SUPACAT Terrahawk LW30M - Mobile British VSHORAD System

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Introduction

The MSI Terrahawk Lightweight (LW30M) is a modular, self-contained, Very Short-Range Air Defence (VSHORAD) system developed by UK (Norfolk) based MSI Defence Systems, a defence manufacturer well established in the naval armaments sector. The Terrahawk is an evolution of the proven Seahawk naval gun systems (hence the name), designed to counter modern aerial, land, and maritime threats, particularly unmanned aerial systems (UAS). The Lightweight version of the system is a cut-down version of the Terrahawk Paladin, aiming to fit on vehicles in the 4x4/6x6 weight class, as opposed to rather unwieldy 8x8s.

The system integrates a range of advanced components to achieve high levels of accuracy and lethality. The eyes of the system are the Openworks Vision Pace, providing a thermal imager, electro-optical sensor suite, and a laser rangefinder. The Vision Pace as mounted on the SUPACAT is configured with a radar, the EchoDyne EchoShield, an advanced, compact pulse doppler system capable of identifying larger targets at a range of up to 12.5km, but specialising in locating smaller, drone size targets within a 4km envelope.

The Terrahawk LW30M is armed with the Northrop Grumman 30 mm Mk44 Bushmaster II autocannon, capable of firing programmable airburst munitions, proximity-fuzed rounds, and HE-I shells out to 3 km at up to 200rpm. The MSI Terrahawk LW30M system was first shown mounted on SUPACATs 6x6 High Mobility Transporter (HMT), in its new Armoured Closed Cab (ACC) configuration, at the DVD2024 exhibition. Being incredibly new, this land-based system currently does not have any orders for mass-production, but with the rapidly increasing role that small drones are playing on the modern battlefield it may well end up being a success.

In-game, despite being a very modern vehicle, its capabilities are broadly similar to something like the M247, owing to the rather lethargic fire rate of the Bushmaster. It would therefore be a perfect fit, in my opinion, for a ~9.0 SPAA for the British, an area where the tree is currently lacking. This vehicle features a reduced feature set when compared to the full-size Terrahawk Paladin, with worse radar coverage, but it does make up for it by not being the size of a large schoolbus.

Specifications

Spoiler

Armament’

  • 30mm Bushmaster Mk II

  • 200RPM

  • 200-400 round magazines

Ammunition

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Radar

Chassis

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Images

Spoiler

Sources

Spoiler

https://supacat.com/media/events/dvd-2024/

OpenWorks has its Advanced Optical Systems on Display at the DVD2024 exhibition | OpenWorks Engineering

https://supacat.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/HMT-Armoured-Closed-Cab-Platform.pdf

https://www.echodyne.com/media/12tbkrho/ts-echoshield-echodyne_5my2.pdf

https://openworksengineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/OW_VISION_PACE_web.mp4

https://cdn.northropgrumman.com/-/media/Project/Northrop-Grumman/ngc/what-we-do/advanced-weapons/bushmaster/30x173mm-Full-Ammo-Suite-Product-Brochure.pdf

Bushmaster II High Explosive Proximity (HEP) firing trials on an MSI RWS (this video was not happy being pasted normally, so have this) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQCUX34tP-c

MSI-DS Marketing Material

7 Likes

+1 more UK spaa is always appreciated

1 Like

feel like this is needed to fill a 7.0 to 8.0 gap

This would definitely be higher than the current 8.3 Marksman-style systems on account of it getting 30mm proxy ammunition, so it would be useful for filling the current 8.3 - 9.7 gap.

If you want something to fit betweeen 7.0 - 8.0 the best option would be the Vickers Valkyr H.20, with twin-20mms and a radar.

1 Like

As long as it doesn’t end up in 8.3 I will be happy to see this vehicle introduced. My first thought when I saw that was “radar guided ystervark”

2 Likes

This looks fun! Quirky trucks like this are always welcome. Would it still have APFSDS capability as well? +1

1 Like

supacat
would like to know more about the other options of weapons that look available to be fitted to the vehicle as the 3 barrel minigun and missile launcher looks interesting additions, maybe have a ability to swap the weapons packages

4 Likes

I’d love some proximity fuse auto cannon for the UK tree. +1

1 Like

That cannon is technically capable of firing APFSDS, but this vehicle is never marketed as being able to fire it and I don’t believe it is intended to.

It could potentially get it in game I suppose, but it runs the risk of causing it to be at a higher BR than where is belongs as an SPAA, which is already the main issue with British SPAAs around this BR.

Makes sense. Maybe just an APDS belt then.

1 Like

You have the wrong ammo here. The Mk44 Bushmaster II fires a 30 × 173 mm cartridge, not 30 x 113 mm. As far as I am aware there hasn’t yet been proximity round developed in a 30 x 173 mm cartridge, though some guns such as the Mk44S and Mk 30-2/ABM are capable of firing a programmable airburst.

Ah yeah I’ll fix the brochure, thanks.

Northrop Grumman have developed a 30x173 proximity round for the Bushmaster II that has been tested on one of MSIs own weapon stations, very similar to the one in the above suggestion.

So it still gets proxy.

1 Like