How to Implement X-System as a CBRN Monitoring Solution into Armoured Military Vehicles

The role of armoured vehicles in the battlefield has been reconsidered because of the lessons learned so far during the war in Ukraine. The war has proven that the threat landscape evolves rapidly and has become very complex. The modern battlefield challenges the survivability, combat effectiveness and protection of the vehicle. The golden triangle of mobility, protection, and firepower has always been a dilemma in armoured combat vehicles. The role of armoured vehicles in modern battlefield has been put in question because of lack of protection against modern ground based and airborne threats and logistical challenges presented by the agile modern battlefield.

The stakeholders in armoured vehicle industry need to consider the large spectrum of national and international mission profiles in both asymmetric scenarios and fighting, surviving, and winning conventional close combats on variable terrains. At the same time the industry has been pushed to look for lower unit and life cycle cost, reduced complexity, faster development time and technical risks for the innovative designs. The modernization of vehicles has emphasized the adaptation of vehicle platforms for multiple purposes and modular, fixed, or semifixed, solutions with effortless integration.  A modular approach has been taken in the electrical architecture and equipment and including an open system architecture to make implementing new equipment easier and faster.

Over the years, active protection systems have been developed to protect armoured vehicles from a variety of anti-tank missiles, grenades, and rockets. The active approach is also the key to encountering the typically underestimated chemical, biological, radiation, and nuclear threats that can easily incapacitate armoured vehicle fleets and their crews and lead to time consuming decontamination procedures. The principles for aiming to minimize losses, protect forces and retain effective and fast operations rely on avoiding CBRN contamination, implementing defensive measures and reporting detected CBRN threats for improved situational awareness.

The active monitoring and protection systems will prevent the personnel against the tricky effects of CBRN exposure when the hotzone cannot be avoided. The role and operational context of the armoured vehicle will define the scale of active protection systems and CBRN detection capability. The CBRN reconnaissance vehicle will have highest level of active protection systems and CBRN detection and identification capabilities as they are expected to enter the hotzone and survey the hotzone perimeter whereas the fighting and support vehicles will have early warning detection capability combined with active crew protection sufficient to enable the crew to function in full fighting capacity in the armoured formation without losing momentum.

This document was originally written by former Application Manager, CBRN Systems, Vehicle/CIP Solutions Katja Kiukas and later on revised by CBRN Application Manager Petri Karhula.