Avenger Weapon System

Gary's Combat Vehicle Reference Guide

The Avenger weapon system is a lightweight, day or night, limited adverse weather fire unit employed to counter enemy reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition (RSTA) efforts and low-level aerial threats.

The Avenger fire unit has eight ready-to-fire Stinger missiles in two turret-mounted standard vehicle missile launchers (SVML), an M3P .50-caliber machine gun, a sensor package with forward-looking infrared receiver (FLIR), laser range finder (LRF) and IFF. It has an optical sight and digital fire control system.

The Avenger firing sequence is entirely automated after the firing trigger is pulled. The gunner, after receiving an unknown IFF response and having visually identified the target as hostile, will activate a missile, uncage the seeker, and, if the target is within range, fire a missile. Immediately upon firing the missile, the next missile is already spinning up its gyro and cooling down. This is done without the gunner activating the next missile.

• Avengers are light-skinned vehicles with a distinct high profile and are extremely vulnerable to direct fire, small arms, and indirect fire.
  
  
• The electrically driven gyro-stabilized turret is mounted on a modified M1097 Heavy HMMWV.
  
  
• The crew can launch a Stinger missile or fire the machine gun while on the move or from a remote fighting position 50 meters from the fire unit.
  
  
• The two-man crew can remain in the vehicle under armor protection.
  
  
• The Avenger weapons system has an unobstructed, 360° field of fire and can engage at elevations between -10 and +70 degrees.
  
  
• The Avenger can fire Basic, POST (Passive Optical Seeker Technique), and RMP (Reprogrammable Microprocessor) versions of the Stinger missile.
  
  
• The .50 cal machine gun affords a measure of self-protection by providing additional coverage of the Stinger missile's inner launch boundary.
  
  
• Avenger's sensor package (forward-looking infrared radar [FLIR], carbon dioxide, eye-safe laser range finder, and a video autotracker) provides target acquisition capability in battlefield obscuration at night and in adverse weather.
  
  
• Targeting data is provided by the forward area air defense (FAAD) command, control, communications, and intelligence (C3I).
  
  
• Should the Avenger become disabled, the missiles in the pods can be removed, gripstocks attached, and then fired in the MANPADS configuration. Gripstocks and battery coolant units (BCUs) are stored on the Avenger during combat missions.

Because of its FLIR, video recording capability, and machine gun, the system was routinely employed in Bosnia and Kosovo for nightime roadblock security, crowd surveillance, and reconnaissance.

New System Capabilities:

The Environmental Control Unit/Prime Power Unit (ECU/PPU) is a required subsystem that provides turret air conditioning and provides a separate power source in lieu of vehicle battery power. The ECU/PPU is required to eliminate a turret heat stress safety issue and to lift the conditional fire unit materiel release. ECU/PPU removes restrictions on operational use of Avenger in hot climates. This modification fulfills the user requirement for a separate, reliable power source and for heat and air conditioning to fully operate in a broad spectrum of combat environments (i.e., desert).

Slew-to-Cue (STC) provides the fire unit with a required automatic, digital capability to rapidly slew to an externally reported radar target, placing it directly into the gunner's sighting field of view. This speeds engagements and increases kills by eliminating time consuming manual searches. The STC capability will be embedded into a new Common Fire Control Computer (CFCC) that replaces the existing obsolete fire control. This upgrade also replaces the existing obsolete Automatic Video Tracker (AVT) by embedding an improved AVT capability into the CFCC. The AVT aids the gunner by providing an automatic tracking capability.

STC is an Army category 2 digitization initiative that increases system performance/kills against all targets, especially low observable threats such as UAVs and cruise missiles. It will initially be fielded as part of the First Digitized Corps, then to the remaining force. CFCC/AVT replacement is required to replace critical obsolete components and improve performance. It will result in 50% improved performance, continued sustainment and lower Operations & Support (O&S) costs.

Development History:

• 24-AUG-1987: Boeing Aerospace Corporation was awarded a contract for production of its Avenger/PMS weapon system.
• 01-NOV-1988: The first two Avenger fire units completed.
• 29-APR-1989: The 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment was the first unit equipped with the Avenger.
• DEC-1989: Avenger Production Qualification Testing (PQT) completed.
• 09-FEB-1990: The Avenger was type classified Standard.
• 12-APR-1990: Avenger full-scale production authorized.
• AUG-1994: Avenger was certified for airdrop following its third successful test at Fort Bragg.

The HMMWV carrier can vary: M998, M1097, M1097A1, M1097A2.
Early Avengers did not have an Environmental Control Unit/Prime Power Unit (ECU/PPU).