DSEi 2017: Saab unveils new Thor 120mm mortar ammunition.

Defence and security company Saab launched its new 120mm mortar ammunition, THOR, at the DSEI 2017 exhibition in London, United Kingdom. The all-new THOR is a 120mm mortar round developed with a unique design, combining different shapes, materials and fragmentation sizes to attain the desired effect on the target.

Saab's new Thor 120 mm mortar round at DSEi 2017

The new Thor ammunition is developed by Saab Bofors Dynamics Switzerland (SBDS), a subsidiary to Saab and part of business area Dynamics. At DSEI 2017, the new mortar round will be showcased to the market for the first time.

“We are very excited to launch this new product to the market at this year’s DSEI. Our MAPAM® mortar round revolutionised the way infantry units approached mortar-based combat, and now, with our new THOR 120mm mortar round, we are pushing the boundaries even further”, says Stephan Kocher, head of Saab Bofors Dynamics Switzerland.

Traditional airburst mortar rounds fitted with a proximity fuze disperse fragments in nearly every direction. This decreases the mortar’s effect in the target as over 50 percent of the fragments are scattered upwards. THOR offers more than twice the effect compared to a conventional 120mm mortar round while, at the same time, it delivers fragment loss reduction of up to 20 percent, making the round a perfect short range alternative to heavy 155mm artillery.

THOR’s Insensitive Munition (IM) signature provides additional safety for mortar crews. THOR also offers controlled safety zones to protect own troops, as well as to avoid civilian collateral damage.

“THOR’s fragmentation provides predictable safe zones which makes your effects more foreseeable and accurate. This new mortar round will give the user a much higher chance of defeating the targets, something that normally would have required heavier support”, says Christopher Leitner, Head of Marketing & Sales at Saab Bofors Dynamics Switzerland.

THOR Key features:
- Lethality approx. 250 percent of a standard 120mm round
- Range approximately 8,500m
- Controlled safety zones to protect own troops, as well as to avoid collateral damage
-Optimised safety for mobile mortar systems due to IM classification
- Cylindrical central body design to enhance the lethality effect
- Adaptable fragment shapes and quantities
- Spheres can be optimized for range and lethality
- Optimised to defeat various threats on the battlefield including hardened targets

THOR technical specifications:
- Calibre: 120mm
- Weight approx: 15 kg
- Length approx: 770mm
- Max range approx: 8500m
- Number of fragments depending on configuration: Max. 4,250 steel balls, Max. 4,250 fragments
IM explosive: 3.4 kg PBXN-110
- Optional explosive: 1 kg blast explosive

SBDS is an industry leader in the design, development and production of mortar rounds, warheads, less-lethal applications and other energetic products. The company is a specialist in total munitions life cycle management and provides servicing of different ammunition types, mainly for large-calibre products. SBDS operates as a subsidiary of Saab, within business area Dynamics, and is based in Thun, Switzerland, where it maintains a state-of-the-art development and production site with advanced test and simulation facilities.