Patria unveils ARVE self-propelled howitzer

Patria has presented its ARVE prototype self-propelled howitzer at the company’s Arctic Event held in the Finnish city of Rovaniemi from 17th to the 19th of March. The event saw the unveiling of not one but two new prototypes, as well as a general overview of the company’s offerings with a focus on sub-arctic infantry capabilities.

ARVE

Perhaps the most eye-catching system on display was the first prototype of Patria’s new truck-mounted 155 mm gun. The prototype of the concept – designated ARVE – was shown to the public for the first time during the Arctic Event, and consists of a SISU E13TP all-terrain 8×8 truck with a towed 155 GH 52 howitzer integrated onto the rear. 

Patria, through a number of mergers and acquisitions, is the current successor to Tampella’s defence division. As such it is the company responsible for the two towed 155 mm gun-howitzers currently used in large numbers by the Finnish Army, the 155 K 83 and 155 K 98 (or 155 GH 52 APU, as it is known when marketed internationally). 

As the focus has been on providing a low-cost solution, no major changes have been made to the gun at this stage. When the vehicle arrives at the firing position, it is lowered down to sit at roughly the same height as the towed version, and operated exactly in the same way as the original weapon. This means that there is no need to convert reservists trained on the towed 155 GH 52 APU to a truck-based weapon, as all handling is the same. The SISU E13TP is also in service with Finnish Defence Forces (FDF), meaning that the ARVE marries two proven platforms together. 

The specifications of the resultant ARVE largely match those of the towed weapon, with the ability to fire 3 rounds in the first 15 seconds out to a range of 40 km. Both gun laying and reloading is manual, but the benefit of the truck mount means that it is able to get the first shot off in 90 seconds, and leave the firing position in 45 seconds after the final round has been fired. The truck is able to carry 24 complete rounds.

With the 155 GH 52 and 155 K 83 being closely related, ARVE is able to mount both versions. The differences are that with the 155 K 83 having a shorter L/39 barrel compared to the L/52 of the 155 GH 52, that version would have a shorter range and weigh slightly less. With regards to the future of the project, Patria will perform test firings during the summer, and is then hopeful for an FDF order of conversions of the existing stock of guns. The company also adds that while the current prototype has not seen any changes to the gun itself in the interest of keeping development time and costs down, improvements such as electrical laying could be an option further down the line if the customer is interested.

Patria is also open to integrating other guns onto the vehicle, though it is notable that few countries in Europe have a significant number of towed 155 mm guns in service. What might open up the market further is the production of vehicles with new-build guns, with Patria confidently stating that they are able to start the production of completely new weapons – including 155 mm barrels – at short notice. The last new gun produced by Patria was the final 155 GH 52 APU in 2005, but the company states that it has been able to maintain its artillery know-how through being involved in maintenance, repair, and overhaul since then, including the manufacture and delivery of spare barrels.  

While the ARVE is not offering the same kind of protection or automation of many of the competing self-propelled systems, the stated aim by several European countries to grow their armed forces means that there might be a market for a cheaper system that allows for mass in a way some of the higher-end offerings do not.

CAVS

That is also the reasoning behind the Patria 6×6 made under the international CAVS-programme. Following significant success with the high-end Patria AMV 8×8 – in particular with Poland having built a large number under license as the Rosomak – the company is now building the simpler and noticeably cheaper 6×6 APC. Finland, Latvia, and Sweden have already received series-produced vehicles, and it does seem to be the platform of choice for Germany to replace the Cold War-era Fuchs APC.  Patria presented the heavy CAVS during the event, which is fitted with additional armour and a remote weapon station. Finland has ordered a single heavy CAVS. 

For the UK market, Patria and Babcock recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding to present the vehicle as an option to meet the operational requirements of the British Army. Under this agreement, Babcock would handle the production at scale, in line with the UK MOD Land Industrial Strategy, as well as supporting the platform locally throughout its service life. 

As is typical for this kind of vehicle, it is delivered in a number of different versions, with the APC- and C2-versions being in production, a MEDEVAC-version being in the design phase, and Germany having ordered the design work of the integration of Patria’s turreted NEMO 120 mm mortar onto the 6×6. Currently, there are two production lines up and running – one in Finland at Patria’s plant in Hämeenlinna and another in Valmiera in Latvia – which together have delivered over 200 vehicles to their customers, with another 600 on firm orders.

FAMOUS

The 6×6 in turn lends a number of components to Patria’s FAMOUS, a new all-terrain vehicle which is funded by the European Defence Industrial Development Programme (EDIDP). Currently in its stage 2, with Patria as the lead company, the EDIDP is at its heart a technology development programme. However, with the inclusion of in-house funding from Patria the company has been able to present a tracked APC as one of the outcomes of the project – while noting that it is entirely possible that we will see some parts of the developed technologies, which are controlled by other companies, in use on other future platforms as well.

The tracked FAMOUS-platform, which is still unnamed and referred to simply as the FAMOUS ATV for the time being, was first unveiled at Eurosatory last year in a concept configuration. Patria used the event to show what they term the first ‘real’ prototype. Similarly to the 6×6, the FAMOUS is not expected to compete with the upper-end of the market dominated by capable but expensive infantry fighting vehicles, but instead to offer an alternative for countries looking to replace the likes of the M113, MT-LB, or even the Bv-206. 

From a Finnish point of view, the MT-LB in different versions is still a mainstay of many key units while the Bv-206 offers all-terrain mobility in the Northern half of the country – which is dominated by soft terrain such as swamps in the summer and sees heavy snowfall in the winter. The replacement of these two Cold War era vehicle families is therefore of interest. For the Bv-206 in particular, the low speed during road transport means the vehicles suffer relatively poor operational mobility, something the FAMOUS ATV is to solve by offering a top-speed of well over 80 km/h (50 mph) while still having good tactical mobility on soft ground thanks to the low weight and large rubber tracks.

It remains to be seen whether there is a wider market for the vehicle, with many Bv-206 operators having opted for new articulated vehicles such as BvS10 as the natural replacement and many tracked APCs having been replaced by wheeled platforms. However, the FAMOUS ATV does offer a somewhat unique package of capabilities, and in particular with the synergies offered to countries also operating the 6×6, it might be able to find its niche in the market. Patria states that the company is expecting to be ready for the production of a pre-production series in 2026, with full-scale production possible during 2027.

Calibre comment

With the Finnish Army traditionally being artillery-heavy, and with the withdrawal of a significant number of 130 mm and 152 mm weapons from service during the last few decades, the future of the Finnish artillery is somewhat open for the time being. The South Korean 155 mm K9 tracked self-propelled howitzer is the most capable artillery system in Finnish service, but the cost to acquire and operate it is seen as prohibitively expensive when it comes to replacing all towed artillery pieces – some 132 155 mm guns in total, according to the 2024 Military Balance, as well as a large quantity of 122 mm D-30 howitzers, too. 

As a result, Patria announced its intention to integrate a 155 mm gun onto a truck in late 2024. The goal was to provide the FDF with the option of rapidly, and at a relatively limited cost, improving the mobility of their artillery. A similar approach has been pursued with the TREMOS mortar system, which mounts existing Finnish mortars onto a truck, offering a route to rapidly improving their mobility. 

In addition to Patria’s vehicles, a number of subsidiaries and associated companies were present, including Nordic Drones showing off their drones – both wire-guided and payload-carrying solutions – as well as Nammo. Nammo was emphasising their mortar round portfolio, with the company seeing a strong growth in demand for heavy mortar solutions and rounds, following in the heels of the similar growth trend seen among 155 mm artillery.

By Robin Häggblom, published on 20th March, 2025. You can find Robin on X.com via @CorporalFrisk and Bluesky through @corporalfrisk.bsky.social.