AA-30 Whirlwind MLRS
Art by Korva
Credit for parts of the writeup and the art for the LY4072 rocket pod is well-earned by Lyras. Technocratic Syndicalists has been consulted for some of the designs, and any errors contained therein are my own
Art by Korva
Credit for parts of the writeup and the art for the LY4072 rocket pod is well-earned by Lyras. Technocratic Syndicalists has been consulted for some of the designs, and any errors contained therein are my own
Specifications for AA-30 Whirlwind MLRS
Mass: 50 tons loaded
Dimensions: 11657mm long x 2975 wide x 4000mm tall to launcher top
Engine: 40-liter 625 hp multifuel diesel engine.
Road speed: 72 kilometers/hour
Transmission: Automatic (x6 forward gears, x2 reverse)
Armament: 2 x LY4072 LRM pods (30 x 220mm rockets each OR 7 x LY589 “Hellion” cruise missiles OR 7 x LY4045 Anti-ship cruise missiles each) OR
Pintle-mounted heavy machinegun OR RWS on the driver’s cabin.
Price: 3 million NSD
DPR: 3 billion NSD
Background:
For a long while, the Allanean Armed Forces utilized variants of the Lyran Arms LY300 Manticore MLRS system. This system has been used by Allaneans in the Second Freemen’s Crusade, the Spirean-Nefreedian conflict, as well as the Taros Islands conflict. The Allaneans have always been satisfied by the firepower of the LY300, and its ability to be modified in the field to fire 220mm rockets, anti-ship missiles and even long-range cruise missiles by simply lifting out one rocket pod and fitting in another. Allanean Arms, Inc. had even developed and supplied the armed forces with a long-range ATGM to be fired from the 220mm rocket pod - the Mercury multipurpose missile.
Still, the Manticore had one powerful disadvantage. It used a tank chassis. The chassis was extremely heavy - the vehicle weighing more than seventy-two tons loaded, twenty-two tons more than the main-battle tank in current use by the Free Kingdom Armed Forces, the T-95, and fifty-two tons heavier than the BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicle. Moreover, the Manticore required the same maintenance cycle as a tank - its weekly maintenance cycle required the crew to spent eight hours or more to maintain, leaving them drained and inflicting various health damage, such as stress fractures and torn muscles.
To reduce the maintenance cycle on the vehicle, Allanean Arms proposed the use of its MAF-625 truck body - a heavy tank transporter truck produced at the Minograd Automotive Factory - to carry the extremely heavy rocket LY4072 LRM pods. The first prototypes faced some difficulty - the LRM pods were either posed too far back, causing the vehicle to fishtail in tight turns, or too high, causing it to flip over due to a high set center of gravity - but eventually, Allanean Arms decided to create a chassis where the base of the launcher was weighed down somewhat (by means of making a hardier launcher base), which made the vehicle more stable, finally giving the world the AA-30 Whirlwind.
After combat use of the AA-30 Whirlwind, several changes had to be made. First, it soon transpired that the standard crane supplied with the vehicle had insufficient power to reliably reload it. Second, a variety of armaments were soon developed that could be used with the standard series of rocket pods.
Armament and Ammunition:
As mentioned above, the AA-30 Whirlwind utilizes the LY4072 rocket pods. Just like any other system using the LY4072, the WHirlwind is reloaded by having the two LY4072 pods lifted into place using a 30-ton-capacity crane/reloading vehicle (also utilizing the MAF-525 chassis). This use of the LY4072 rocket pods in their various modifications allows users to utilize both the MLRS rockets and long-range missiles that are available for the Lyran Arms systems using these missiles.
LY4072 and LY4072-L Rocket Pods (Head-On View) emphasizing structure
In the same manner, compatible rocket pods can also be lifted in place and armament. For example, it is possible to launch cruise missiles from the AA-30 [i]Whirlwind using a compatible, lengthened LY4072-L rocket pod. (Capable of launching up to 14 533mm cruise missiles similar to the Lyran Arms Hellion). However, Allanean Arms wishes to stress that the missile pod would weight more than 25 tons loaded. Serious care must be executed when performing road marches with the pod, and movement while the pod is elevated is against safety regulations in the Free Kingdom Armed Forces.
The standard armament of the Whirlwind MLRS are the following variants of weaponry:
Crew Comfort Systems: The vehicle is equipped with the crew comfort systems common to civilian trucks - an air conditioner, a media entertainment system, and a small food fridge. It is also NBC proof.
Variants:
The weapons system is comprised of the following vehicles:
AA30LV - Launch vehicle
AA30TL-X - Transloader vehicle
AA30CCHQ - Command and Control Headquarters
MTO-V - Maintenance Vehicle
AA30T - Training Vehicle
Vehicle available at Allanean Defense Exports
This vehicle is now available via Lyran Arms.
This vehicle is now available at Covenant Arms
