BAE Systems Land &Armaments LP, Sterling Heights, Michigan, was awarded a $15,730,000 modification to contract for spare parts necessary for initial training and fielding for Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicles. Work will be performed in York, Pennsylvania, with an estimated completion date of Jan. 1, 2023. Fiscal 2019 and 2020 weapons and tracked combat vehicle procurement, Army funds; and European Deterrence Initiative, Defense funds in the amount of $15,730,000 were obligated at the time of the award.
The Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV) is a U.S. Army program to replace the M113 armored personnel carrier and family of vehicles. A contract for the Engineering, Manufacturing, and Development (EMD) phase was awarded to BAE Systems in December 2014. As of 2015 the program was scheduled to deliver 2,897 vehicles at a total cost of $10.723 billion, or $3.7 million per vehicle. The first AMPV prototype was rolled out on 15 December 2016, and the first production vehicles began rolling out in September 2020.
The U.S. Army has identified the AMPV as its top priority for the safety and survivability of soldiers and therefore meets tough protection requirements. The AMPV leverages aspects of the Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle and M109A7 self-propelled howitzer, furthering commonality in the ABCT fleet of vehicles. The Army and BAE Systems are currently in low-rate production of the five AMPV variants. The variants include a general purpose vehicle for troop transport, along with mission command, mortar carrier, medical evacuation and medical treatment versions.
AMPV is a mature, low-risk and cost-effective solution that rapidly delivers continued combat overmatch capability for the Army. Because of the issues, the Army’s AMPV budget request in FY21 showed the program took a hit. The service indicated it would buy 32 vehicles instead of the 143 planned for the fiscal year, and the program’s budget was cut from $445 million to $193 million.
According to BAE, the AMPV has completed nearly two dozen Army tests and “has consistently met or exceeded all of its requirements.”
