Kongsberg to deliver 409 additional CROWS remote weapon stations to US Army.

Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace has received an order from the US Army to deliver an additional 409 CROWS remote weapon stations, spares and support. The order has a value of USD 94 million or approximately NOK 1 billion.
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Commonly Remotely Operated Weapon Station (CROWS) mounted on a Humvee (Picture source: Kongsberg)

The order is part of the IDIQ (indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity) frame contract awarded in October 2022, the 4th consecutive five-year contract awarded to Kongsberg for the delivery and support of the US Army Commonly Remotely Operated Weapon Station (CROWS). “We are very pleased for the opportunity to deliver additional CROWS systems to the US Army and with the confidence our customers place in our products and our organization,” says Eirik Lie, President of Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace. The deliveries will be manufactured and assembled at the Kongsberg facility in Johnstown PA.

For the last 20 years, Kongsberg has delivered more than 23,000 Protector Remote Weapon Systems to a total of 28 nations. This includes the major US program Commonly Remotely Operated Weapon Station (CROWS). CROWS is a US Army Program of Record for the acquisition and sustainment of Remote Weapon Stations for all U.S. Army vehicle programs. The Protector family includes the RS4 and RS6 Remote Weapon Stations, - with weapons from light machine guns (5.56mm) to light cannons (30mmx113mm). It also includes the Remote Turrets, - designed for medium caliber cannons like 30mmx173mm and 40mmx180mm.

In 2022, Eirik Lie, President of Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace, said: “Kongsberg is proud to be selected as the supplier in this competitive award for the next five-year CROWS contract. This is an important milestone. We are extending our collaboration with US Army as we have since 2007 enabling Kongsberg, together with the customer, to provide the soldiers with the best remotely controlled weapon solution,” says Eirik Lie, President of Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace. “With this award, Kongsberg and the U.S. Government will be able to fully realize the investments made in the Tech Refresh systems and bring those capabilities to new and existing customers both in the US and abroad. CROWS Tech Refresh is the “next generation” of remote weapon stations. The Tech Refresh systems are designed to provide greater stand-off, increased precision, and networking capabilities as well as vastly improved situational awareness in addition to being backward compatible,” said Eirik Tord Jensen, Executive Vice President for Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace Land Systems division.

With more than 23,000 systems sold worldwide and 17 years of CROWS experience, Kongsberg will continue to support the soldiers with new systems and capabilities meeting tomorrow’s requirements while maintaining and supporting a wide range of CROWS variants.

Commonly Remotely Operated Weapon Station (CROWS) variant to equip U.S. Army vehicles (Picture source: Kongsberg)

Defense News September 2023