Nurol Makina NMS showcased with 30 mm RWS, loitering munition

Nurol Makina has showcased its NMS protected 4×4 with the TRAKON 30 remote weapon station (RWS) and Ilgar first generation autonomous loitering munition during the Live Firing Show in Lithuania, which was held on the 8th May. 

The company’s presence at the event was designed to demonstrate its capabilities and the flexibility of the NMS platform. Nurol is working to expand its European presence with a new factory in the UK that is underway, and successful contracts with Hungary and Estonia. The NMS used during the Live Fire Show was actually in the same configuration as the 100 vehicles that have been sold to Estonia. 

The vehicle was carrying a number of weapon systems from companies within the SYS Group (Samsun Yurt Savunma Anonim Şirketi). This included the TRAKON 30 RWS, which is manufactured by Unirobotics, and armed with the Venom LR, a low recoil medium caliber cannon, engineered by AEI Systems. AEI was acquired by the SYS Group in 2022, and has a long pedigree in the field of medium calibre weapons.

Its Venom LR is chambered in 30x113mm and provides a maximum engagement range of around 2,000 m with a rate of fire of 220 – 230 rounds per minute in single shot mode. It is designed specifically for light vehicle mounts and to provide a capability in between the 12.7 mm heavy machine gun and full 30×173 mm ammunition. The TRAKON 30 provides capacity for 150 rounds of ammunition and can be fitted with thermal and optical imagers enabling object recognition out to 3,000 m using the day camera and 2,000 with the thermal imager. 

The Ilgar loitering munition is not new to Nurol Makina, having been fitted to the NMS Lite in 2023 for the IDEF exhibition in Turkey. Ilgar is developed by Spira, another Turkish company, and can be integrated into an array of tube launchers at the rear of a light vehicle. Each all up round has a total weight of 3.5 kg, including a 1.5 kg munition and the 2 kg launch tube. It has an operational range of 20 km and endurance of 15 minutes, it is stated to have a high degree of autonomy while retaining an operator on the loop throughout the engagement. It is armed with a 400 g multi-purpose warhead that can penetrate 200 mm of armour with secondary blast effects. It is equipped with a target tracking capability that enables the munition to home in on a target during the terminal phase, at an increased speed of 160 km/h. 

Calibre comment

There is an emerging market for well-armed, lightly protected vehicles. In some circumstances, especially those where drone ISTAR assets have saturated the area, speed and mobility are the best protection against strikes by FPVs and loitering munitions. A relatively light and protected vehicle that is also armed can provide troops with the mobility needed to quickly cross dangerous areas, as well as the lethality to meaningfully fight back should the need arise. It also enables a unit to move quickly forwards, deploy loitering munitions and withdraw, all while under armour. This is an effective FPV tactic that is used in Ukraine. 

By Sam Cranny-Evans, published on 14th May, 2025. 

The vertical launch tubes for the Ilgar loitering munition are just visible at the rear of the NMS vehicle here. Each tube can complete multiple munition launches in its service life. Credit: Nurol Makina.