Czech Defence News of the Week (12th – 19th July 2019)

Author: Jan Kouba, army.cz|Caption: T-72M4CZ MBT

All four addressed competitors (BAE Systems: CV90, GDELS: ASCOD 2, Rheinmetall: Lynx, PSM: Puma) advanced to the next phase of the procedure for the delivery of 210 tracked Infantry Fighting Vehicles. – The Army prefered unmanned turrets for its new IFV’s explicitely in December 2016. – “The Hussite Wars” exhibition opened in Vítězné náměstí. - Live fire drill carried out by the 2nd and 3rd companies of the 73rd Tank Battalion.

• All four addressed competitors (BAE Systems: CV90, GDELS: ASCOD 2, Rheinmetall: Lynx, PSM: Puma) advanced to the next phase of the procedure for the delivery of 210 tracked Infantry Fighting Vehicles. All companies have pledged, in writing, to fulfill all 16 “no-go” requirements by the Czech Army. On Monday, 15^th July, based on the recommendation of the Evaluation Committee, acting Deputy Minister of Defence, head of the  Armaments and Acquisition Division of the MoD, Filip Říha sent to all tenderers a "Notice of Acceptance of the Request for Participation in the Multi-Round Procedure" with a specific statement on their request for further participation in the contract. Subsequently, companies will receive a “Pre-Quotation Call” to send a specific pre-bid for 210 vehicles meeting the parameters by the military experts. A suprising move given the unmanned turrets and eight soldiers carried in the troop compartment of the vehicles are still required. We will follow the developments closely.

See also: 16 Uncrossable Requirements for the new Czech Tracked Infantry Fighting Vehicles

• Still on the tracked IFV’s: The editorial board of the Security Magazín received a presentation entitled "Re-armament of the 7^th Mechanized Brigade with a new IFV", signed by colonel of the General Staff Ing. Zdeněk Mikula, deputy commander of the 7^th Mechanized Brigade, in December 2016. The 7^th Brigade is to get new tracked Infantry Fighting Vehicles, which will be chosen within the actual tender procedure. The presenation contains a clear and explicite preference for unmanned turrets. “By priority an unmanned turret - preferred. Manned turret - accepted,” the presenation says. Three years later the Army changed its mind with its new requirements presented in March 2019.

See also: Czech Infantry Fighting Vehicle Tender – manned or unmanned turrets?

• On Thursday, 18^th July, Deputy Chief of General Staff - Inspector General of the Army of the Czech Republic Major General Milan Schulc opened another of a series of exhibitions on the Vítězné náměstí, entitled “the Hussite Wars”. Although the exhibition, as the title reveals, focuses on the earlier period of Czech history, it nevertheless captures information concerning the legacy of the Hussite military tradition for modern Czech history. The main author of the exhibition, Jan Biederman from the Military History Institute, says: “Every section of Czech history has somehow been reflected in our contemporary history in some way, but few have done so on such a large scale as in the case of the Hussite Wars, whose so-called second life can be described as more than varied across the 20^th and beginning of the 21^st centuries. It is not easy to recall the phenomenon of such historical and cultural significance even by means of a large exhibition, but we hope that this modest panel exhibition will be a dignified reminder of not only the Hussite Wars, but also the legacy of the Hussite movement as a whole. ”

See also: The Czech military history and museums II

• Four dozens of soldiers of the 73^rd Tank Battalion from Přáslavice carried out a live fire drill with their T-72M4CZ tanks these days. The aim of the training of the 2^nd and 3^rd Tank Company was to end the stage of training at the company level. During combat fires, soldiers do not know exactly where the target is. It tilts and it is necessary to respond fast, often to fire when on move. The identification itself must take place within seconds, with the targets being as far as two kilometers from the tanks. Thanks to the fire control systems of the T-72M4CZ tanks, the situation is much easier than with the older T-72M1 variant.

See also: The Czech Army Main Battle Tanks Question