Boxer 8x8 – Armoured Combat Reconnaissance Vehicle
A heavy weight champion for current operating environments
The Boxer armoured transport vehicle is being produced under a bi-national programme. Highly mobile, it is a state-of-the-art wheeled vehicle whose modular design permits a wide variety of mission-specific configurations. Consisting of a uniform drive module, the Boxer vehicle family's user-specific mission modules can be quickly exchanged. A number of mission variants are currently under development, including a troop carrier for transporting an infantry section, a field ambulance, a combat engineering section vehicle, C4I and C2 command vehicles, a logistics vehicle and a battlefield maintenance vehicle.
Having joined forces to form the ARTEC consortium , Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles (RMMV) manufactures the Boxer in cooperation with fellow German defence contractor Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) under a bi-national programme, in which Rheinmetall holds a 64% stake.
The Boxer CRV variant, equipped with the LANCE turret system is completely in line with the modular Boxer philosophy as the LANCE turret itself features a new modular design. It thereby ensures maximum flexibility and an optimized capability for further upgrades for changing requirements. Also the protection of the turret is adaptable for a wide range of missions and to face different threats.
The CRV variant can transport up to 8 soldiers, besides the driver. A variety of individual modules allows for either a two-man or a remotely controlled turret design – one concept with two configurations.
RMMV presents this latest Boxer CRV internationally, these including specific demonstrations of mobility in rough and adverse terrain, HVAC (heating ventilation and air condition) capabilities, and live-fire events.
A distinctive and unique feature of the vehicle is its composition of a drive platform module and interchangeable mission modules which allow several configurations to meet different operational requirements.
Other names in use or previously used for Boxer are GTK (gepanzertes Transport-Kraftfahrzeug; armoured transport vehicle) Boxer and MRAV (multi role armoured vehicle). Confirmed Boxer customers as of February 2020 are Germany, the Netherlands, Lithuania, Australia and the UK. The Boxer has been produced and seen service in A0, A1 and A2 configurations. The UK Boxer will be A3 configuration. Australian deliveries are an A2/A3 hybrid.
In January 2020 in an interview with Shaun Connors of Jane's, Stefan Lishka, MD of ARTEC, stated that only 8% of UK Boxers would be manufactured in Germany with the remainder being assembled at and delivered from two sites in the UK, Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land (RBSL) at Telford and KMW subsidiary WFEL at Stockport. Deliveries of series examples should start very early in 2023.
Design
The Boxer is an eight-wheeled multirole vehicle that at the time of its development easily exceeded most comparable vehicles in weights and dimensions. In recent years the size/weight differences between Boxer and its contemporaries has reduced considerably, with Boxer quoted to have a combat weight of 36,500 kg in 2016 in A1 and A2 configurations, while vehicles such as ST Kinetics' Terrex 3 had a quoted combat weight of 35 tonnes, and Nexter's VBCI, Patria's AMV and General Dynamics' Piranha V all weighing in around the 32 to 33 tonne mark. Current combat weight of the Boxer in A3 configuration is quoted as up to 38.5 tonnes.
Armament
Production Boxers are fitted with a variety of armament ranging from a 7.62 mm light machine gun in a remote weapon station to a 30 mm cannon in a turret. Numerous armament options are offered.
At Eurosatory 2018 Rheinmetall displayed a Boxer fitted with the Oerlikon Skyranger air defence system.
Most in-service Boxers are equipped with a remote weapon station for self-defense. Dutch vehicles are fitted with the Protector M151 RWS from Kongsberg fitted with a 12.7 mm heavy machine gun. German vehicles are usually fitted with the FLW-200 from KMW, which can be fitted with either a 7.62 mm MG3 machine gun, a 12.7 mm M3M HMG or a 40 mm GMW automatic grenade launcher. The FLW-200 has dual-axis stabilization and incorporates a laser rangefinder and a thermal imager.
Protection
The Boxer is constructed from rolled all-welded steel armour to which the AMAP-B module-based appliqué armour kit can be fitted as required by mission threat estimates. AMAP-B modules are taken from the IBD Diesenroth AMAP modular armour package and are fitted to the vehicle with shock absorbing mountings. Exact details of Boxer protection levels have now been classified. According to ARTEC, the vehicle will withstand anti-personnel and large anti-tank mines of an undisclosed type under the wheel, platform or side attack. It has previously been stated that Boxer's baseline armour is all-round resistant to 14.5 mm armour-piercing ammunition in accordance with STANAG 4569 Level 4.
