KTO Rosomak
Polish Army KTO Rosomak
A KTO Rosomak wheeled IFV with a Hitfist-30P turret.
Typearmored personnel carrier
Place of origin Finland
 Poland
Service history
Used bySee Operators
Specifications
Mass22,000 kg (49,000 lb)
Length7.7 m (25 ft)
Width2.8 m (9 ft 2 in)
Height2.3 m (7 ft 7 in)
Crew3 (commander, driver, gunner)
8 passengers
Main
armament
1 × 30×173 mm ATK Mk44 Bushmaster II gun
1 × 12.7 mm WKM-B or 1 × 40mm Mk 19 in Rosomak M3
Secondary
armament
1 × 7.62×51mm NATO UKM-2000C coaxial general purpose machine gun
EngineDI 12 Scania diesel
360 kW (480 hp) or 405 kW (543 hp)
Power/weight15.6 kW/t (21.2 PS/t) (max weight)
Suspension8×8 wheeled
Operational
range
800 km (500 mi)
Maximum speed over 100 km/h (60 mph) on land
up to 10 km/h (6.2 mph) in water

The KTO Rosomak (Polish: Kołowy Transporter Opancerzony Rosomak, lit. 'The Wolverine wheeled armored personnel carrier') is an 8×8 multi-role military vehicle produced by Rosomak S.A., a Polish Armaments Group company, in Siemianowice Śląskie (Silesia voivodeiship). The vehicle is a licensed variant of the Finnish Patria AMV.

History

In December 2002, the Polish Ministry of National Defense signed a contract to buy 690 Patria AMV vehicles, to be manufactured in Poland. The main competitors of the AMV were the MOWAG Piranha and Steyr Pandur. As part of the initial order, 690 vehicles were to be delivered in two basic variants: 313 combat Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFVs) and 377 transport-special base vehicles. In October 2013, the order was increased to 997, for delivery between 2014 and 2019.

The name "Rosomak", Polish for "Wolverine", was chosen following a contest organized by the Nowa Technika Wojskowa magazine. The Rosomak replaced the obsolete OT-64 SKOT Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs) and partially the BMP-1 IFV in service with the Polish Land Forces.[1]

The first export customer of Patria, AMV & WZM SA has the right to export the KTO Rosomak in some markets. In 2006 the KTO Rosomak was tested in Malaysia.[2] In 2023 Poland began supplying the KTO Rosamak to Ukraine, where it has seen battle.

Variants

Variants in use by Polish military

  • Rosomak - Infantry fighting vehicle variant with an Oto Melara Hitfist-30P gun turret armed with a 30 mm ATK Mk 44 chain gun and 7.62mm NATO UKM-2000C machine gun. The turret has advanced fire control systems with thermal sights and an Obra laser warning system connected to six 81 mm 902A ZM Dezamet smoke grenade launchers. The infantry fighting vehicle variant modified for war in Afghanistan was called "Rosomak"-M1M, equipped with additional steel-composite armor, upgraded communications, wire cutters in front of driver and commander hatch, video cameras showing the back and sides of vehicle on two LCD screens in troop compartment, and a Pilar system that detects the direction of fire. Because of additional armor, this variant cannot float and has no water propellers. The variant was further upgraded to a standard known as M1M. The most noticeable change was the addition of QinetiQ RPGNet anti-RPG net and new "sand" camouflage. Other changes included installation of Duke anti-IED system and Blue Force Tracking BMS system (systems on loan from the US Army). All older ("green") M1 standard Rosomaks also received RPGNet. As of 2022, Rosomak were to be produced with a ZSSW-30 unmanned turret armed with a 30mm gun, UKM-2000 machine gun and Spike ATGM.
  • Rosomak-M2 and M3 - Armored personnel carrier variant modified for missions in Afghanistan equipped with similar task equipment (including additional armor) to the M1 variant. The main difference is that this variant was equipped with OSS-D open turret with 40 mm Mk-19 grenade launcher or 12.7 mm NSW/WKM-B heavy machine gun.
  • Rosomak-S - Armored personnel carrier variant for two anti-tank teams armed with Spike anti-tank guided missile.
  • Rosomak-WEM - (WEM for Wóz Ewakuacji Medycznej – lit. "medical evacuation vehicle") – armored ambulance vehicle with crew of 3, capable of transporting 3 injured soldiers on stretchers and an additional four in a sitting position. The WEM-M variant for Afghanistan was equipped with additional armor and RPGNet, as with the M1M variant.
  • Rosomak-WRT - (WRT for Wóz Rozpoznania Technicznego – lit. "technical reconnaissance vehicle")
  • Rosomak-WSRiD - (WSRiD for Wielosensorowy System Rozpoznania i Dozoru – lit. "multisensory reconnaissance and supervision system")
  • Rosomak-AWD - (AWD for Artyleryjski Wóz Dowodzenia – lit. "artillery command vehicle") – Command vehicle for M120K Rak mortar company fire module[3]
  • Rosomak-WD - (WD for Wóz Dowodzenia – lit. "command vehicle")[4]
  • M120K Rak - 120 mm mortar artillery vehicle, first delivered in July 2017[5]
  • Rosomak-NJ - (NJ for Nauka Jazdy – lit. "driving school")

Combat history

A Rosomak-M1M IFV equipped with additional Q-Net stand-off armour, patrols the Afghan city of Ghazni in 2010.
War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)

The Polish Land Forces contingent, part of the International Security Assistance Force, operated over 100 KTO Rosomak vehicles, including five medevac versions, during the Afghanistan War. The APCs were equipped with additional steel-composite armor. In early 2008, a Polish Rosomak serving in Afghanistan, the version with upgraded armor, was attacked by the Taliban. The vehicle was hit by RPG-7 rockets, but managed to fire back and returned to base without requiring assistance.[6]

In June 2008, the Taliban attacked a Rosomak with an RPG, hitting it in its frontal armor without penetrating it. In 2009, the first soldier was reported killed while traveling in a Rosomak after an improvised explosive device exploded under the vehicle, which rolled over and crushed the gunner who had been standing in the open turret. Similar attacks had occurred before but had failed to inflict casualties.

European Union mission in Chad (2007–2008)
European Union Force Chad/CAR
Russian Invasion of Ukraine (2022-)
  • The Polish government announced in April 2023 it would provide the Ukrainian government with 200 KTO Rosomak. It was reported that the Ukrainian army’s 21st Mechanized Brigade began receiving the first batch of these 25-ton, eight-wheel IFVs in July 2023.[7]
  • According to Oryx blog at least 3 such units were destroyed and 1 was damaged during ongoing Ukraine counteroffensive[8]

Operators

Current operators

  •  Poland: 903 in different versions, as of 2020.[2]
  •  United Arab Emirates: 40 AMV Patria manufactured in Poland.[9]
  •  Ukraine: 200 KTO Rosomaks. 100 to be delivered immediately in 2023, 100 on order.[10][11] The order was to be financed from the United States and the European Union funds.[12][13]

Potential operators

See also

Comparable vehicles

References

  1. ↑ "KTO Rosomak". Gdzie zaczyna się wojsko…. 19 September 2010. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  2. 1 2 "Po epoce Rosomaka czas na Borsuka?". DziennikZbrojny.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 7 July 2020.
  3. ↑ "Wóz Dowodzenia kompanijnego modułu ogniowego 120 MM — Rosomak Spółka Akcyjna w Siemianowicach Śląskich". www.rosomaksa.pl. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  4. ↑ "Rosomaki WD przekazane". www.milmag.pl (in Polish). 2 October 2018. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  5. ↑ Wilk, Remigiusz (3 July 2017). "Poland receives first Rak 120 mm mortar vehicles". IHS Jane's 360. Warsaw. Archived from the original on 17 July 2017. Retrieved 17 July 2017.
  6. ↑ "Afghanistan: 14 lipca dotrą dodatkowe pancerze dla Rosomaków". Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  7. ↑ Axe, David. "Polish-Made Fighting Vehicles Have Arrived In Ukraine". Forbes. Retrieved 3 August 2023.
  8. ↑ https://www.oryxspioenkop.com/2022/02/attack-on-europe-documenting-ukrainian.html
  9. ↑ "Rosomaki z Polski dla Zjednoczonych Emiratów Arabskich. Zakończono dostawę 40 wozów". 21 June 2016.
  10. ↑ President.gov.ua. "President of Ukraine: message to the nation".
  11. ↑ Oryx. "A European Powerhouse: Polish Military Aid To Ukraine". Oryx. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  12. ↑ "Polska Zbrojna". www.polska-zbrojna.pl. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
  13. ↑ "Ukraina kupuje od polskich zakładów 150 Rosomaków, trzy kompanijne moduły Rak, 100 pocisków do zestawów Piorun". www.gazetaprawna.pl (in Polish). 5 April 2023. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
  14. ↑ "The Slovenia Times". sloveniatimes.com. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
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