Navistar Defense LLC reports it has received contracts from the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corp. totaling $191 million, for new vehicles and for improvements to existing combat vehicles.
For the Army’s Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command Life Cycle Management Command, Navistar will provide a total of 629 new medium tactical vehicles. The contract — for general troop transport trucks — is valued at $89 million and calls for deliveries to begin in October.
Navistar said this order falls under a three-year contract placed in May 2008 for equipment to support the Afghan National Police and Afghan National Army.
“To date, we have more than 14,000 vehicles in Iraq and Afghanistan that leverage the same commercial truck platform, but operate as different medium tactical vehicle and MRAP variants,” stated Navistar Defense president Archie Massicotte. “This commonality allows us to customize our vehicles for the mission while also accelerating the fleet support provided by our global parts and support network.”
The second contract is valued at $102 million and comes from the U.S. Marine Corps Systems Command. The MaxxPro is a mine-resistant ambush protected (MRAP) armored fighting vehicle, designed to endure attacks from improvised explosive devices (IED), ballistic arms fire, and mine blasts. The MaxxPro Dash incorporates additional armor, as mission requirements warrant.
Navistar will provide MaxxPro Dash MRAP capability insertions for 1,222 Dash units in Afghanistan. Installations will begin in August for completion by October 31, 2010. These same enhancements have been incorporated into the new MaxxPro Dash vehicles with DXM independent suspension currently being delivered.
According to Massicotte, “Capability insertion is just one form of vehicle sustainment that Navistar provides … Vehicle fleets have been known to operate for 15 and 20 years and we will provide all the support necessary to keep our trucks up and running and equipped with the latest and greatest technology.”
