Puma IFV

BACKROUND HISTORY- The Puma IFV is a modular infantry fighting vehicle, developed to succeed the Marder, which was well past its prime. The Marder was introduced in the 1970s and was built to withstand the conventional warfare of the Cold War era, not the kind of warfare the post-Cold War era would impose on the IFV. Development began towards the end of the 1990s, with the delivery of the Puma commencing in the 2010s. What was ‘radical’ about the new Puma was its modular protective system, which allowed it to “add or remove its protective elements based on the mission requirements or transportation constraints.” Its composite or reactive armor provides further security, complemented by the remote-controlled unmanned turret, which comes equipped with a 30mm MK30-2/ABM autocannon. Its optics, or battlefield network, is also state-of-the-art. The substantial emphasis on the “protection of the crew, situational awareness, and NATO interoperability” in the new Puma makes it complex, but this complex system provides a technologically outstanding, extremely survivable, ‘high intensity’ fighting vehicle.