Leonardo defense concern is in talks with the Polish military about integrating Vulcano guided missiles into the Krab self-propelled artillery system, with plans for subsequent field testing of this artillery/smart ammunition combo.
A key reference here is the Ukrainian Armed Forces' successful use of the Krab system to hit a target 70 kilometers away with similar guided munitions, as reported by the Polish website Defence24.
Read more: Polish AHS Krab in Ukraine: Durable Yet Uneasy to Repair and Vulnerable to Lancet Drones, Says War Analyst
The journalists quote representatives of PGZ Serwis Orel who revealed on the Poznaj Gen Zbrojeniówki podcast that Ukrainian artillerymen achieved this record-breaking strike. They did not, however, disclose when or where it occurred.
Defence24's authors logically infer that at such a distance, the Krab could only have hit the target using special Vulcano GLR guided projectiles. This suggests that the adaptation of Vulcano ammunition for the Krab has already been achieved, potentially easing its future integration into the Polish Army.
Worth noting, discussions on equipping Polish artillery with Vulcano shells are not new, the first talks about this prospect date back to five years ago but did not progress significantly.
Meanwhile, the integration of Vulcano GLR shells has already been successfully implemented for K9 self-propelled artillery systems, which the Polish Army had bought from South Korea.
Here, Defense Express would like to highlight the significance of Ukraine's 70-kilometer strike using the Krab system, a truly record-breaking achievement. All the more so because it happened in a real combat situation — before, a 70-kilometer range strike was only demonstrated during experiments at proving grounds.
It is also clear that Ukraine has received guided Vulcano GLR shells as part of Western military aid. Previously, some evidence surfaced that confirmed deliveries of Vulcano BER unguided shells, which have a range of 36 kilometers when fired from artillery with 39-caliber barrels or 50 kilometers with barrels 52 calibers long.
The Vulcano GLR, in contrast, is a guided shell featuring a semi-active laser guidance system and a programmable fuze. When fired from a 52-caliber artillery system, it can achieve a range of up to 70 kilometers, as demonstrated by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Read more: Ukrainian Troops Have Unguided Vulcano Shells, But There Should Be an Even More Advanced Option With a Range of 70 km
