Thales UK Wins $252.3M to Supply Protector RS4 RWS for British Boxer Vehicles

RBSL and Rheinmetall Landsysteme have jointly awarded a contract, worth £180 million ($252.3 million), to Thales UK to supply PROTECTOR RS4 Remote Weapon Station (RWS) and Acusonic Shot Detection System – for the British Army’s new Boxer vehicles.

Thales UK, as a strategic partner to Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace, will fully assemble and integrate 500 RWS and deliver 500 Acusonic automated threat warning systems onto Boxer vehicles over the next 10 years, as part of the UK MOD’s Mechanised Infantry Vehicle (MIV) programme.

The PROTECTOR RS4 uses a 360 degree high definition long range cameras attached to the outside of the vehicle to scan for enemy threats, even when Boxer is moving at speed. The RWS then alerts soldiers inside the armoured Boxer through a digital display – so they can keep a permanent watch outside while remaining safely inside the vehicle.

The system also offers key defensive capabilities, including a multi-barrel smoke grenade launcher, thermal imaging, and infra-red pointers.

The Acusonic Shot Detection System is designed to accurately sense and report the direction of incoming enemy fire.  The system will give the Boxer vehicle’s crew the critical situational awareness to react to threats.

The UK re-joined the Boxer programme in 2018 and has committed £2.8 billion to deliver over 500 vehicles to the British Army. The first vehicles are scheduled to be ready for service in 2023.