Military Modernization

[Karolnia]

Department of National Defence, Kalaportti
8:30 PM

Iikka slummed his fist on the table of the National Defence & Security Council's meeting room;
"Mosin Nagant Model 30. M36 Stahlhelm. Lahti L-35. And the list goes on and on. Most this stuff is 20 years old or more. Our uniforms are woolen freaking trenchcoats from the 1930s! Gentlemen we need to reform! We need to reequip! Yes we aren't fighting a war but Christ our equipment is outdated! There is a difference between being a militarist power and a pushover nation trying to keep up with the times! I managed to get the Marshall to give us 2% more spending, raising our budget at 9%. Now we need to design something respectable!"

"And where did we get the aditional money exactly? Did they pop out of the air? When there are few fish in the rivers and seas we have to import food! How are we going to justify this expense?!"

"The Welfare and Healthcare budgets have been raised too. The awnser is simple my dear friends: Oil. The recent surveys were successful as is known. What we haven't made public yet is that 12 Oil Fields have already been carved out and nationalised. Karolnian companies have begun setting up platforms there. More fields are expected to be carved out in two months' time. The money generated from that will fund our research."

The looks of the men seating around the table changed to that of confidence.

Now they're ready to hear though Iikka;

"Since everyone seems to understand now, I will announce the equipment we will need. It will be a new Service Rifle, a new Main Battle Tank, new Uniforms and a new Frigate Class. Possibly more things might come up along the way but these are our main objectives, as our current equipment in these fields is... archaic to say the least."

 

[Karolnia]

Department of National Defence, Kalaportti

"Gentlemen, I am proud to welcome a joint comission by the nation's largest clothes manufacturers & fashion companies. They have presented us with designs for the new uniforms of our armed forces. Aditionally the Centre of Military Reserach's Office of Ballistics has come up with a new helmet for our forces. It combines the advantages of the M-35 Stahlhelm's protection and the Brodie Mk. II's protection from artillery and better hearing. The new M54 Teräs Kypärä, Karolnian for Stahlhelm/Steel helmet, as it is called will be able to replace most of our helemts in two months' time. The uniforms however will take a little longer, at three to four months. Here are the concepts."

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Ground Forces Arctic & Casual uniforms.

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Marines Arctic & Casual uniforms.

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Air Force & Navy uniforms.

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Provincial Militia Arctic & Casual Uniforms.

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M54 Teräs Kypärä Helmet.

 

[Karolnia]

Department of National Defence, Kalaportti
"After almost a month's research we have created a rifle suitable to our cold environment and needs. It is based on assault rifles already in use by other countries, but the design is very simplistic and easy to copy as well as operate. Many countries already have their versions of this assault rifle so us making yet another one won't be a problem as long as its modified for our environment, has a different name and has new barrel markings. I proudly present to you the Rynnäkkökivääri 54, Rk-54 for short. The re-armament of our forces with the RK-54 will take about the same amount of time as re-equipping them with the new uniforms previously presented. Aditionally we have designed an experimental rocket launcher to equip our forces with. These launchers, called Raketti Kulkeva Kranaatti 2, or RKK-2 for short, will take about the same time as the assault rifles to produce, but their numbers will be considerably less, due to their cost and secondary role, as anti-vehicle and anti-personnel explosive weapons."

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Rk-54 Assault Rifle.

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RKK-2 Rocket Propelled Grenade Launcher.

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Karolnian troops in new uniforms and helmets with the Rk-54 and the RKK-2.

 

[Karolnia]

Department of National Defence, Kalaportti

"As this prjects is reaching comletion, with us only a couple of stpes behind our ultimate goal, I would like to congratulate the Office of Military Research in Kalaportti for providing us with yet another extraordinary design. I proudly present to you the T-54 Main Battle Tank. This tank is a completely up to date Main Battle Tank, fully equipped to suit our needs. Easy to massively produce and somewhat cheap, though lacking in the technological and individual quality factor, it is perfect for our small icy country. Replacing our current tanks, which are very few will only take a couple of months. The reason for that however is that we have almost none. Creating new tank brigades will take well within half a year if not more. It will be economically demanding but much less so than importing more advanced foreign designs. The taxpayers' money will go toward the goal of protecting and strengthening the Fatherland!"

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A Karolnian T-54 painted white for arctic environments.

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The first column of twelve T-54s, during field testing.

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A T-54 after field tests.

 

[Karolnia]

Department of National Defence, Kalaportti
"We are reaching the final stages of our program with our entry into Warship Classes research. Our scientists have, after months of research, come up with four designs to modernize our navy. First of all is the Type 54 Sumarine, Tyyppi-54 Sukellusvene, a modernized version of the Type-45s previously in use. 12 of these submarines will be built, taking about a year and 2 months, and they will be used into the early 70s if all goes well. Next is the Kalaportti Class Frigate, Kalaportti Luokan Fregatti, which will cover our needs for a main warship with 8 ships. Construction will take a year and a half, again covering our needs for at least a decade. Thirdly our scientists have presented us with the Merivahti II Coastal Warfare Ship, Merivahti II Rannikon Sodankäynnin Laiva. 16 such vessels will be built, taking 9 months due to their small size and light armament-armour. They will form the backbone of our navy's defensive capabilities. Finally there is the Kivi Class Corvette, Kivi Luokan Korvetti, which will see 11 ships built and will be our secondary warship of both offensive and defensive capabilities, accompanying the Kalaportti Class Frigates. Their construction will take one year. I have one last thing to tell you; Eiffellander industries in the defense sector are discussing partnership with our government. Their contribution could be crucial to our military modernization."

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KS Kalaportti, the first Kalaportti Class Frigate.

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KS Kivi, the first Kivi Class Corvette.

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KS Merivahti II, the first Merivahti II Coastal Warfare Ship.

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KS Kraken, the first Type 54 Submarine.

 

[Karolnia]

Department of National Defence, Kalaportti
"Ladies and gentlemen I have one last adition to make to our program. The Panssariajoneuvoja Harjoittaja 54, Armoured Personnel Carrier 54, PJH-54 in short, which will become our ground forces' new major armoured personnel carrier and infantry fighting vehicle. Though it's quality is not anything special it is decent on the international level. Production will be limited to 280 units due to our small industrial capacities. The production will take about a year and 2 months and it will cover our needs in this sector for at least a decade."

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A PJH-54 during exercises.

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PJH-54s being transported from the production facilities to military bases.