On Wednesday, December 18, 2024, the press service of the 18th Mechanized Division (18th MD) announced on social media that the second batch of Rosomak 8×8 wheeled infantry fighting vehicles equipped with 30 mm Remote-Controlled Turret Systems (ZSSW-30) had been delivered to the 1st Battalion of the 21st Podhale Rifles Brigade (21st PRB).
Photos: K. Mazur, 18th Mechanized Division
“Another holiday ‘gift’ for the Iron Division! The 21st Podhale Rifles Brigade has received additional state-of-the-art Rosomak vehicles equipped with ZSSW-30 turrets. This is a key element of modernization, providing greater precision, effectiveness, and superiority on the battlefield. Last year, the Podhale Rifles received their first vehicles, and today the modernization process continues – step by step, we are strengthening the Polish Armed Forces,” reads a post by the 18th Mechanized Division on the social media platform Facebook.
The number of vehicles delivered in the second batch has not been disclosed. The first batch consisted of 5 IFVs, which were delivered to the 21st Podhale Rifles Brigade almost exactly a year earlier, on December 14, 2023, with the first combat firing exercises conducted shortly thereafter, on January 21 of this year.
The deliveries are being carried out under the first implementation contract, signed on July 5, 2022, for the supply of 70 ZSSW-30 turrets to be integrated with vehicle chassis already in service, along with a logistics and training package. The contract was valued at nearly 1.7 billion PLN, with a delivery schedule spanning from 2024 to 2027.
The second implementation contract was signed on July 8 of this year and covers the delivery of an additional 58 complete vehicles for approximately 2.6 billion PLN gross, with deliveries scheduled for 2026–2027. The framework agreement for this program includes a total of 341 Rosomak vehicles equipped with ZSSW-30 turrets.
The parties to the contract are the State Treasury – Armament Agency and a consortium consisting of Huta Stalowa Wola (HSW), the Polish Armaments Group (PGZ), Rosomak, and WB Electronics (part of the WB Group) (Delivery of the next batch of KLW-1R Asteria cooled thermal cameras, The Armament Agency is looking for training and practice ammunition for Mk 44 autocannons)
On November 21, 2022, WB Electronics signed a four-year contract with PCO worth over 206 million PLN for the supply of Commander’s Optoelectronic Modules (GOD-1) and Gunner’s Optoelectronic Modules (GOC-1), intended for integration with the ZSSW-30 turrets.
Rosomaks equipped with ZSSW-30 turrets are designed to engage armored targets, enemy structures, and fortifications, as well as to provide fire support for subunits during combat operations. The optoelectronic systems integrated into the ZSSW-30 enable mission execution regardless of the time of day and in challenging weather conditions. The equipment has also been adapted to operate in harsh climatic environments.
The main armament of the ZSSW-30 is the Bushmaster Mk.44S automatic cannon, capable of firing in both automatic and semi-automatic modes, using five different types of ammunition, including programmable rounds. The auxiliary armament is a modified UKM-2000C 7.62 mm machine gun mounted coaxially with the cannon. Additional armament includes a twin launcher for Spike anti-tank guided missiles. The weaponry can be reloaded from both outside and inside the vehicle.
The commander and the weapon operator can independently observe, detect, identify, and track ground and aerial targets, including with the use of the autotracker function. Additionally, the crew can operate in hunter-killer mode, where the commander locates and identifies a target and transfers it to the weapon operator’s display for targeting and destruction.
The ZSSW-30 will completely replace the Leonardo OTO Melara Hitfist-30P turret systems. Work on the new turret was commissioned by the then Armament Inspectorate of the Ministry of National Defense on March 29, 2013, to a consortium of HSW and WB Electronics. Initially planned to take two years, the project experienced delays. Qualification tests of two ZSSW-30 prototypes mounted on Rosomak vehicles began in January 2020 and were completed on October 1, 2021.
The next ordered vehicles equipped with ZSSW-30 turrets will be 80 upgraded Rosomak-L (Long) wheeled IFVs, featuring an extended hull. A total of 80 units were ordered on December 17 of this year for approximately 4.3 billion PLN, with deliveries scheduled for 2027–2028. These vehicles will have increased payload capacity, a new engine, and will be an amphibious version equipped with a wave breaker.
The ZSSW-30 turrets are also expected to be mounted on up to 1,000 Borsuk tracked infantry fighting vehicles, with a contract for the first batch set to be signed soon. It is also possible that the system, in its current or a modified form, could be integrated into several hundred Heavy Infantry Fighting Vehicles (CBWP) and several hundred next-generation Wheeled Armored Personnel Carriers (KTO) in combat configurations, to be developed under the Serwal program.
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