UK to spend $1.35 billion on new howitzers for the British Army

LONDON, May 13 (Reuters) - Britain said ​on ⁠Wednesday it will spend 1 ​billion pounds ($1.35 billion) buying its army 72 remote controlled RCH ​155 ‌howitzers, an artillery gun mounted on a vehicle, as ⁠part of a modernisation plan ⁠which will support over 500 ​jobs.

• UK has a gap in its war-fighting capability after handing its previous fleet of artillery systems, ​AS90s, ‌to Ukraine in recent years. The RCH 155s will fill that gap.

• First deliveries of RCH 155 vehicles are expected in 2028.

• Contract ​is with Germany-headquartered ARTEC GmbH, a joint venture between ‌KNDS and Rheinmetall.

• Weapons systems will be made at Rheinmetall's facility ‌in central England, while the chassis and engine will be made at KNDS UK in northern England.

• British ​defence minister John Healey says contract delivers for the battlefield and ‌the economy.

• The gun can fire at targets 70 km (44 miles) away and move at over 100 ⁠km (62 ⁠miles) per hour, making it ‌hard for adversaries to attack.

• Britain has pledged its biggest defence-spending ​increase since ​World War Two, but industry is ‌still waiting for a defence investment plan which has been delayed by months. ($1 = 0.7406 pounds) (Reporting by Sarah Young, Editing by William Maclean)