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The US Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command awarded several
contracts to sustain the conversion and modernization of the
US Army's M-1A2 Main Battle Tank fleet through the years 2010
- 2011. The contracts include about $290 million for System
Enhancement Package (SEP) packages and about $140 for the
retrofit of existing tanks into SEP V2 standard. TACOM has also
launched the Bradley Urban Survivability upgrade, with a first
15 million order awarded to BAE Systems.
The Bradley Urban Survivability
Kit (BUSK) includes various elements designed to enhance the
protection, capabilities and functionality of the Bradley Combat
Systems in urban operations. The kits will be shipped and installed
in theater on fielded vehicles with minimal modifications. Tank
Urban Survivability Kits (TUSK) are already in production
for the M-1A2.
Bradley Urban Survivability Kit (BUSK)
Responding to requests from the field, the BUSK kit includes
a steel mesh protection for the turret's external optical components,
designed to minimize interference to normal sighting functions.
A 'dome tent' non-conductive structure is used to protect the
crew from low-hanging electrical power lines. The structure
effectively protects the vehicle at speeds up to 30 mph and
has little impact on the vehicle's optical sights.
The kit also includes a high-powered, hand-held directional
spotlight, four to five times brighter than Halogen equivalents.
This 3,000,000 candlepower spotlight uses standard 24-volt vehicle
power and an existing connector. BUSK also includes provisions
for enhanced counter-IED armor, designed to counter the effects
of mines and IED explosions. Furthermore, the vehicle can be
equipped with the Commander's Light Automatic Weapon (CLAW)
integrating a light machine gun into the vehicle's fire control
system, enabling immediate threat suppression capability for
the Bradley Commander. The CLAW mounts either the M-249 SAW
or the M-231 ball-port 5.56-mm machine gun which is fired under
armor with existing fire control components.
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