GSD LuWa, Potential Replacement for the Rheinmetall Wiesel Armored Ranpur

GSD LuWa, Potential Replacement for the Rheinmetall Wiesel Armored Ranpur


It is not felt, the age of the armored armored chain wheel with a cute German design, Rheinmetall Wiesel, is getting old. Produced in the period 1979-1993, the Wiesel 1 population has reached 343 units and 178 units for Wiesel 2. Even though until now various variants are still being operated by the German Army, a replacement for the Sang Weasel seems to have been prepared.


IABG (Industrieanlagen-Betriebsgesellschaft mbH), a German engineering and technology company specializing in providing services to various industries, including defence, automotive, aerospace, commissioned by BAAINBw as general contractor, presented the complete system demonstrator of armored vehicles for airborne troops (GSD LuWa /Gesamtsystemdemonstrator für einen Luftbeweglichen Waffenträger) after the duration of this project has been running for 14 months.

Together with project partners ACS, FFG and Valhalla Turrets, the interior design was presented to the German Ministry of Defense at Derching near Augsburg. The LuWa GSD, which is also known as Wiesel Next Generation, will begin receiving design evaluations in mid-2022.

The design of the LuWa GSD is very unique and the entire vehicle has been designed to be small and lightweight so that the vehicle can be easily dropped from the air. The hull was equipped with two large bulletproof windows at the front and one additional small window on each side, offering a 180° view of the crew.

The LuWa GSD design is based on independent twin-track suspension, each including three road wheels and one return roller. The roof of the vehicle is equipped with an unmanned weapons station armed with a single 30 mm cannon developed by the Slovenian company Valhalla Turrets.

The front of the hull was equipped with two large bulletproof windows offering a 180° view to the operator, as well as one small window on each side of the hull. The LuWa GSD prototype is equipped with a remotely operated unmanned weapons station armed with one 30 mm automatic cannon capable of engaging targets at a maximum firing range of 3,000 meters.

The 30 mm gun in this gun is capable of firing a variety of ammunition, including the APFSDS-T (Armor-Piercing Fin-Stabilized Discarding Sabot) type which provides sufficient armor penetration against current and future battlefield threats.

As a powertrain, the LuWa GSD is powered by a diesel-electric hybrid power package that offers a quiet operating mode. For the Wiesel ranpur, which is the reference for the GSD LuWa design, it was designed in the 70s and began strengthening the German Army in the late 1980s. 

With a weight of 2.7 tons in the standard variant, making Wiesel into the category of light air transportable armored fighting vehicle, meaning that the type lightly armored armored personnel carrier prepared for tactical mobility by air.

With its small size and light weight, the C-130 Hercules heavy transport aircraft can carry 2 Wiesel units in one sorting. Puma SA330 class helicopters can also carry Wiesel via sling cables.


Interestingly enough, Wiesel has actually been introduced to Indonesia for a long time. Around 1989-1990, Wiesel was even often advertised in a military magazine in the 80s. At that time, Wiesel was still produced by Krupp Mak. And in fact Wiesel has also been tested on terrain contours in Indonesia.


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