Defense Aquisitions: Steps to Improve the Crusader Program's Investment Decisions.

摘要

To address future threats, the Army has identified a requirement for an artillery system that has greater firepower, range, and mobility than its current self-propelled howitzer the Paladin. Operation Desert Storm demonstrated that current howitzers were unable to keep up with our tanks and fighting vehicles. In 1994, the Army began to develop the Crusader, an advanced artillery system consisting of a self-propelled 155- millimeter howitzer and a resupply vehicle. The Army's total acquisition cost in the Crusader program is projected to be about $11 billion. In 2000, the Army changed its requirements and restructured the Crusader program to make the system lighter and more deployable. This change was in response to the Army's planned transformation to a future force, which will also be lighter and more deployable. The Army expects to use the Crusader until it is eventually replaced by the main component of the future force, known as the Future Combat Systems.