Faster, Leaner, Deadlier: Roem artillery enters IDF service

The Elbit-developed system boosts firepower, mobility and crew protection.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

The world’s first fully automated artillery system has entered IDF service after 11 years of development and extensive testing.

Known as the Roem (“Thunderer”), the SIGMA self-propelled howitzer developed by Israel’s Elbit Systems can fire up to eight 155 mm shells per minute at targets up to 40 kilometers away.

According to the IDF, this far outpaces most comparable artillery systems, which typically manage only two to four rounds per minute.

The dramatic increase in fire rate stems from the Roem’s fully automated loading system.

The platform independently selects the appropriate projectile, propellant and fuse, aims, fires and rapidly shifts to the next target across a 360-degree arc—faster than a human crew could manage.

Because ammunition handling is entirely automated, the Roem requires only a three-person crew: a commander, gunner and driver.

This is expected to significantly streamline the Artillery Corps while enhancing its lethality.

Crew protection is also greatly improved. Unlike the IDF’s long-serving American M109 howitzer, whose operators work in the open, Roem crews sit inside an armored cabin mounted on the vehicle, shielding them from enemy fire.

Mobility is another key advantage. Built on a wheeled truck chassis rather than tracked armor, the Roem can move faster, travel on regular roads and be redeployed more quickly between fronts.

The wheeled design also reduces maintenance demands, as tracked vehicles are more prone to mechanical failure.

The IDF conducted the Roem’s first operational firing in June 2024.

“The relevance and dominance of fire [power] is proven in war,” IDF Chief Artillery Officer Brig. Gen. Yair Natans said at the time.

“We have taken another significant step toward adding the ‘Thunderer’ to the diverse firing capabilities that the Corps commanders use to assist maneuvering forces – close and deadly assistance that kills many enemies and protects the fighters in the various arenas.”

While the Roem is slated to eventually replace the M109 – the IDF’s workhorse of the past few decades – it will take some time before the system is fully integrated across all IDF artillery units.