The U.S. Army deployed a new variant Stryker wheeled combat vehicle outfitted with a Common Remotely Operated Weapon System-Javelin (CROWS-J) at the 2nd Cavalry Regiment in Germany.
According to the report by the Army Times news agency, researchers with Project Manager Soldier Weapons at Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey, adapted the Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station, which has been used for years to fire crew-served weapons from the interior safety of the Stryker, to fire Javelin anti-tank missiles.
The upgrades to the Stryker platform also were operationally tested at the at the Joint Maneuver Readiness Center (JMRC), Hohenfels, Germany.
The new Stryker’s upgraded kit consists of the Common Remotely Operated Weapon System-Javelin (CROWS-J) system with a mounted Javelin capability, which will be used to fire from the interior safety of the combat vehicle. Integration includes a new frame installed on the vehicle on which the fire control unit and the remote-control system are installed.
The CROWS-J system is a stabilized mount that contains a sensor suite and fire control software. It supports four different weapons and can be integrated onto more than 20 platforms as well as fixed site applications. The new version features FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missiles and in addition machine gun, that gives crews the ability to employ weaponry against everything from troop formations, to helicopters, to heavily armored targets from the safety of their vehicles.
The new system allows Soldiers to acquire and engage targets while remaining in an armored vehicle. The Army Times noted that if a soldier needed to fire a Javelin missile from the light-armored vehicle, the Stryker would have to stop, the soldier would get out and hit the target with the shoulder-fired missile, and then jump back on board.
PEO Soldier staff said that 86 systems are part of the initial fielding. A follow-on upgrade will begin fielding in late 2020 that will include both Javelin and remote operated light and medium machine guns for the Stryker.
