Back to news

June 20, 2018 | International, Land

BAE wins Marine Corps contract to build new amphibious combat vehicle

WASHINGTON — BAE Systems has won a contract to build the Marine Corps' new amphibious combat vehicle following a competitive evaluation period where BAE's vehicle was pitted against an offering from SAIC.

The contract allows for the company to enter into low-rate initial production with 30 vehicles expected to be delivered by fall of 2019, valued at $198 million.

The Marines plan to field 204 of the vehicles. The total value of the contract with all options exercised is expected to amount to about $1.2 billion.

The awarding of the contract gets the Corps “one step closer to delivering this capability to the Marines,” John Garner, Program Executive Officer, Land Systems Marine Corps, said during a media round table held Tuesday.

But the Corps isn't quite done refining its new ACV. The vehicle is expected to undergo incremental changes with added new requirements and modernization.

The Corps is already working on the requirements for ACV 1.2, which will include a lethality upgrade for the amphibous vehicle.

BAE's ACV vehicle will eventually replace the Corps' legacy amphibious vehicle, but through a phased approach. The Assault Amphibious Vehicle is currently undergoing survivability upgrades to keep the Cold War era vehicle ticking into 2035.

BAE Systems and SAIC were both awarded roughly $100 million each in November 2015 to deliver 16 prototypes to the Marine Corps for evaluation in anticipation of a down select to one vendor in 2018.

[BAE, SAIC Named as Finalists in Marines ACV Competition]

All government testing of the prototypes concluded the first week of December 2017 and the Marine Corps issued its request for proposals the first week in January 2018. Operational tests also began concurrently.

Government testing included land reliability testing, survivability and blast testing and water testing — both ship launch and recovery as well as surf transit.

Operational evaluations included seven prototypes each from both SAIC and BAE Systems, six participated and one spare was kept for backup.

BAE Systems' partnered with Italian company Iveco Defense Vehicles to build its ACV offering.

[BAE Systems completes Amphibious Combat Vehicle shipboard testing]

Some of the features BAE believed were particularly attractive for a new ACV is that it has space for 13 embarked Marines and a crew of three, which keeps the rifle squad together. The engine's strength is 690 horsepower over the old engine's 560 horsepower, and it runs extremely quietly. The vehicle has a V-shaped hull to protect against underbody blasts, and the seat structure is completely suspended.

SAIC's vehicle, which was built in Charleston, South Carolina, offered improved traction through a central tire-inflation system to automatically increase or decrease tire pressure. It also had a V-hull certified during tests at the Nevada Automotive Test Center — where all prototypes were tested by the Marine Corps — and had blast-mitigating seats to protect occupants.

The 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 1st Marine Division out of Camp Pendleton, California, is expected to receive the first ACV 1.1 vehicles.

https://www.defensenews.com/land/2018/06/19/bae-wins-marine-corps-contract-to-build-new-amphibious-combat-vehicle/

On the same subject

  • Aircrews to get hand-held devices linked via secure WiFi for improved air-to-ground operations

    October 9, 2019 | International, Aerospace, C4ISR

    Aircrews to get hand-held devices linked via secure WiFi for improved air-to-ground operations

    INDIANAPOLIS, Oct. 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ - Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) received a $48 million engineering services contract to support the integration and qualification of hand-held devices into platform-mounted WiFi systems secured up to secret. Loaded with situational awareness and mission planning applications, the mobile devices will improve air-to-ground communication between combat teams, enhancing situational awareness as the mission unfolds. "We're helping aircrews and ground forces better communicate and collaborate in real time on the battlefield," said Matt Gilligan, vice president at Raytheon's Intelligence, Information and Services business. "Right now Blackhawk crews and dismounted soldiers rely heavily on voice communications during a mission, and when dynamics are changing in the air and on the ground minute by minute, that's a huge challenge." The contract is part of the U.S. Army's Air Soldier System (Air SS), the service's effort to equip their rotary-wing aircrews with wearable electronics that increase their mission effectiveness and survivability. Under the contract, Raytheon will load mission applications on commercial off-the-shelf phones and tablets to allow air and ground users to access and share current weather updates, friendly force trackers, and secure text messages. To learn more about the program, watch the Tennessee National Guard use the system during a recent FEMA exercise Shaken Fury. About Raytheon Raytheon Company, with 2018 sales of $27 billion and 67,000 employees, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, civil government and cybersecurity solutions. With a history of innovation spanning 97 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration, C5I(TM) products and services, sensing, effects and mission support for customers in more than 80 countries. Raytheon is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts. Follow us on Twitter. Media Contacts Heather Uberuaga +1.520.891.8421 iispr@raytheon.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aircrews-to-get-hand-held-devices-linked-via-secure-wifi-for-improved-air-to-ground-operations-300933119.html SOURCE Raytheon Company

  • Statement by the North Atlantic Council concerning malicious cyber activities against Germany and Czechia

    May 6, 2024 | International, Land

    Statement by the North Atlantic Council concerning malicious cyber activities against Germany and Czechia

    We stand in solidarity with Germany following the malicious cyber campaign against a political party, in this case the Social Democratic Party of Germany, and with Czechia following the malicious cyber activities against its institutions.

  • US strategy for anti-ship weapons to counter China: plentiful, mobile, deadly

    September 17, 2024 | International, Naval, Security

    US strategy for anti-ship weapons to counter China: plentiful, mobile, deadly

All news