Let's go! Bundeswehr upgrades infantry fighting vehicle Puma

German tomcats are purring: the Bundeswehr upgrades its Puma worth a billion euros. Through the joint venture company PSM GmbH, the Bundeswehr has now commissioned the high upgrade of its Puma armored vehicles from the first batch to a uniform design status.

The contract for the retrofitting of the Puma vehicle fleet was signed on June 28, 2021 at the Federal Office for Equipment, Information Technology and Use of the Bundeswehr (BAAINBw) in Koblenz. With this retrofitting measure, the Bundeswehr is consistently progressing towards a ready-for-use, fully digitalized armored vehicle fleet. The work is set to begin in July 2021 and is expected to be completed by 2029. HERE you can find the documentary about the new German cat on SPARTANAT.

The contract awarded now covers 154 vehicles in a first step and has a value of 1.04 billion euros gross for the consortium. The PSM GmbH is a joint venture of the parent companies Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, each holding 50 percent of the shares in the joint venture.

With the initiated retrofitting, the majority of the 350 Puma armored vehicles from the 1st batch currently in the Bundeswehr will be upgraded to the so-called design standard S1. As part of the equipment for the NATO High Readiness Joint Task Force VJTF 2023 provided by the Bundeswehr, a total of 40 units of this Puma variant S1 have already been ordered. Only a total of 13 driver training vehicles are exempt from the modernization.

The measures at a glance:

• Integration of the missile system MELLS
• Preparation for integrating a turret-independent
  secondary weapon system (TSWA)
• Integration of high-resolution, day and
  night vision capable camera systems for the driver and the
  mounted infantry squad
• Integration of state-of-the-art, color vision capable optronics for
  gunner and commander
• Integration of the Soldier System Infantryman of the Future - Enhanced System (IdZ-ES) and the Battle Management System (BMS)
• Integration of new digital radios

The new Puma version S1 is characterized, among other things, by the integration of standoff-capable effectors such as the Multirole-capable Light Anti-tank Missile System (MELLS), additional sensors such as the new driver vision system, and an improved command architecture. The new all-round and driver vision system marks the end of the era of the periscopes. For the first time, the entire crew can see "through the armor" day and night. The fusion mode combines the day view with the powerful thermal image, allowing for early reconnaissance of concealed targets both day and night. The Puma is the first western combat vehicle to be equipped with such a system as standard. Here is the comparison video: Armored Infantry Attack - Marder vs. Puma

The Puma in the S1 version, together with the Soldier System Infantryman of the Future-Enhanced System developed by Rheinmetall in the VJTF2023 version, forms the Panzergrenadier system. HERE is the Bundeswehr video introducing the Soldier System Infantryman of the Future.

For the first time in Germany, the Panzergrenadier system combines a digitized vehicle platform - the Puma armored vehicle in the S1 version - with a soldier system equipped with digital radio technology. On March 18, 2021, the Inspector General of the Army, Lieutenant General Alfons Mais, declared the combat readiness of the system for the Bundeswehr.

The PUMA on the Internet: www.psm-spz.de

The GERMAN ARMED FORCES on the Internet: www.bundeswehr.de

Rheinmetall Defence on the Internet: www.rheinmetall-defence.com

KMW on the Internet: www.kmweg.de