On Thursday, October 3, 2024, the 4th Regional Logistics Base from Wrocław (4. RBLog) announced the signing of a contract worth 7,712,100 PLN with PCO from Warsaw (part of the Polish Armaments Group) for the delivery of another batch of KLW-1R Asteria cooled thermal cameras for the Leonardo OTO Melara Hitfist-30P turret systems of the Rosomak wheeled armored personnel carriers in combat version.
Photo: PCO
The contract was signed on September 30, 2024. The sole criterion for selecting the offer was price (100%). The order is to be delivered to the Nowogród Bobrzański depot of the 4th Regional Logistics Base by November 29, 2024.
The order was approached three times: tenders were announced on April 16, 2024, June 11, 2024, and July 1, 2024. In the case of the last attempt, the deadline for submitting applications was July 31, 2024.
The military had been planning to replace the Italian-licensed, Polish-made Tilde FC thermal cameras since April 2021. Finally, the first tender on this matter was announced at the end of August 2022, and in early October of the same year, the selection of PCO’s offer with the KLW-1R Asteria thermal imaging camera, worth nearly 5 million PLN, was announced.
The new equipment is being supplied for nearly 350 Rosomak combat vehicles with Hitfist-30P turrets (some of which were sent to Ukraine). In the future, however, all of them will gradually be replaced by the ZSSW-30 (Zdalnie Sterowany System Wieżowy, Remote-Controlled Turret Systems), developed by Huta Stalowa Wola and WB Group. These systems are equipped with GOD-1 (Commander’s Optoelectronic Head) and GOC-1 (Gunner’s Optoelectronic Head), also produced by PCO.
The KLW-1 Asteria cameras have been integrated into the PT-91 Twardy tanks, upgraded T-72M1R, and modernized Leopard 2PL/2PLM tanks. The KLW-1R is the variant designed for the Rosomak armored personnel carriers
Description
KLW-1 Asteria Thermal Camera
The Cooled Thermal Camera KLW-1 is designed for fire control systems and observation and reconnaissance systems.
The cooled thermal camera operates in the 7.7-9.3 μm wavelength range, featuring a 3rd generation MCT detector with a resolution of 640 x 512 pixels.
The camera can be used in
• on-board weapon fire control systems,
• observation and reconnaissance systems.
Key features of the product:
• high-quality cooled 3rd generation detector,
• selection of the image automation system’s analysis field.
