The global defense manufacturer Rheinmetall, via American Rheinmetall Vehicles (ARV), was present at the recent Modern Day Marine (MDM) expo in Washington, DC. Zona Militar spoke with Mike Brooks, director of Business Development for ARV, about the uncrewed ground vehicle (UGV) Mission Master and what makes the system unique compared to other UGVs on the market.
The company has been working with the US Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory (MCWL) to develop a new version of the Mission Master. The UGV is still in the research and development stage, but the company is confident; “we believe we are at 90% of the development,” Brooks told ZM. The US Marine Corps has purchased 13 vehicles so far.
The US Marines have previously tested the Mission Master in Australia at exercise Talisman Sabre. During that exercise, “the vehicle was located in Australia, a live feed was sent to a ship, but the UGV was controlled out of Rheinmetall Canada, in Montreal,” the company told ZM. The exercise demonstrated how flexible Mission Master is to operate. A dismounted Marine can also operate the Mission Master via a tablet.
The UGV was also tested by the Marines in exercise Apollo Shield at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California. Brooks also noted that British armed forces have tested the UGV at AUKUS (Australia, United Kingdom, United States) military maneuvers. After each exercise, “we made slight modifications based on the information and feedback we received,” Brooks explained.
ZM asked ARV what makes Mission Master different from other UGVs. The answer was: three features. First is the autonomy capabilities, which Rheinmetall produces in Canada. “We are two or three years ahead of everyone else. Our system is fully autonomous.” The UGV operates with the US Marine Corps’ TAC tablet, or Marine Air-Ground Task Force Common Handheld (MCH), based on Samsung’s 23S tablet.
The second reason is that Mission Master is amphibious. The UGV has a retractable propeller to help with propulsion and two fold-down sponsons on either side. “The Marines want to use the UGV on the coast, for amphibious operations,” Brooks explained.
Finally, the UGV is transportable. The Mission Master was designed to fit in the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey military transport and cargo aircraft, which the Marines will use to transport personnel, equipment, and small UGVs. “The Mission Master fits nicely in the V-22, along with the mission package,” the company told ZM.
The UGV has other capabilities that will interest operators, namely a “follow me” option, which allows the vehicle to follow a person or vehicle. Brooks highlighted that the Mission Master is an ideal multipurpose complement for a rifle squad.
The Mission Master continues to evolve. “The next step we are looking at is the payload module,” the company told ZM. At Modern Day Marine, a Mission Master was showcased with a power generator, which can recharge the UGV (Mission Master is 100% battery powered) or other payloads; the UGV can also transport ammo, food supplies, and water. The company is also working on adding an evacuation litter kit to transport wounded Marines from the front lines to a medical outpost. “We are trying to take some of the tasks that are inherently dangerous or require a lot of manpower and try to do that with robotics,” the company summarized to MDM during our chat in the US capital.
The UGV can transport up to 1,133 kg (2,500 lbs) of cargo and has a range of 50 km, depending on payload and operating conditions. “During Apollo Shield, we did a fully autonomous 50 km resupply mission to a mortar unit,” Brooks told ZM.
Looking to the future, the company will field two Mission Masters with Fieldranger weapons stations onboard later this year. The Marines will carry out testing with the integrated solution. The company is also working on adding a tethered Hoverfly drone. Moreover, ARV is considering other payloads, like counter-drone systems. “We are exploring all options.”
Rheinmetall has a growing family of Mission Master UGVs, including the Mission Master SP, Mission Master CXT, and the Mission Master XT.
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