Combat Vehicle 90


The Combat Vehicle 90 is a family of Swedish tracked combat vehicles designed by Sweden's Defense Materiel Administration, Hägglunds and Bofors during the mid-1980s and early 1990s and entered service in Sweden in the mid-90s. The CV90 platform design has continuously evolved in steps from Mk0 to current MkIV with advances in technology and in response to changing battlefield requirements. The Swedish version of the main infantry fighting vehicle is fitted with a turret from Bofors that is equipped with a 40 mm Bofors autocannon. Export versions are fitted with Hägglunds E-series turrets, armed with either a 30 mm or a 35 mm Bushmaster autocannon.
Developed specifically for the Nordic sub-arctic climate, the vehicle has very good mobility in snow and wetlands while carrying and supporting six to eight fully equipped dismount soldiers. Other variants include Forward Observation, Command and control, anti-aircraft, armoured recovery vehicle, electronic warfare and so forth. The CV90 and Hägglunds E-series turrets have been under continuous development with more than 4 million hours invested and are still produced with modern protection, armament and network enabled solutions. Currently, 1,280 vehicles in 15 variants are in service with seven user nations, four of which are NATO members, under BAE Systems Hägglunds AB.

History

During the Cold War, in 1983, the Swedish Army required vehicles with high mobility, air defence and anti-tank capability, high survivability and protection. The "Stridsfordon 90" project group was formed by representatives from the Swedish armed forces, the FMV and Swedish industry, including Hägglunds and Bofors, which in 1985 finalized the design for a "unity-vehicle" that originated from an air force concept. In 1986, the prototypes for Strf 9040 and Strf 9025 were ordered. Five prototypes were constructed but, before delivery in 1988, the 9025-version was discontinued. These prototypes were tested during extensive trials for three years between 1988 and 1991, during which the prototypes for specialized variants were ordered. The first deliveries started in 1994.
The CV90 has undergone four mark shifts to meet different customer requirements, focused on capability enhancements.
CV90 Mk 0
The first delivered CV90 was for Sweden. It was armed with the Bofors 40/L70 cannon in a 2-man turret. The vehicle had a conventional electrical system and was fitted for but not with appliqué armour systems. The Swedish Army ordered five variants of the CV90. The requirements expressed by the Swedish FMV on signature management were extremely challenging and led to a lot of new design features that have been inherited by all subsequent generations. FMV also prioritized the requirements to provide the best possible design to fulfil user needs. Furthermore, the CV90 was also built for high reliability and ease-of-maintenance using only standard on-board tools and conscripts to maintain and operate.
CV90 Mk I
The next variant of CV90 is known as the Mk I and was delivered to Norway. CV90 Mk I won the Norwegian competition for a new IFV against other contemporary IFVs, such as Bradley, Warrior and Pizarro/ULAN. The Mk I variant of the CV90 had a newly designed 2-man 30 mm turret evolved from the 25 mm turret. CV90 Mk I was the first IFV with a high hit probability performance during suppression fire modes, both while the vehicle is on the move and against air targets. The CV90 Mk I incorporated several improvements compared to the original Swedish CV90. Trials on mobility, reliability, lethality, fightability, ergonomics, durability and survivability were performed during the trials phase for these vehicles with good results for CV90 Mk I.
CV90 Mk II
The CV90 Mk I was the base for the next development step, CV90 Mk II. The CV90 Mk II was produced in three variants, CV9030 CH IFV & COM, and CV9030 FIN IFV. Both contracts were won in competition with other IFVs. The difference between the two variants is mainly the size of the hull. The Swiss variant is 100 mm higher over the front part of the hull and an additional 70 mm over the combat compartment at the rear. The principal difference between the Mk I and Mk II is that the Mk II was partly digitized and provided with built-in Health & Unit Monitoring System together with interactive manuals and instructions. CV90 Mk II standard armament is Mk44 Bushmaster II autocannon.
CV90 Mk III
The Mk III variant of the CV90 is a further development of the CV90 Mk II. The areas that have undergone most development compared to Mk II are lethality, fightability, electronic architecture, survivability and mobility. The weapon system has been upgraded to a 35/50 mm Bushmaster III cannon with an integrated muzzle ammunition programmer and a number of different firing scenarios depending on target setup. The crew station design provides the gunner and commander with a continuous eye-on-target engagement feature.
The electronic architecture has been further upgraded for Mk III to be completely digitized. The mobility improvements, in the field of upgraded suspension and power to weight ratio, was performed to handle the increased gross vehicle weight. The improved survivability was mainly in the areas of mine protection and top attack. The horizontal protection has been designed in similar ways as to the other marks of CV90, i.e. appliqué systems. The first variant of the Mk III, the Mk III a, was delivered to The Netherlands and Denmark. The second, most modern Mk IIIb variant, was delivered to Norway.
CV90 Mk IV
CV90 MkIV is equipped with a new engine, active protection system, augmented reality system iFighting and its weight has increased from 35 to 37 tons, with space for two tons of additional payload.

Design

Various customer requirements have led to several variants of the CV90, where major differences are in survivability and electronic architecture. Higher protection has led to higher kerb weight; the vehicle's combat weight has risen from 23 to 35 tonnes. With increasingly more powerful diesel engines, the power-to-weight ratio has remained approximately the same. The track suspension system has seen upgrades in several stages.
The Mk III version has a digital electronic architecture with several different CAN-buses and digital networks, and is the first IFV incorporating an automatic Defensive Aid Suite which classifies threats and, in automatic mode, can fire smoke and/or the main gun to eliminate or evade targets, as well as instruct the driver on potential threats. At the Eurosatory 2010 exhibition, a version called Armadillo was presented. The Armadillo shown was an Armoured Personnel Carrier version. The basic chassis can be readily converted to ambulance, control vehicle or other turreted versions.

Protection

The CV9040's basic armour provides all-round protection against 14.5 mm armour-piercing rounds. Armour protection over the frontal arc is classified, but all models from CV9040B and later are said to be protected against 30 mm APFSDS. Some variants, including the CV9030N, can be fitted with MEXAS, a ceramic appliqué armor that provides protection against 30 mm APFSDS. This armour kit is intended to provide increased protection against Improvised explosive device, explosively formed penetrator and 30 mm caliber armour piercing rounds. All CV90s are fitted with a Spall liner, which covers the interior spaces and provides protection for the troops inside against shrapnel and anti-personnel artillery munitions.
The CV90 can be also fitted with cage armour, which provides protection against tandem-charge and shaped charge warheads. The CV90 is fitted with a nuclear, biological, and chemical filtration system accompanied by a chemical detector and radiation detector systems. The CV90 also uses heat-absorbing filters to provide temporary protection against thermal imaging, image intensifier and infrared camera. The CV 90 was designed to produce a very low and very compact structure to minimize radar and IR-signatures.
With every generation of CV90 there has been an increase in payload and corresponding protection levels. The inherent mine protection levels have risen substantially to presently defeat the heaviest anti-tank mines.
In December 2016, BAE Systems received a contract from the Netherlands to test the Israel Military Industries Iron Fist active protection system on their CV9035 vehicles. Iron Fist employs a multi-sensor early warning system using both infrared and radar sensors to deploy soft- and hard-kill countermeasures against anti-tank rockets and missiles. A decision for integration is to be made by early 2018.

Mobility

The CV90 Mk0 is powered by a DSI14 engine developed by Scania, which provides 550 horse power and it can reach speeds of per hour. The basic CV90 has a maximum road range of, but the latest generation can reach up to. The CV90 offers quieter movement for improved stealth, greater speed over good terrain, and higher ground clearance for protection against mines and improvised explosive devices.
BAE Systems is considering upgrading the CV90 with a hybrid-electric propulsion system as armies look to cut fuel expenses, due to environmental issues and fuel economy. A hybrid-electric drive could cut fuel consumption by 10 to 30 percent. The new system would also provide a power boost to move the vehicle. The hybrid-electric combines a standard diesel engine with a battery pack to provide extra power to propel the vehicle or provide additional electricity. BAE Systems Hägglunds uses the knowledge acquired through many years of hybrid-electric drive development for the military SEP vehicles and the ongoing civilian hybrid-electric projects for forest machines, airplane howlers and loaders.
In April 2015, BAE Systems fitted a CV90 with an active damping suspension system derived from Formula One racing cars. This technology calculates the vehicle's speed and anticipates the terrain ahead, then pressurizes the suspension at independent points to lift the chassis and keep the vehicle level. The suspension, which had been modified to suit a 38-ton armored vehicle rather than the racing car, reportedly increases speed by 30-40 percent on rough terrain, outrunning main battle tanks, decreases vehicle pitch acceleration by 40 percent, gives greater maneuverability and stability for on-the-move gunnery, and reduces crew fatigue and life-cycle costs.

Armament

The basic CV90 is fitted with a two-man turret armed with a 40 mm Bofors autocannon and a coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun. The CV90 also carries six 76-mm grenade launchers, which are arranged in two clusters of three launchers; the clusters are positioned on each side of the turret. The grenade launchers are intended for smoke grenades, but can also be loaded with a variety of combat grenades.
The CV90 export variants are fitted with a Hagglunds E-series turret, with more than 600 E30 and E35 turrets delivered. BAE Systems Australia Limited presented an offer for LAND 400 Phase 3 is the CV9035 with an E35 turret. It provides high commonality with BAE Systems’ LAND 400 Phase 2 CRV offer – the AMV35 – through its use of the same E35 turret system.

Sight

The CV90 is equipped with a UTAAS from Saab. Daytime optical, thermal imaging System and Generation III image intensification. The Norwegian IFV, C2, Recce, Mortar and Combat Engineer variants are delivered with the Kongsberg Protector Remote Weapon Station with 360 degrees day and night sights as well as hunter killer capability.

Production

Production of the CV 90 began in 1993, and as of 2014 over 1,200 vehicles had been ordered. In November 2000, Finland ordered 57 CV9030 vehicles. Total cost was €250 million, or €4.42 million per vehicle. In June 2004, Finland made another purchase, bringing the overall quantity ordered to 102. This time, the cost was €2.92 million per vehicle. In December 2005, Denmark ordered 45 CV9035 vehicles for a cost of €188 million or €4.18 million per vehicle.
The Netherlands ordered 184 combat plus 8 instruction CV9035 vehicles for a cost of €749 million, or €3.9 million per vehicle. Norway initially bought 104 CV90s in the 1990s, buying new vehicles and upgrading the old ones in the 2010s. The Norwegian Army fields 144 CV90s, of which 74 are combat vehicles, 16 engineering vehicles, 16 multi-use vehicles, 21 reconnaissance vehicles, 15 command vehicles, and two instruction vehicles. The upgrade of the Norwegian CV90s was estimated to cost around.

Research

In 2011, Hägglunds demonstrated a version with an infrared camouflage called Adaptiv, consisting of thermoelectric plates capable of posing as many different objects, such as ordinary cars, stones, trees etc. to an enemy IR-viewfinder. It takes 1,500 plates to cover a CV90, at a cost of $100 per plate.

Variants

Domestic

Developed by Hägglund/Bofors in cooperation with FOA and FMV for Försvarsmakten as part of the Stridsfordon 90 -family. Sweden originally planned for a mix of CV9040 and CV9025, tests of the 25 mm turret being carried out on an Ikv 91 chassis, but finally decided on the 40 mm version, due to the much higher versatility of the larger calibre.
Versions are referred to by the letters A, B or C depending on upgrades. All from A onwards remain in service.
The command, forward observation and recovery vehicles are armed only with a machine gun.
The following versions were not taken into Swedish army service.
The export versions of CV90 is delivered with the combat proven BAE Systems Hägglunds E-series turrets with armament ranging from 30-120mm. The vast majority of the 600 turrets delivered are fitted with 30mm or 35mm guns.
is being developed
;CV9030
;CV9035
;CV90105
;CV90120-T
;CV90 CZ
;CV90 CZr
;Armadillo
;CV90 STING
;CV90RWS Multi BK
;CV90 MkIV

Combat service

First use was by the Swedish UN forces in Liberia 2004, where 13 Stridsfordon 9040C were deployed.
Since production began in 1993, the CV90 had remained untested in combat until November 2007, when Norwegian Army CV90s from the 2nd Battalion saw heavy combat during Operation Harekate Yolo in Afghanistan. During the first week of November, Norwegian ISAF forces from the 2nd Battalion and Kystjegerkommandoen based in Mazar-e-Sharif, responded to a Taliban attack on Afghan National Army forces in the Ghowrmach district. Having been heavily outnumbered by the Taliban forces, the Norwegians used mortars and, in particular, CV90s, to suppress the attack. The operation left an unknown number of Taliban casualties, but Norwegian news sources say as many as 45 to 65 Taliban fighters may have been killed, and many more wounded.
The CV90 was later used extensively by ISAF forces of the Norwegian Army's Telemark Battalion in May 2008, when the battalion came under heavy machine gun and RPG fire from Taliban fighters during Operation Karez in Badghis Province. The attack left 13 Taliban fighters dead and an unknown number wounded. No allied casualties were reported. In January 2010, a Norwegian soldier was killed when a CV9030 hit a large IED in Ghowrmach, Afghanistan.
In February 2010, Denmark sent ten CV9035DKs to Afghanistan in order to bolster their contingent in Helmand Province. The Danish contingent had suffered numerous casualties since they began operations in the province in the autumn of 2006. The vehicles are from the Danish Royal Lifeguard Regiment, based in the Northern part of Seeland. They are working alongside MOWAG Piranha IIIC, MOWAG Eagle IV, M113 G3DK and Leopard 2A5DK vehicles, all contributed by Denmark, in the Helmand Province. By April 2010, two of the ten vehicles had been hit with IEDs, in both cases protecting the crew and passengers from personal injury. The vehicles lost two wheels and tracks, and were sent back to the manufacturer in Sweden for further investigation. On 7 August 2010, a CV9035DK hit an IED in Afghanistan, killing two soldiers and wounding another three. The explosion was so powerful that the vehicle was turned over.
As of the spring of 2011, Sweden operates nine Strf 9040Cs in Afghanistan. Swedish CV90s have seen combat with insurgents on dozens of occasions.

Operators

Current operators