Current wheeled armoured vehicles: this survey concentrates on both wheeled and tracked armoured vehicles other than tanks and self-propelled artillery. The question of self-protection systems and armour technology will be examined in greater detail in future issues of Armada International.

Light Cavalry from France

Panhard's 4 x 4 VBL, developed to meet a French Army need for a vehicle weighing less than 3500 kg, has become one of the most widely deployed vehicles in this class with an order book boasting almost 2300 vehicles for at least 15 customers since the first was delivered in 1990.

The original French requirement was for a scout vehicle and carrier for the Milan medium-range antitank guided missile but Panhard has built or proposed more than 25 different variants. The standard VBL has a 2.45-metre wheelbase and carries a crew of two or three depending upon its role: while the 2.7-metre-long wheelbase version, developed as a private venture, carries up to four people.

The French Army is the largest customer for the VBL with more than 1600 in service and deliveries continuing. The Hellenic Army has ordered more than 240 VBLs, mostly long wheelbase models, and has indicated that it could acquire up to 400. At Eurosatory 2004 a VBL was exhibited with a Russian KBP Instrument Design Bureau Kvartet turret mounting four Kornet anti-tank missiles.

Humvee and ASV 

Only about 3500 of the 170,000 AM General Hummers produced between 1985 and early 2004 were the M1114 Up-Armoured HMMWV (UAH) model. The M1114 was originally developed to equip US Army scout platoons, which would exploit the vehicle's low profile to conduct reconnaissance missions, and military police units. AM General delivers the basic chassis to O'Gara-Hess & Eisenhardt, which installs the armour package on the M1114 at its Fairfield, Ohio factory. O'Gara also produces the HArD-Kit that can be installed on non-armoured M998 A2 HMMWV variants to provide perimeter, roof and underbody armour. Additional armour elements include gun shields.

Production of new M1114s is expected to reach 550 by March 2005, compared to a monthly production rate as low as 15 in 2003, and army officials say that the service will have 8105 UAHs by March. Nevertheless, the majority of Humvees deployed in Iraq will continue to be standard vehicles that have had factory-produced or improvised armour kits fitted in theatre.

The M1117 Armoured Security Vehicle (ASV) built by Textron Marine & Land Systems (TM&L) made its operational debut in Iraq. The 4 x 4 vehicle was selected in 1995 to equip the US Army Military Police Corps Regiment with a better-protected vehicle than the M1114 UAH. An initial contract for 99 ASVs was placed in 1999, and by late 2004 77 vehicles were deployed in Iraq.

The standard ASV has a crew of four and is fitted with a Textron single-operator turret armed with an Mk 19 40 mm automatic grenade launcher and an M2 12.7 mm heavy machine gun. The vehicle provides all-round protection against 7.62 mm ball ammunition and the crew compartment, weapon station and ammunition storage areas are armoured against 12.7 mm armour piercing (AP) rounds. It can withstand a blast of up to five kg of TNT in the wheel wells and an overhead 155 mm blast at 15 metres.

In December 2004 the project acquired momentum with the award of three contracts for 262 vehicles to be delivered by April 2006 increasing the US Army order to 394. Service officials have indicated a need for more than 900 ASVs and this could increase as the army's transformation plan will see the military police corps expand from 38,000 personnel to more than 62,000 in the near term. Textron has extended its facilities in New Orleans to increase production to 36 vehicles per month by September 2005.

For export TM&L is offering other turret and weapon fits. In July 2004 Textron received a $ 50 million contract from the US Project and Contracting Organization, on behalf of the Iraqi Ministery of Interior, to deliver 43 ASVs to the newly formed Iraqi Civil Intervention Force between November 2004 and July 2005. The majority of the new ASVs will be a stretched version able to accommodate up to ten personnel, and the remainder will be configured as command and control vehicles.

Eagle

Mowag used the Hummer chassis to develop the Eagle armoured reconnaissance vehicle to meet the needs of the Swiss Army. Switzerland operates 154 Eagle 1s with a one-person Mowag MBK 2 cupola armed with a 7.62 mm machine gun; 36 of these are in Danish Army service. The Swiss Army has 175 Eagle IIs based on the AM General Enhanced Capacity Vehicle chassis and, in 2004, Mowag completed deliveries of 175 artillery observation vehicles fitted with a retractable observation mast; this designated the Eagle III.

The new Eagle IV, unveiled in late 2003 after a development programme of only ten months, offers greater potential as it is based on the larger Duro II 4 x 4 chassis that enables the payload to be raised to 2400 kg. The Eagle IV weighs 7600 kg compared to 5800 kg for the Eagle III. It is protected against 7.62 mm AP ammunition and a six-kg TNT mine blast.

LMV 

Late in 2004 the Italian Army received the first two of 60 Light Multirole Vehicles (LMV) ordered from Iveco's Defence Vehicles Division. These will be followed over a five-year period by a further 1150 vehicles ordered in December 2004. The service has stated that it has a requirement for up to 2500 vehicles including utility, reconnaissance, weapon carrier and special forces variants.

The LMV is available as either a fully armoured or soft skinned vehicle, although each type features full mine protection for the crew. The armour system uses an innovative solution of applique armour panels, supplied by IB of Germany, that are placed between the vehicle's inner and outer skins when required. Protection systems from Stanag 4569 level 1 (5.56 mm and 7.62 mm ball ammunition) to level 4 (14.5 mm AP ammunition) are available. Two versions of LMV are being offered: a 3.2metre wheelbase version that carries a 2.3-tonne payload and the other is a 3.5-metre, 2.5-tonne version.

Britain selected the LMV in 2003 to meet the Future Command and Liaison Vehicle requirement and subsequently placed a contract with Alvis Vickers for 401 vehicles with an option for another 400. The British version, named the Panther, will be fitted with armour, and 326 vehicles will be armed with the AEI Enforcer overhead weapon station mounting a 7.62 mm machine gun supplied by BAE Systems.

Fennek

The bankruptcy of SP Aerospace & Vehicle Systems of the Netherlands in mid-2004 has delayed the 500 million [euro] plus Dutch-German project to produce 612 Fennek 4 x 4 light armoured reconnaissance vehicles for the armies of the two nations. A revised contract was issued to Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, the German partner in the Arge Fennek consortium, which includes a commitment that 46 per cent of the work will be undertaken in the Netherlands. Since the formal handover of it first Fennek on 2 July 2003 the Royal Netherlands Army has received a further five of the 410 vehicles that it has purchased. Under the revised contract deliveries will resume late in 2005 and be extended from 2007 until late 2008. Deliveries of Germany's 202 vehicles continue from KMW's Kassel factory. The German Army plans to buy a further 168 vehicles configured for artillery forward observation. KMW has signed an agreement to allow Turkey's FNSS to produce the Fennek if the Turkish Land Forces Command selects the vehicle for its Tactical Wheeled Armoured Reconnaissance Vehicle requirement.

Germany

The Fennek is just one of a range of wheeled vehicles that Germany is fielding as it reconfigures its Cold War territorial defence army to a force organised and equipped for power projection missions. Krauss-Maffei Wegmann developed the 4 x 4 Dingo All Protected Vehicle in the late 1990s. It mounts an armoured body developed by KMW on the chassis of a Mercedes-Benz Unimog Model U1550L. Between 2000 and 2003 the German Army received 147 Dingo Is many of which were quickly deployed on peace support operations in Afghanistan and Bosnia.

The Dingo 2 is based on the longer U5000 chassis, which allowes an increased capability. Two versions are available: a 3.25-metre wheelbase vehicle able to carry a 3.5-tonne payload and a 3.85-metre vehicle able to carry four tonnes. The German Army ordered 55 vehicles in 2004 toward a requirement for up to 1600. The Dingo 2 carries up to eight, including the driver, compared to six carried by the Dingo 1.

A first export success for the Dingo 2 was achieved with an Austrian order in October 2004 for 20 vehicles; this was followed in December by a Belgian order worth 170 million [euro] for 220 Dingo 2s with an option for 132 additional vehicles. The first vehicles for Belgium are scheduled for delivery in late 2005. Textron Marine and Land Systems markets the Dingo 2 in America and to select US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers. In September 2004 the US Department of Defense notified Congress of the proposed $ 99 million FMS sale of 103 Dingo 2s to Israel although the contract has yet to be finalised.

South African Pair

Land Systems OMC, the South African subsidiary of BAE Systems, used the RG32 Scout as the basis to develop the 4 x 4 RG-32M for a spectrum of missions such as command, liaison, reconnaissance and patrol. More than 350 Scouts were built for at least twelve countries as well as for the United Nations. In May 2004 the Swedish procurement agency ordered two RG-32Ms to evaluate for its mine-hardened patrol vehicle (MHPV) requirement. The contract includes an option for up to 200 vehicles.

The RG-32M is marketed in two versions: one that carries five people and an extended version carrying nine. Both feature an all-steel, welded armour, monocoque hull that protects against 7.62 mm ball ammunition and a six-kg land mine detonating under any wheel.

In mid-February 2005 the US Army announced that General Dynamics Canada, as programme manager, would receive a contract for $ 78 million for 148 4 x 4 RG31 Medium Mine Protected Vehicles. Land Systems. OMC will deliver the vehicles from April to December 2005. Nine RG-31s supplied to the army in 2003 and 2004 have been employed overseas. With a combat weight of 8.5 tonnes the RG-31 is almost twice as heavy as the RG32M and able to carry twelve including driver.

Australia's Bushmaster 

The Australian Army is acquiring the ADI 4 x 4 Bushmaster Infantry Mobility Vehicle to fill the gap between light infantry units equipped with softskin vehicles and mechanised battalions equipped with the tracked M113. They will be used to move troops and their equipment at speed over long distances to an area out of direct contact with the enemy where troops will dismount for combat operations. The Bushmaster can carry up to ten personnel together with rations, ammunition, water and other stores for three days of operations, and sufficient fuel for 1000 km.

ADI is building 299 vehicles--287 for the army and twelve for the Royal Australian Air Force's airfield defence squadrons. This is less than the 370 vehicles originally ordered in June 1999 and results from a revised contract in 2002 that reflects a higher unit cost than first forecast. Since January 2005 ADI has been delivering eleven vehicles per month. The army plans to begin unit-level training in May 2005 with the last vehicles expected to be fielded by late 2007.

At the request of the United Arab Emirates a Bushmaster was shipped to the country in mid-2004 for field trials over a 60-day period. The UAE, as it is believed, will require about 50 vehicles in this category.

Piranha: Defining the Breed

Since the first prototype appeared in 1972 the Piranha series of vehicles developed by Mowag in Switzerland has set the standard by which other 6 x 6 and 8 x 8 AFVs are measured. Since the 6 x 6 variant of the Piranha 1 was selected by the Canadian Army in 1977 more than 8000 vehicles have been bought to equip the armed forces of 17 countries. Many were produced at the Ontario plant of the Diesel Division General Motors of Canada (now General Dynamics Land Systems--Canada).

It was the selection of the 8 x 8 Piranha I for the US Marine Corps Light Armored Vehicle project in 1981 that gave the vehicle the LAV name by which it is more commonly known in America. Ironically, the US Army, which planned to buy 680 LAVs in the first production order, quit the project leaving the marines to acquire 758 vehicles from 1983 to 1988. These have been deployed in every significant operation in which the marines have since participated. In 2002 the marines launched the production phase of the LAV Service Life Extension Program (Slep) that is eventually expected to cover 738 vehicles. DRS is producing the Slep kits that provide survivability enhancements. A separate project is underway to install an Improved Thermal Sight System and the US Marine Corps is studying other enhancements, such as replacing the M242 25 mm cannon of the LAV-25 variant to keep the LAV viable for another 15 years.

Under the auspices of a US Foreign Military Sales contract Diesel Division produced 1117 8 x 8 LAVs for the Saudi Arabian National Guard in twelve variants. These included 73 vehicles mounting the BAE Systems, RO Defence 120 mm Armoured Mortar System and 130 assault guns fitted with the CMI Defence CTS two-person turret armed with the Cockerill Mk 8 90 mm gun.

In 2004 the Australian Department of Defence contracted GDLS-Australia to upgrade its existing fleet of 113 Australian Light Armoured Vehicles (Aslav), delivered between 1995 and 1997, to match the capabilities of the 144 new Aslavs now being delivered. The Aslav is based on the LAV II similar to the 203 Canadian Coyote reconnaissance vehicles. The upgrades include a new turret electric drive, an enhanced thermal sight with laser rangefinder and an improved fire control system for the 25 mm turrets, the integration of a GPS-based navigation system and enhanced suspension.

Following operational experience the Army has now fitted bar armour on the twelve Aslavs deployed in Iraq. Similar to that fitted on the Stryker it extends to protect the turret. Kongsberg Remote Weapon Stations are also being fitted to the PC variants.

The Piranha III is the latest generation in production. Mowag has received orders from Denmark (91 8 x 8 vehicles in APC and ambulance configurations), Ireland (65 8 x 8 vehicles), Spain (18 8 x 8 vehicles for the marines including APCs fitted with the Cadillac Gage 40 mm/12.7 mm turrets) and Switzerland (36 radio access point vehicles). The Swiss Army already operates 310 6 x 6 Tow-armed Piranha 1s and 515 8 x 8 Piranha II APCs with the Rheinmetall M2 turret. Sweden is the only customer to date for the 10 x 10 Piranha with six in the command post role and seven fitted with an Ericsson mast-mounted air defence radar.

Under the designation LAV III the Canadian Army is in the final phase of the acquisition of 651 vehicles. Earlier phases covered 480 vehicles mounting the LAV 25 two-man turret with the ATK Gun Systems M242 25 mm Chain Gun. The final phase covers specialised variants including Tow under armour vehicles equipped with refurbished and upgraded Kvaerner Eureka armoured launching turrets for delivery from September 2005.

The army is also considering new Multi-Mission Effects Vehicles (MMEV) to provide direct fire and beyond line-of-sight fire together with an air defence capability on a single platform. One alternative being studied is the transferring of the Oerlikon Contraves Adats turret from the tracked Ml13A2 to the LAV III. Another possible solution is installing a modified Adats turret on the Stryker Mobile Gun chassis to provide a vehicle with better stability. The vehicle is not expected to be operational until 2010. In November 2004 the New Zealand Army received the last of 105 LAV IIIs purchased to replace its M113 and Scorpion fire support vehicles.

Mowag completed the first prototype of the larger Piranha IV in 2001 and the second in 2004. The new vehicle offers greater internal volume, higher payload capacity, better armour protection and improved mobility compared to the Piranha III. The IVs are also the first members of the series that do not have an amphibious capability. Before it was bought by Alvis, Vickers Defence System had a license to produce the Piranha IV and officials were suggesting it could meet British Army needs when it became clear the service was losing interest in the heavier Boxer Multi-Role Armoured Vehicle. Alvis already held the right to produce the Piranha II and III and has produced 165 for Oman, 40 for Qatar and 100 to 120 for Saudi Arabia.

Piranha Variation: Stryker

In November 2003, only three years after the US Army selected the LAV III (designated the Stryker) as its interim armoured vehicle, the first Stryker Brigade Combat Team deployed to Iraq.

During the twelve-month deployment each of the more than 300 Strykers averaged 10,100 miles for a total of more than 3.5 million miles. The mission-capable rate dipped below 90 per cent only once in 2004 during the handover between the first and second Striker teams and averaged more than 95 per cent over the whole period. During the deployment the brigade's Strykers with stood 23 RPG, 62 IED, six vehicle-carried IED, five mortar, 25 small arms, one mine and two grenade attacks.

The Stryker's steel hull defeats 7.62 mm AP rounds while the ceramic applique armour protects against 14.5 mm rounds and 152 mm airburst attacks. Strykers deployed in Iraq have 'slat armour', basically a wire cage around the vehicle's hull, added to detonate RPGs before they can reach the vehicle's armour and penetrate it. The Stryker is scheduled to be fitted with new reactive armour later in 2005.

Key to the selection of the LAV III was the requirement that the vehicle could be carried inside a C-130 for deployment within theatre. However, to do this the US Air Force waives its requirement for a 14-inch safety aisle around all sides of the vehicle.

Under the $ four billion contract signed in November 2000 with the-then GM General Dynamics Land Systems Defense Group the army is buying 2131 Strykers to equip six teams by 2009. The speed of the programme is impressive; officials celebrated the 1000 Stryker to roll off the assembly lines on 12 January 2005. Two-thirds of the Strykers have been built at the Anniston Army Depot in Alabama and the remainder at the General Dynamics plant. The army's first team was replaced in Iraq by the second in November 2004. The third brigade is scheduled to be deployed later this year. Deliveries of 328 vehicles ordered in 2004 to equip the fourth team are scheduled to occur between February 2005 and February 2006. In mid-February 2005 the army placed a $ 582 million order for 423 vehicles to be delivered from January 2006 through January 2007 to equip the fifth Stryker team.

There are currently two main Stryker variants--the M1126 Infantry Carrier Vehicle (ICV--with 714 planned) and the M1128 Mobile Gun System (MGS-204). The ICV has eight additional configurations:

* M1130 Command Vehicle (CV-252)

* M1127 Reconnaissance Vehicle (RV-321)

* M1131 Fire Support Vehicle (FSV-97)

* M1129 Mortar Carrier/ XM1129A1 Mounted Mortar Carrier (MC-241)

* M1134 Anti-Tank Guided Missile vehicle (ATGM-75)

* M1132 Engineer Squad Vehicle (ESV-75)

* M-1133 Medical Evacuation Vehicle (MEV-118) and,

* M1135 NBC Reconnaissance Vehicle (NBCRV-37).

The first production examples of the MGS and the NBCRV were included among the 95 Strykers, worth $ 206 million, ordered by the US Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command on 2 December 2004. The Department of Defense gave approval last October for both variants to enter low rate initial production. The MGS is armed with the General Dynamics 105 mm cannon in a low profile, stabilised turret. It carries 18 rounds of 105 mm ammunition, 400 rounds of 12.7 mm ammunition and 3400 7.62 mm rounds. Reliability testing of the MGS is scheduled to be completed in June 2005 when a decision to purchase 58 additional systems is expected. The Canadian Army is to acquire 66 MGS vehicles to replace its Leopard C2 tanks.

Portuguese Pandur

The Portuguese Ministry of Defence has recently awarded Austria's Steyr-DaimlerPuch (now a subsidiary of General Dynamics) a 344[euro] million contract for 260 8 x 8 Pandur II vehicles to equip its army and marine corps. It the largest export order the company has ever received.

Austria was the launch customer for the Pandur II when it ordered 129 vehicles in the 6 x 6 configuration in 2002. The Pandur II was developed from the Pandur I of which more than 300 have been built since 1995 for Austria (68), Belgium (54), Gabon (1 with up to 20 expected), Kuwait (70), Slovenia (72 manufactured locally by Sistemska Tehnika under licence) and the US Army (50). Vehicles for Kuwait and the US were produced in America by AV Technology (also a General Dynamics subsidiary). The Kuwait National Guard variants include an assault gun vehicle fitted with a two-person Cockerill turret mounting a Cockerill 90 mm gun.

The Pandur II's all-welded steel armour hull protects against 7.62 mm AP ammunition through a full 360-degrees and can be increased to withstand attack from 14.5 mm AP ammunition by the addition of passive applique armour. The 6 x 6 Pandur II is offered with a range of turrets that can be armed with weapons as large as a 90 mm gun while the 8 x 8 vehicle can carry a 105 mm turret.

Italy's Family

In the 1980s the Italian Army decided to fund the develop of two tracked vehicles--the Ariete tank and the Dardo IFV--for its heavy combat forces and two wheeled vehicles--the Centauro 8 x 8 tank destroyer and the Puma family--for its rapid deployment forces. Between 1991 and 1996 the Consortium Iveco-Oto Melara built 400 Centauros for Italy and production of 88 vehicles ordered for the Spanish Army continues. The Centauro is armed with a turret-mounted stabilised 105 mm rifled tank gun that fires standard Nato ammunition. The last 150 vehicles produced for Italy were modified so that the standard 40-round ammunition load can be reduced to enable four troops to be carried in the rear compartment. In basic configuration the 25-tonne vehicle is protected against 20 mm attack over the frontal are and against 12.7 mm attack all round. If the threat warrants the Centauro can carry up to three tonnes of additional passive or reactive armour.

The Centauro will be the primary fighting vehicle of the Italian Army's three medium brigades that are now being organised. Five additional Centauro variants are under development: an IFV fitted with an Oto Melara TC-25 Hitfist two-person turret armed with a 25 mm KBA cannon, a 120 mm mortar carrier, a command post, a recovery vehicle and an ambulance. These vehicles will feature a slightly longer and narrower hull than the Centauro. Production of the IFV is scheduled to begin in 2006.

For the export market the Centauro is offered with a new turret armed with an Oto Melara 120 mm smoothbore gun, thus becoming the first wheeled AFV to offer the same firepower as the latest generation tanks. Other proposed variants include a gun-or missile-armed air defence vehicle, an NBC reconnaissance vehicle, armoured vehicle-launched bridge and a 155 mm self-propelled gun. 150 of the 400 Centauros in the Italian Army have the rear hull stretched to 8.6 metres to accommodate four extra infantrymen.

Iveco is building 540 Puma vehicles -320 in 6 x 6 and 220 in 4 x 4 configuration--for the Italian Army under the designation Veicolo Blindato Leggero. These are to equip three light brigades. The 4 x 4 reconnaissance vehicles carry a four-strong crew and will operate alongside the Centauro in reconnaissance regiments, while the 6 x 6 carries a crew of seven.

Patria's AMV 

Patria developed the Armoured Modular Vehicle (AMV) to provide a vehicle with greater mobility, payload and protection than is offered by its 6 x 6 XA-200. More than 1200 XA-180 and XA200 vehicles have been built for five customers (some of these have been loaned to other nations for peacekeeping missions) and production continues.

Patria makes no secret that the AMV is intended to challenge the dominant position of the Piranha/LAV in the market for this class of vehicle. Patria achieved a major coup in 2002, less than four years after AMV development was launched, when the new vehicle was selected in preference to the Pandur II and Piranha III to meet the Polish Land Force requirement for a family of 690 wheeled AFVs to equip eight battalions. Poland has ordered 313 IFVs, 125 APCs, 81 command and control, engineer, ambulance and recovery variants in the 8 x 8 configuration and 32 6 x 6 reconnaissance vehicles. In Polish service the vehicle is known as the the Rosomak (Wolverine).

On 8 January 2005 Poland's 17th Mechanised Brigade formally received the army's first Wolverines: three in the IFV configuration and six APCs. Initial production vehicles are being built in Finland before production shifts to Poland. The Polish vehicles are fitted with the Oto Melara two-man Hitfist turret. Poland scrapped its requirement that the IFV be transportable by C-130.

In 2003 the Finnish Defence Forces ordered 24 8 x 8 AMVs to serve as the carrier for the Patria Hagglunds Amos twin 120 mm mortar turret and in December 2004 placed a 96 million [euro] order for 62 8 x 8 AMVs configured as APCs with heavy machine gun turrets for delivery in the 2006 to 2007 timeframe. The first four Amos AMVs are scheduled to be completed this year. The AMV's high payload enables 84 120 mm rounds and six guided projectiles carried.

The South African Army is planning separate programmes to acquire new APCs (Project Sepula) and tank destroyers (Project Adrift). Patria is part of a consortium that includes Denel, Eads, Land Mobility Technologies and BAE Systems Land Systems South Africa-OMC that is proposing the AMV with the Denel LCT 30 turret. Giat is expected to offer the VBCI and Mowag the Piranha IV. Vehicles for evaluation were scheduled to be delivered by 24 February 2005.

Boxer: Decision Looms

The multinational Boxer remains a Cinderella among AFV projects; forever waiting to go the ball. For the German Army it is a particularly frustrating experience, as a feasibility study on a national wheeled APC project began as long ago as 1981.

On 23 November 2004 Occar (Organisation Conjoint de Cooperation en matiere d'Armement), representing Germany and the Netherlands, signed a revised contract with Artec for the continued development of the 8 x 8 Boxer. The Artec consortium now comprises Kraus-Maffei Wegmann and Rheinmetall from Germany and Stork of the Netherlands. It is required to provide revised costing in September 2005 for a smaller Boxer production run.

The revised contract accommodates the necessary changes to cost- and worksharing, following the 2003 decision by Britain to withdraw from the project. Weighing 33 tonnes the Boxer is heavier than any other 8 x 8 APC and cannot be transported by a C-130. This is one of the considerations that led the British Army to quit the project and concentrate on developing the lighter Future Rapid Effects System of medium armoured vehicles.

Despite the revised contract uncertainty continues to cloud a project that was intended to be the greatest collaborative venture ever undertaken by the European land systems sector. The Netherlands has issued a request for information to five manufacturers of 8 x 8 vehicles as possible alternatives to the Boxer and it is also considering whether the CV9035 Mk III, selected for its tracked IFV project, could partially undertake some of the roles that were intended for the Boxer.

Since June 2003 twelve Boxer prototypes, four for each of the three nations in the original development programme, have been involved in extensive trials. The revised development contract covers eight prototypes of five different mission types in specific configurations for the Dutch and German armies; including APC, command post, ambulance, repair and cargo vehicles. The partner nations are currently considering additional variants. The four British prototypes will continue to be used within the trials and qualification programme, which is scheduled to run until mid-2006.

Terrex from Singapore

Singapore Technologies Kinetics (ST Kinetics) developed its 8 x 8 Terrex AV81 as a private venture in collaboration with Timoney Technology of Ireland. The prototype first displayed in 2001 has since been joined by a pre-production example. ST Kinetics has indicated its intention to offer the vehicle to the Turkish Land Forces Command and is optimistic that the Singapore Armed Forces, which now only operates tracked AFVs, will decide to acquire a wheeled AFV for overseas missions.

The prototype has been displayed configured as an APC with an overhead weapon station armed with a CIS 40 mm Grenade Launcher and a 7.62 mm machine gun. ST Kinetics is proposing a range of turrets such as the two-person, 25 mm cannon turret fitted to its tracked Bionix 25 IFV and a turret armed with a 105 mm low recoil gun. In addition to use as an APC and IFV, ST Kinetics has suggested that specialist variants such as command, 120 mm mortar carrier, air defence and anti-tank missile carriers and 155 mm, 52-calibre self-propelled gun can be developed to meet user requirements.

In the APC configuration the AV81 carries a commander, driver and a ten-strong complement in the troop compartment. With a maximum combat weigh of 24 tonnes, depending upon the turret and the level of armour protection, the vehicle is designed to be carried by a C-130. The vehicle's hull is of all-welded steel construction to which additional passive armour can be added, and the V-shape of the hull floor improves mine blast survivability.

VBCI

Giat Industries is the prime contractor for the 3 billion [euro] project to build 700 8 x 8 Vehicules Blindes de Combat d'Infanterie (VBCI--seen in the photograph below) to replace the French Army's tracked AMX-10P by 2015. After an abortive start to develop a vehicle in a multinational programme with Germany and Britain (which became the Boxer) France opted to pursue a national solution.

The DGA awarded the VBCI development contract to Giat and Renault Trucks Defense. An initial contract was placed in 2003 for 54 Vehicules de Combat d'Infanterie and 11 Vehicules Poste de Commandement: the army has a total requirement for 550 VCIs and 150 PCs. First deliveries are scheduled for 2008.

The VCI has a crew of three--commander, driver and gunner--and carries seven soldiers in the troop compartment. It is fitted with a Giat Dragar single-operator turret armed with a stabilised M811 25 mm dual-feed cannon and a 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun. Command variants will be armed with an FN Herstal remote weapon station mounting a 12.7 mm heavy machine gun. A layer of titanium armour is fitted to the VBCI's all-welded aluminium hull. The 28,000-kg VCI was designed to be carried by the A400M transport aircraft.

Anti-tank, mortar, engineer and mobile gun system are among the specialist variants expected to be ordered in the future. The gun system could be armed with a large calibre cannon fed by a bustle-mounted automatic loader to reduce the vehicle's crew to three.

Boa EBXX

The VBCI should be followed into French service by the Engin Blinde a Roues de Contact (EBRC) reconnaissance vehicle that is intended to replace the 105 mm-armed 6 x 6 AMX-10RC, the 90 mm-armed 6 x 6 ERC Sagaie and some AMX-30B2 MBTs. The EBRC is at the heart of French Army's Bulle Operationnelle Adroterrestre (Boa 'air-land operational bubble') concept, which, like the US Army's Future Combat Systems, will link sensors, unmanned air vehicles (drones), unmanned ground vehicles and manned weapon platforms into a networked 'system of systems'. A Thalesled consortium, which includes Giat and Sagem, is working in partnership with MBDA and Eads on a Boa demonstrator.

Under a contract from the Delegation Generale pour l'Armement (DGA) Giat has explored a number of concepts since 1999. The vehicle project is now known as the EBXX as there are second thoughts about a wheels-only variant. A proposed version would weigh about 16 tonnes and be armed with the 40 mm Case Telescoped Weapon System for the direct fire role and a pod of missiles either side of the unmanned turret to engage targets beyond line-of-sight. A crew of three would be seated in the hull. A 24 tonne (8 x 8 if wheeled) would be armed with a 105 mm electro-thermal chemical gun. The A400M transport would be able to carry two 6x6s and one 8x8. The EBXX will utilise hybridelectric propulsion combining both diesel and electrical propulsion systems. The study has also examined a tracked vehicle with a band-type track. The first EBXX is not expected before 2011.

FNSS's First Wheels

Turkey's FNSS chose Idex 2005 as the venue to unveil its first locally-developed wheeled AFV, the 8 x 8 Pars (leopard), which is aimed at both Turkey's requirements and the export market. FNSS is proposing a modular concept to develop a family of 4 x 4,6 x 6, 8 x 8 and 10 x 10 vehicles that could thus be configured for a wide variety of roles yet still have similar components to reduce the logistics burden. As an example of this flexibility FNSS is offering an 8 x 8 Pars that can be carried inside a C-130 Hercules transport or in a wider configuration with greater internal volume. The vehicle's all-welded steel hull will defeat 7.62 mm AP ammunition and higher levels of protection can be provided if required by the customer.

With Turkish forces playing a prominent role in Nato peace support operations in Afghanistan and the former Yugoslavia it is not surprising that the Turkish Land Force Command is interested in acquiring a wheeled AFV. In 2001 FNSS signed an agreement with Alvis Vehicles to co-operate in the production of the 8 x 8 Piranha II if the vehicle is selected. The Piranha has been demonstrated with the one-person Sharpshooter turret armed with the ATK M242 25 mm dual-feed cannon. The turret was developed by FNSS in collaboration with United Defense and was installed on the IFV variant of the Armoured Combat Vehicles that FNSS has been delivering to Malaysia since 2002.

Fuchs 2 for NC & g

Rheinmetall was awarded a contract for close to 30 Fuchs 2 6 x 6 by the United Arab Emirates in February 2005. The vehicles (for which the Emirates are the launch customer) are based on the latest generation of the Henschel-designed Fuchs (Fox) but feature a higher cabin, add-on armour and uprated rolling gear to cope with the higher weight of the vehicle. Strictly speaking, the vehicle (even in its earlier version) never was produced in full NBC form, as the biological segment of the discipline would not have fit into a single cabin. Vehicles delivered so far were equipped for nuclear and chemical detection. However, with today's technological developments Rheinmetall is able to offer a biological investigation version. The Emirates will thus be delivered a mix of Fuchs 2 NCs and Fuchs 2 Bs. These are, however, not (yet) their official designation. Almost 950 Fuchs armoured personnel carriers have been delivered to the German Army, and nuclear and chemical detection versions have been produced for Britain, Germany and America. The company will no doubt be hoping that this new order will boost its chances in Saudi Arabia's search for NBC detection equipment.

While wheeled vehicles offer more practicality in terms of deployment and running costs, although their tracked counterparts appear to be no more expensive to build and, for any given overall width, tend to yield more internal space.

Crows in the Nest

In January 2005 the US Army shipped 35 Common Remotely Operated Weapon Stations (Crows) to Iraq for installation on Hummers used by special forces, military police, infantry and transport units. Developed by Recon/Optical, the Crows can be fitted with the M249 5.56 mm, M240B 7.62 mm and the M2 12.7 mm machine guns and the Mk 19 40 mm automatic grenade launcher. Sensors include a laser rangefinder, thermal weapon sights, daylight video camera and an image intensifier.

The military police were the first to identify the need for a fully stabilised weapon station for installation on its M1117 ASV. Four M1114s with Crows were deployed to Iraq for field trials from late December 2003 to March 2004 and proved popular with users.

Late in 2004 Congress approved a $ 70.5 million army request to acquire 254 Crows by the end of 2005. The system is being adopted for use on other vehicles, including the M93 Fox nuclear, biological and chemical reconnaissance vehicle and the Stryker in place of the unstabilised Kongsberg weapon station.