor, will be working in particular with Arquus (chassis) and Safran (electronics), the main partners involved in the development and implementation of this program.
From mobility to connectivity, and from ballistic protection to increased firing efficiency, as well as accuracy further refined by artificial intelligence, the improvements remain those set out in 2022 when the program is launched. The CAESAR Mark II will feature a new six-wheel chassis provided by Arquus, a new cabin with improved armor and, this time, four doors for improved agility. The system will also feature a new 460 hp engine, more than twice as powerful as the previous one (215 hp), as well as a new automatic gearbox. It will incorporate a new version of its velocity radar, a new fire control software as well as Safran's Geonyx inertial navigation system to replace the SIGMA 30, which promises enhanced geolocation and pointing accuracy in environments with no GNSS signal. Another differentiating feature is a more powerful hydraulic pump, enabling the stabilizer to be lowered and raised more quickly. This development could, in theory, shave a few precious seconds off engagement and disengagement maneuvers. Finally, the cabin will be predisposed to receive the vetronics of the SCORPION combat information network, such as the NCT-t (noeud de communication tactique - terre) software radio from the CONTACT program and the ECLIPSE anti-IED jammer from Thales, a technology that could be extended to anti-drone warfare, and which Belgium has chosen to integrate natively. The new armored cabin to protect against mines and ballistic projectiles is expected to raise the CAESAR Mark II's weight to 25 tonnes (27.56 tons) but the system will remain air-transportable, an indispensable French requirement.
All 109 units ordered for the French Army are expected to be delivered between 2026 and 2030. Belgium and Lithuania are the first export customers of the new system and have respectively ordered 28 and 18 units.
Eight CAESARs were sent to Afghanistan during the summer of 2009 to support French operations. They were deployed on 1 August 2009 by the 3rd Marine Artillery Regiment (3è RAMa), followed by five others, deployed as a firebase in FOB Tora, Tagab and Nijrab. They are fitted with cabin armor add-ons, with fireports.
The French Army deployed this system in southern Lebanon as part of the UNIFIL peacekeeping force.
During Operation Serval in Mali, four CAESARs were deployed by the 68e régiment d'artillerie d'Afrique (68th African Artillery Regiment).
In April 2011, the Royal Thai Army used the CAESAR against Cambodia's BM-21. The Thai Army claimed that they destroyed two or more BM-21 systems.
Several CAESARs were deployed in Mali by France during Operation Serval, in which they saw action in the Battle of Ifoghas, amongst others. France also deployed four CAESAR to Iraq for the Battle of Mosul, where French forces supported the Iraqi Army's operation to reclaim Mosul from ISIS from October 2016 to July 2017. Multiple CAESAR were deployed to Iraq on the border with Syria from 8 November 2018 to April 2019 to support the Syrian Democratic Forces in the Battle of Baghuz Fawqani, the ultimately successful operation to capture the final town held by the Islamic State group. They were deployed to Firebase Saham, a base freshly constructed by the United States Army to provide fire support during the battle, especially during cloudy days when U.S. aircraft could not see to conduct airstrikes.
CAESAR howitzers may have been used by the Saudi Arabia National Guard during the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen along the Saudi-Yemeni frontier, conducting defensive shelling of Houthi forces as well as backing up Yemeni government troops and Saudi armed forces in their progression into Yemeni territory.
France provided the CAESAR 6x6 howitzer to Ukraine from May 2022 onwards in the context of the Russo-Ukrainian War, delivering a total of 30 units. Denmark also announced it had delivered all its 19 CAESAR 8x8 to Ukraine in April 2023 onwards. As of January 2024, 5 CAESARs were confirmed to have been destroyed (4 CAESAR 6x6 and 1 CAESAR 8x8) and a further 2 damaged and repaired.
Operators (September 2023) | Orders | Deliveries | Donation [ + / - ] | Known Losses [ - ] | Operational | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Caesar (Mk1) | Caesar NG (Mk2) | Sherpa 5 6×6 | Unimog U2450L 6×6 | Tatra 817 8×8 | Caesar NG (Mk2) 6×6 | ||||
Belgium | – | 28 | – | – | – | –(+ 28) | – | – | 0 |
Czechia | 52 + 10 | – | – | – | – (+ 62) | – | – | – | 0 |
Denmark | 15 + 4 | – | – | – | 19 | – | - 19 | – | 0 |
France | 77 + 30 | 109 | 77 (+ 30) | – | – | –(+ 109) | - 30 | -1 | 46 |
Indonesia | 37 + 18 | – | 55 | – | – | – | – | – | 55 |
Lithuania | – | 18 | – | – | – | –(+ 18) | – | – | 0 |
Morocco | 36 | – | 36 | – | – | – | – | – | 36 |
Saudi Arabia | 156 | – | – | 156 | – | – | – | – | 156 |
Thailand | 6 | – | 6 | – | – | – | – | – | 6 |
Ukraine | Ukraine: 6 Coalition: 12 | – | 6(+ 12) | – | – | – | 6×6: + 30 8×8: + 19 | 6×6: -5 8×8: -1 | 49 |
TOTAL | 459 | 155 | 180 | 156 | 19 | 0 | 0 | - 7 | 348 |
614 | 355 |
This article uses material from the Wikipedia English article CAESAR self-propelled howitzer, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 license ("CC BY-SA 3.0"); additional terms may apply (view authors). Content is available under CC BY-SA 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
®Wikipedia is a registered trademark of the Wiki Foundation, Inc. Wiki English (DUHOCTRUNGQUOC.VN) is an independent company and has no affiliation with Wiki Foundation.