- Yes
- No
G’day and welcome to my suggestion for the Hawkei PMV mounted with a Slinger RWS. The Hawkei, made by Thales Australia, is an Australian designed and built Protected Mobility Vehicle. It is named after a highly venomous species of Australian death adder, Acanthophis Hawkei, and the snake is in turn named after Bob Hawke, the 23rd prime minister of Australia.
Design started in 2010 for the Australian Army Project Land 121 Phase 4, the Hawkei was selected as the winner of this program in 2015 with 1100 units ordered. Available in both 2 door and 4 door variants, both on the same chassis with the same dimensions, it can be configured in multiple mission “capability packages” and can be deployed via helicopter. We could see multiple variants of the Hawkei in War Thunder, including versions armed with grenade launchers, missiles or the specialist NASAMs variant. My suggestion for this Slinger armed version in the game would be to make it a 4 door (I only currently have a photo of the 2 door), it will allow for additional crew and more sensible internal stowage of ammo boxes. The 2 door could also be represented in the NASAMs. Although either body style wouldn’t make much difference overall.
The Slinger meanwhile, made by Electro Optic Systems, is an Australian designed and built remote weapon station targeted for counter drone operations. Introduced in 2023, it has already seen active service and has started receiving export orders. It is set to enter Australian Army service under Project Land 156. While its real world use will not typically involve shooting at manned rotary and fixed wing aircraft, the abilities and ammunition it has at its disposal will make it a fine addition at the appropriate BR in War Thunder as an SPAA.
Hawkei:
Length: 5.7m
Width: 2.4m
Height: 2.3m (to vehicle roof) / 3.2m (to top of Slinger remote weapon station)
Weight: 7374kg (with Slinger mounted)
Engine: Steyr 3.2L six cylinder turbocharged M16 SCI 200 kW / 268 hp @ 4,000 rpm and torque of 610 Nm/450 ft lb @ 2,000 rpm
Drive: 4x4, 8spd automatic transmission
Top Speed: 130km/hr
Crew: Up to 6 occupants (4 door variant) / 3 occupants (2 door variant)
Protection/Armour: Steel alloys, Aramid fibres for internal spall liners, and ceramic ‘beaded’ armour, roughly NATO STANAG 4569 Level 3 standard
Slinger Remote Weapon Station
Armament: Bushmaster M230LF 30x113mm cannon, fully stabilized, 150 round ammo box (additional ammo boxes can be stored inside vehicle)
Traverse: 360 degrees horizontal, -10 degrees depression, +70 degrees elevation
Radar: Echodyne EchoGuard multi-mission surveillance 4D targeting radar with active beamsteering ESA, vehicle detection at >3.5km, human size object >2.2km, Phantom drone >1km, max 6km instrumented range. Features track while search, can track up to 20 targets. Field of view 120 degrees azimuth, 80 degrees elevation
Optics: 4-axis sensor unit moving independently of the gun, thermal imager, max detection range >13700m, recognition range >5600m, identification range >4700m
Rate of Fire: Single shot burst, or full automatic at 200 rounds per minute
Available Ammunition: Typical ammunition for the Slinger’s intended C-UAS role would be LW30 XM1211 High Explosive Proximity rounds, however the cannon is unchanged and would be capable of using all M230LF ammunition, including M789 HEDP with just over 50mm penetration
Muzzle Velocity: 805m/s
Weapon Accuracy/Range: ~2000m range (some ammunition types mention up to 3000+m), 1.35m radial max dispersion
In Game
The Slinger would offer a fairly different capability to most current SPAA in the game, it won’t have the range of something like a Gepard or Chieftain Marksman, and the shells won’t hit as hard as proxy rounds like the M247 has. Within close enough range though, the proximity fuse rounds will be dangerous though, as even if they require a couple hits to take an aircraft out, landing hits shouldn’t be difficult.
As for its ability to fight other ground vehicles, it also won’t have the hitting power of APDS slinging SPAA, but that ~51mm of pen from the HEDP rounds will be quite enough to deal with light tanks, other SPAA and even some MBTs from the sides. And it will be on one of the fastest platforms in the game.
Its 2000-3000m range limits it, it is clearly better than an M163, but not as good as the M247 or PGZ09. The BR will be in the 8.0-8.7 range. At this BR it will also be an effective counter to scout drones where non-proxy round SPAA can sometimes struggle to score a direct hit. This will make it valuable to the team in preventing everyone being constantly scouted.
Sources
Spoiler
https://www.thalesgroup.com/en/worldwide/defence/news/hawkeis-genesis-protection-mobility-performance
https://www.thalesgroup.com/en/global/presence/asia-pacific/australia/defence/hawkei
https://eos-aus.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/EOS-Defence-Slinger-flyer.pdf
Hawkei proves blast resistance - Australian Defence Magazine
30x113mm Bushmaster® Chain Guns® | Northrop Grumman
https://www.echodyne.com/media/mksbimrj/ts-echoguard-echodyne_5jl.pdf
Additional Photos
Please note these Hawkei photos do not have the Slinger mounted, they either have the similar EOS R400 remote weapon station, or no remote weapon station. The Slinger armed Hawkei is only just about to enter service, so not many photos exist on the internet.
Spoiler
Video
