The Cockerill®3105 – Infantry Support, Reconnaissance and Anti-Tank Weapons Armored Vehicle Weapons Platform, Protected - Powerful - Precise

Based on an exclusive modular concept, the Cockerill® 3000 Series is a unique platform that allows a single turret to integrate guns of different calibers and the corresponding technological modules: automatic canons of 25mm, 30mm, 30/40mm, 35mm and 50mm caliber as well as direct fire guns of 90mm and 105mm caliber. These turrets can be equipped with additional equipment such as anti-tank guided missiles. Thanks to their unique operational capability, the rapid interchangeability of their crews and weapons and their very high level of commonality, the Cockerill® 3000 Series modular turrets can cover all types of missions and objectives on the battlefield (engagement of tanks, bunkers and helicopters, urban combat, intervention in so-called asymmetric conflicts, etc.) at reduced overall operating costs.   

These systems benefit from John Cockerill Defence's "In-Service Support" and its simulation solutions offered under the Agueris® brand. These allow training and education in immersive virtual cockpits as well as in onboard simulators.   

The Cockerill® Series 3000 - A Mature System

First designed between 2010 and 2013, over 760 have been delivered to customers in varying configurations (30mm and 105mm) and, in the last 24 months over 130 units of the 105mm variants have been placed into service on both wheeled and tracked armored vehicles. It therefore represents a high TRL level (8-9) and a low operational risk for any future user.  

The Cockerill 3105 – Multi-Mission Capability at an Affordable Sustainment Cost

The Cockerill 3105 turret is a versatile multi-mission 105mm weapons system that can be integrated in both wheeled and tracked armored vehicles. It offers hunter killer capability in a protected environment (up to Level 5 Stanag 4569) and its stabilized turret provides for accurate mobile engagements. Responding to lessons learned during recent conflicts, the designers of the Cockerill®3105 provided for a unique high elevation of 42° of the main weapon system thereby permitting the engagement of targets in high locations in MOUT/FIBUA and in mountainous areas – furthermore it provides the crew with an indirect fire capability with a range of over 10km. The turret possesses fully automatic loading system (autoloader) that contains 12 ready rounds with reloading under-armor capability.  This automatic loading system therefore eliminates the loader position and allows for a 2-man crew in the turret.

The 105mm Gun and Ammunition – Multirole Terminal Effects

The turret is armed with the proprietary Cockerill 105mm high-power gun that fires all NATO standard ammunition. The choice of the 105mm caliber was based on the availability of ammunition variants in the 105mm class, their affordable cost and of course on the multi-role terminal effects.

As opposed to other direct fire calibers, the 105mm family of ammunition offers the user a multi-role capability not found in other calibers, namely:

Infantry Support – HESH/HEP - HE - Smoke – Canister Rounds - HEMP

HESH/HEP - Concrete wall – the HESH/HEP round is specifically designed to pierce holes in reinforced concrete walls large enough to allow infantry to pass through

HE – anti-area capability permitting area clearage via blast and fragmentation

Smoke – White phosphorous smoke rounds allow of obscuration in the battlefield thus permitting protected infantry and mobile operations

Canister – due to the spinning of the 105mm this round is highly efficient in densely wooded and beach clearing operations

Anti-amor – HEAT and APFSDS

APFSDS – high performance tungsten-based round, capable of a penetration path of over 560mm at 2 kms against rolled homogenous armored targets.

HEAT – shaped warhead with high penetration capability

The 105mm AMP – a new the development by the US Army and will allow for 3 mode Point Detonating, Point Detonating Delay and Air Burst capabilities

It is clear therefore that the versatility of the 105mm caliber is one of the reasons why it is still in service and in constant development – added to this, the 105mm caliber is generally available at a fraction of the cost of other large caliber direct fire ammunition making the system affordable not only in its acquisition phase but also in its sustainment life cycle.

The Cockerill® 3105 turret and proprietary Cockerill® 105 gun, combined with the terminal effects found in the 105mm caliber, provides the user an unprecedented level of mobile combat versatility and adaptability to evolving battlefield situations and allows for target engagements unavailable in other large caliber direct fire platforms. A protected environment that can engage targets with a powerful weapon allowing precise target neutralization across the full spectrum of Infantry support and anti-armor operations.

Cockerill 3105 Turret with gun at maximum elevation