NORTH AMERICA: ARMOURED VEHICLES MARKET, 2022-2027, US$ MILLIONS.

KEY PROGRAMS: U.S. IFV: Armoured Multi-Purpose Vehicles (AMPVs) The U.S. Army is currently replacing the M113 family of APCs, that have been in use since the 1960s, with the Armoured Multi-Purpose Vehicles (AMPVs) that are based on the Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) but without the combat turret. Manufactured by BAE Systems, the vehicles will be used by the Armoured Brigade Combat Team (ABCT) and be made in five variants including Mission Command (MCmd), Medical Treatment (MT), Medical Evacuation (ME), General Purpose (GP) and Mortar Carrier (MC). A total of 2,897 vehicles, comprising approximately 30% of its tracked vehicle fleet, are expected to be procured at a cost of around US$15.3 billion. There are also an additional 1,922 M113 vehicles that support the Echelons Above Brigade (EAB) units (not a part of the ABCT), that haven’t been including in the modernization plan. The AMPV entered the low-rate initial production phase in 2019, with the first vehicle being delivered in August 2020.

IFV: Stryker upgrade According to the DoD’s 2023 budget request, the ongoing upgrade of the Stryker tracked combat vehicles involves the procurement of 1,082 vehicles at a cost of US$5.2 billion during the period 2022-2027. The contract awardees include Oshkosh Defense, Rafael, and Pratt Miller. The upgrades include Northrop Grumman’s XM813 Bushmaster Chain Gun, a customized turret based on Rafael’s Samson family of turrets and a dual-feed ammunition handling system, among others.

IFV: Amphibious Combat Vehicle Family of Vehicles (ACV) The Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) is the U.S. Marine Corps’ program to replace its fleet of aging Amphibious Assault Vehicles (AAVs) that have been in service since 1972. With ground mobility and speed similar to the M1A1 tank, the ACVs will be the primary means of tactical mobility for the Marine Corps both at sea and ashore. Currently, there are four variants in different stages of production: Personnel (ACV-P) - which can transport three crew members, 13 marines, equipment and supplies for two days; (2) Command and Control (ACV-C) - to host workstations within the vehicle to support Command and Control functions; (3) Recovery; and (4) a 30-mm Gun Variant. Apart from mobility, the ACVs are expected to provide precise supporting fires, and force protection against blasts. The program entered the LRIP phase in June 2018 with BAE Systems delivering the first 30 vehicles in 2019. In November 2020, it achieved Initial Operating Capability (IOC) and Full-Rate Production (FRP) in the month after. The latest procurement objective includes 632 units, which is a reduced number from the 1,122 units planned earlier. BAE Systems is manufacturing the ACVs at its plants in Virginia, California, Michigan, South Carolina, and Pennsylvania.

IFV: Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV) The U.S. Army is looking to replace its fleet of M-2 Bradley IFVs with the new Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicles (OMFVs). The Bradleys have been in service since 1981 and have gone through many cycles of modernization. However, they have now reached their technological limits in terms of force projection and defence capabilities. Interestingly, the OPMV is the third program to replace the M-2 Bradley, with the first two, the Future Combat System (FCS) program and the Ground Combat Vehicle (GCV) program, cancelled due to high costs. The procurement is expected to go through five phases including market research and requirement development, concept design, detailed design, prototype build and test and production and fielding. It is currently in the concept design phase with five contracts having been awarded to Point Blank Enterprises, Oshkosh Defense, BAE Systems Land and Armaments, General Dynamics Land Systems and American Rheinmetall Vehicles. The cumulative value of the contracts is US$299.4 million, and all firms are expected to develop digital designs. The third detailed design phase is expected to witness the awarding of three more contracts in the second quarter of 2023. One manufacturer is expected to be selected for LRIP towards the end of 2027.

MBT: M1A1 Abrams – Upgrade In December 2017, General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) was awarded a US$2.6 billion contract to upgrade up to 786 of the U.S. Army’s M1A1 Abrams MBTs to the M1A2 system enhancement package version 3 (SEPv3). The new version includes turret and hull armour upgrades, mine blast improvements, reactive armour tiles, lightweight belly armour, enhanced countermine equipment, Improvised Explosive Device (IED) jamming equipment, a Total Integrated Engine Revitalization (TIGER) engine, an upgraded transmission, an Auxiliary Power Unit (APU), improved power generation & distribution, Ammunition Data Link (ADL) for smart munitions, embedded training, Blue Force Tracker and Block 1 Second Generation Forward Looking Infra-Red (FLIR) technology. It is also integrated with improved computer systems with Line Replaceable Modules (LRMs) to include microprocessors, high-definition colour flat panel displays, enhanced memory capacity, Gigabit Ethernet, and a new operating system designed to run the Common Operating Environment (COE) software. In January 2019 and December 20020, follow up contracts worth US$714 million and US$4.6 billion were awarded to GDLS, with the Army eventually looking to field up to 2,101 SEPv3 tanks.  

MBT: Mobile Protected Firepower – Light Tank The U.S. Army’s Infantry Brigade Combat Teams (IBCT) currently lack capabilities in mobile and protected long range firepower. In November 2017, the Army issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase and subsequently awarded two Middle Tier Acquisition (MTA) rapid prototyping contracts, each worth US$376 million, to GDLS and BAE Systems Land and Armaments in December 2018. GDLS delivered its prototypes in December 2020 while BAE did so in March 2021, citing COVID-19 related delays. According to the latest news, this program’s low-rate production has already begun with the firs vehicles expected to be delivered sometime in 2025. According to the Army’s most recent budget document, a total of 504 units are expected to be procured with 260 being ordered through 2022-2027. The total obligation authority for all vehicles currently stands at US$6.6 billion. 

Tactical and Support Vehicles: Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) The JLTV is an Army led programme for all services to replace their light tactical wheeled vehicle fleets. It entered the LRIP phase in August 2015 when the Army awarded a contract to Oshkosh Defense to build 16,901 vehicles, also for the Marines. The Army received its first vehicle in April 2019, while the Marine Corps received theirs in February 2019. In June 2019, the program commenced full-rate production (FRP) with a follow-on FRP contract expected to be awarded in December 2022. The decade long US$7.3 billion will involve the production of 30,000 JLTVs and 10,000 JLTV trailers. However, with the Marine Corps downsizing as a result of a more expeditionary posture laid out in its 2020 Force Design Initiative, its original procurement plans may witness a cut. The platform has also witnessed strong interest from international buyers with the UK having placed an order for 2,747 JLTVs at a cost of US$1.035 billion. However, the British Army has since cancelled the purchase citing cost and delivery issues. Lithuania however has gone ahead with the procurement of 500 vehicles for US$170.8 million, with the first batch of 50 being delivered in August 2021.

Tactical and Support Vehicles: Joint Assault Bridge The U.S. Army’s Joint Assault Bridge (JAB) program was launched to replace the existing Wolverine and the M48A5/M60 series chassis Armoured Vehicle Launched Bridge (AVLB) systems. The vehicle is built on the M1A1 Abrams chassis and has a heavy M1A2 Abrams suspension that launches and retrieves the 18.3 meter Heavy Assault Scissor Bridge (HASB). The JAB system is likely to be deployed with the Army Armoured Brigade Combat Teams (ABCT) in the Brigade Engineer Battalions (BEB), Engineer Mobility Augmentation Companies (MAC), and Combat Engineer Companies - Armoured (CEC-A). The program, which involves the procurement of 247 systems, started in April 2019 with the Initial Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E) being conducted at Fort Bliss, Texas. The major contractors include Leonardo DRS Technologies and Anniston Army Depot.

Tactical and Support Vehicles: Light and heavy logistics vehicles The Canadian Logistics Vehicle Modernization program, which aims to replace the Army’s fleet of light and heavy vehicles logistic vehicles, trailers and containers, started back in 2011, with the publication of letters of interest seeking industry feedback. However, it was only in April 2019 that a formal invitation to qualify was released, with Daimler, General Dynamics Land Systems: Canada Corp., General Dynamics Land Systems, Inc., Iveco Defence Vehicles, Mack Defense, Navistar Defense, Oshkosh Defense Canada, Oshkosh Defense, Rheinmetall Canada and Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles, allowed to submit bids. The formal request for proposal (RFP) was released in December 2021 and the contracts are expected to be awarded in 2023. The vehicles will be used to transport personnel, equipment, and supplies to carry out missions at home and overseas.

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