AUSA: There are almost a quarter-million Humvees (and counting) around the world, from the US to Ukraine to the Philippines, and AM General built them all. The Indiana-based company is constantly finding new ways to upgrade the 1980s-vintage design, but this is the most radical I’ve seen: a cargo Humvee whose flatbed holds a howitzer, the kind of weapon normally mounted on a heavy tracked vehicle.

Built by Mandus Group, the 105 mm “Hawkeye Howitzer” has much less recoil than the normal US Army version but can fire standard NATO ammunition. AM General installed it so the Humvee can practice classic “shoot and scoot” tactics: zip into a firing position, blast off several shots, and then zip off again in under four minutes, before enemy artillery can back-track where the shells are coming from and launch retaliatory fire. Ideally, a second vehicle would accompany the gun truck to carry extra crew and ammunition, but the two-man crew on the truck with the 105 can load and fire it on their lonesome in a pinch.

AM General is emphasizing the international market for this vehicle: There’s no US requirement for such a system, while other countries with less high-tech firepower might be interested in this relatively straightforward and inexpensive solution. But even under current plans to replace the Humvee, the US Army and Marine Corps will have tens of thousands of Humvees for decades to come, and military minds might change.