The U.S. Army's future cannon artillery vehicles likely will employ many of the same technologies originally designed for the Crusader―a high-tech howitzer that was terminated last year, because it was deemed too heavy and unwieldy to be useful in today's battles. The 42-ton Crusader was to supplant the aging Paladin, a 32-ton cannon-artillery platform. In the absence of Crusader, the Army will keep the Paladin in operation for at least another decade, until it completes the development of a smaller self-propelled howitzer that will be part of a family of next-generation vehicles known as the Future Combat Systems. If FCS works as planned, it will be a network of as many as 18 types of light combat vehicles (each about 16 tons), including direct-fire and non-line of sight platforms, ground robots and pilotless aircraft. The first FCS units could be in the field by 2008 or 2010, according to the Army's current schedule."
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