BAE Systems has received a potential $45 million contract from the U.S. Army to develop a prototype of the Extended Range Cannon Artillery designed to increase the rate and range of fire on M109A7 self-propelled howitzers.
The company said Monday that it will work with service™s Combat Capabilities Development Command Armaments Center to develop the ERCA increment 1 prototype and replace the 39-caliber turret with a 58-caliber gun barrel to increase the howitzer™s firepower.
œLong-range precision fire is a top priority for the Army, and we are pleased to be a partner in efforts to equip soldiers with the latest technology, said Scott Davis, vice president or programs at BAE™s combat vehicles business.
Work on the ERCA prototype will be carried out at BAE™s facilities in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Minnesota and at the Army™s Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey.
BAE is in the low-rate initial production phase for the service™s M109A7 howitzer configuration and is producing precision guidance kits with anti-jamming capabilities under a separate contract.
