June 26, 2019 | International, Land
BAE Systems, along with teammate Iveco Defence Vehicles, has been awarded a $67 million contract modification by the U.S. Marine Corps to develop new variants for the Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) Family of Vehicles program for enhancing battlefield situational awareness and firepower.
“The ACV has proven to be a versatile platform capable of numerous configurations to meet current and future mission requirements,” said John Swift, director of amphibious programs at BAE Systems. “With this award, BAE Systems will be able to develop a family of vehicles that will deliver the technology and capability the Marines require to accomplish their mission in support of our national security.”
The contract calls for the design and development of the command (ACV-C) and the 30mm medium caliber cannon (ACV-30) variants. The ACV-C incorporates seven work stations to provide situational awareness and control of the battle space. The ACV-30 integrates a 30mm cannon to provide the lethality and protection the Marines need while leaving ample room for troop capacity and payload.
BAE Systems was previously awarded a low-rate initial production contract in June 2018 for the personnel variant (ACV-P). The Marine Corps announced the ACV had successfully completed anticipated requirements testing and would no longer be pursuing an envisioned incremental ACV 1.1 and ACV 1.2 development approach. The program is now known as the ACV Family of Vehicles, which encompasses the breadth and depth of the vehicle's capabilities and multiple variants.
BAE Systems has a long legacy of designing and building amphibious vehicles and is a leading provider of combat vehicles, having produced more than 100,000 systems for customers worldwide. Iveco Defence Vehicles brings additional proven experience, having designed and built more than 30,000 multi-purpose, protected, and armored military vehicles in service today.
The development of the ACV variants will take place in Stafford, Virginia; San Jose, California; Sterling Heights, Michigan; Aiken, South Carolina; and York, Pennsylvania.
August 3, 2022 | International, Land
The Association of the U.S. Army held a two-day warfighter summit in Fayetteville. Here's what top Army and Fort Bragg leaders had to say.
July 31, 2020 | International, Land
By: Andrew Chuter LONDON — The program to replace the British Army's aging AS90 self-propelled artillery has hit at least a two-year delay, with the forthcoming howitzer not expected to reach initial operating capability until the first quarter of 2029. The decision to defer the Mobile Fires Program was taken to allow the Ministry of Defence to address key technical risks and meet requirements in the government's integrated defense, security and foreign policy review expected around the end of the year, according to sources with knowledge of the program. Britain's new heavy artillery had been due to gain initial operating capability in the fourth quarter of 2026, but the MoD confirmed that has now been put back to the first quarter of 2029. The howitzer procurement delay means the current date for decommissioning the AS90s has also gone back two years. A portion of the howitzer force will now remain operational until 2032. Revised timelines for a new procurement process are currently under development by the MoD. An initial request for information was sent to industry in April 2019. The MoD issued revised key user requirements in January 2020 with a deadline for industry responses set for Feb. 17. Britain's BAE Systems, South Korea's Hanwa Defense, Israel's Soltham Systems, France's Nexter and Germany's Rheinmetall are among the companies that expressed interest in the program, an industry executive told Defense News on condition of anonymity. Late last year, the Royal United Services Institute think tank in London blasted the British military for its lack of artillery firepower compared with a country like Russia. “The UK's ground forces are comprehensively outgunned and outranged , leaving enemy artillery free to prosecute fire missions with impunity”, RUSI analyst Jack Watling wrote in a report. “If conventional deterrence is to remain a key component of the UK's national security strategy, then the modernisation of its fires capabilities should be a top priority.” The integrated review, run by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his advisers, is expected to be announced this year. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said in a July 26 op-ed in the Sunday Telegraph that the review would pivot the military away from conventional arms and toward space, cyber and sub-sea capabilities. As the MoD shuffles resources to fund the change in focus, land forces are expected by some to be a target for cuts. https://www.defensenews.com/land/2020/07/29/british-armys-as90-howitzers-to-stick-around-amid-replacement-delay/
February 9, 2021 | International, Aerospace
Posted on February 8, 2021 by Richard R. Burgess, Senior Editor ARLINGTON, Va. — Naval Air Systems Command has awarded Sikorsky a third production contract to build five VH-92A helicopters for the U.S. Marine Corps. The Naval Air Systems Command awarded Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. — a Lockheed Martin company — a $478.6 million firm-fixe-price contract modification to build five Low-Rate Initial Production Lot III VH-92As, according to a Feb. 5 Defense Department announcement. The award also includes orders for “interim contractor support, two cabin interior reconfiguration kits, support equipment, initial spares and system parts replenishment,” the release said. Work on the contract is expected to be completed by December 2023. The VH-92A was selected in 2014 to provide transport for the president of the United States, the vice president and other high-level government officials. The helicopter will replace the 19 VH-3D Sea King and VH-60N “White Hawk” helicopters operated by Marine Helicopter Squadron One. The Corps plans to acquire a total of 23 VH-92As, 21 for operations and two for testing. The May 2014 engineering and manufacturing development contract procured two test aircraft and four production aircraft. Six VH-92As were ordered in June 2019, followed by six more in February 2020. The presidential helicopter fleet is operated by Marine Helicopter Squadron One, based at Marine Corps Air Station Quantico, Virginia, with a detachment at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington. “Government testing to validate system performance and prepare for Initial Operational Test and Evaluation is progressing on schedule and will support an Initial Operational Capability (IOC) planned for July 2021,” a Navy spokeswoman said. “The VH-92A will enter service post IOC at the determination of the White House Military Office.” https://seapowermagazine.org/navair-orders-five-vh-92-presidential-helicopters-from-sikorsky/