Oto Melara Hitfist is a two-man turret, for armored vehicles, developed by the Italian Oto Melara.[1] The turrets are designed to mount a 25mm Oerlikon KBA or 30/40mm ATK Mk44 Bushmaster II autocannon. The main armament may mount a co-axial machine gun. A variant allows the operator to aim and fire anti-tank missiles.
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The turret, and its weapons, can be operated by a single individual.[1]
Oto Melara also sells a smaller remotely operated turret, named Hitrole, that mounts smaller weapons, like machine guns and automatic grenade launchers.
Oto Melara sells a similar appearing remotely operated turret, called Hitfist OWS.[2]
The 30mm variant of the Hitfist turret adds 2,670 kilograms (5,890 lb) to a vehicle's weight.[3]
Operators
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Italian Army – 467 turrets
- 200 equipped on the Dardo[4] The turret is equipped with the following armament
- Oerlikon KBA 25mm gun
- MG 42/59 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun
- TOW ATGM
- 226 used on the VBM Freccia The turret is equipped with the following armament
- Oerlikon KBA 25mm gun
- MG 42/59 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun
- 226 in service
- 41 ordered to be used on the VBM Freccia EVO iFV (up to 180) The turret will be equipped with the following armament:
- Oerlikon KBA 25mm gun
- MG 42/59 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun
- Spike LR Missile
- JANUS high performance, stabilised, day/night, all weather multi-sensor
Botswana Ground Force – 45 turrets [5]
- 45 equipped on the Piranha III (delivery 2019-2021)
- 30 mm Orbital ATK MK44 Bushmaster auto-cannon
Irish Army – 6 HITFIST–30
- 6 Piranha IIIH Medium Reconnaissance Vehicle equipped with 30mm HITFIST variant.[6]
Polish Army – 359 HITFIST–30P [7][5]
- 359 equipped on the KTO Rosomak (delivery 2019-2021)
- 30 mm Orbital ATK MK44 Bushmaster auto-cannon
- UKM-2000C 7.62mm coaxial machine gun
Potential Operators
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HITFIST 30P being tested against:
- ESCRIBANO Guardian 30 unmanned turret
- Rafael Samson Mk II
All the turrets offered are equipped with 2 Spike-LR missiles and a Mk44 30 mm.
References
edit- ^ a b "Hitfist 25mm - 30mm: Light turret for infantry fighting vehicles" (PDF). Oto Melara. 2013-08-20. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-09-05. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
- ^ "Hitfist OWS 30mm (Overhead Weapons System): Remote Weapons System for infantry fighting vehicles" (PDF). Oto Melara. 2013-08-20. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
- ^ David R. Gillingham; Prashant R. Patel. "Method of Estimating the Principal Characteristics of an Infantry Fighting Vehicle from Basic Performance Requirements" (PDF). INSTITUTE FOR DEFENSE ANALYSES. p. 35. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-04-29. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
- ^ "Italian army to extend Dardo IFV service life | Defense News September 2022 Global Security army industry | Defense Security global news industry army year 2022 | Archive News year". www.armyrecognition.com. Retrieved 2023-06-06.
- ^ a b "Trade Registers". armstrade.sipri.org. Retrieved 2023-06-06.
- ^ "Leonardo Offers HitFist Turret for Spain's Dragón AFV". MilitaryLeak. 2020-11-08. Retrieved 2023-06-16.
- ^ "Poland". www.leonardo.com. Retrieved 2023-06-06.
- ^ Valpolini, Paolo (2021-11-15). "Leonardo in Spain: HITFIST 30 mm turret but not only". EDR Magazine. Retrieved 2023-06-06.