The U.S. Army has contracted Hanwha’s American subsidiary to deliver up to 18 prototypes of the 155 mm wheeled howitzer K9MH. This was announced on Wednesday by both the Army and Hanwha. As part of the Mobile Tactical Cannon (MTC) program to replace the towed M777 howitzer, these will undergo testing and field trials over a four-year period.
The contract value was initially around $100 million (€86 million) for six prototypes, with a cumulative notional value of nearly $263 million (€226 million) including the option for twelve more. Thus, a pre-selection in the MTC program, in which Rheinmetall with the RCH 155 on the Boxer chassis, General Dynamics Land Systems with the SPH-M (Rheinmetall’s artillery gun module AGM on Piranha 10×10, also used in the RCH 155), the Israeli Elbit with the Sigma 155, and BAE Systems with Archer had participated, was concluded.
K9MH was first unveiled in 2025
Hanwha had the K9MH on an 8×8 chassis first unveiled in 2025 at the AUSA in Washington, D.C. This uses the turret of the K9A2 self-propelled howitzer with a 52-caliber-length barrel. In the A2 version, an automatic loading system is employed in conjunction with new modular propellant charges. This reduced the crew from five to three (in an emergency even two) men, and the fire rate rose from an initial six to eight rounds per minute to nine to ten rounds per minute, or four to six rounds per minute.
In addition, the entire onboard ammunition stock of 48 rounds was moved into the turret, which can also be equipped with an additional remotely operated weapons station. The barrel received new chromed rifling to increase range and service life. Other improvements included an electric instead of electro-hydraulic turret traverse system, air conditioning, and a fire suppression system. This also made the system suitable for remote operation on a wheeled platform. The modular charge system uses insensitive munitions, thereby further enhancing crew protection.
