US Army seeks industry support to prepare acquisitions of Group 4+ UAVs
The US Army is keen to hear about vendor designs, strategies and potential hardware and software solutions to inform requirements for procurement efforts.
American Rheinmetall and GM Defense will use the HX3 family as the basis for its CTT prototype designs. (Photo: Rheinmetall)
On 27 January, the US Army announced Other Transaction Authority (OTA) agreements with four bidders on the CTT programme: Mack Defense; Navistar Defense; Oshkosh Defense; and an American Rheinmetall/GM Defense team. The combined contract value is $24.25 million.
Under the OTAs, the contractors will provide three prototypes of each variant for the CTT Family of Vehicles, aimed at replacing the M915 Line Haul Tractor and M1088 Medium Tractor; Palletized Load System (PLS); and Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck (HEMTT).
The bidders will also provide digital designs of all variants and a design study for a wrecker model. This rapid prototyping phase will inform the army whether commercially based variants can meet military requirements.
AUSA 2022: Common Tactical Truck competition attracts AM General-Iveco bid
Rheinmetall demonstrates art of the possible for autonomous trucks
'The CTT effort brings an increased level of standardisation to the army’s tactical truck fleet,' Program Executive Officer Combat Support & Combat Service Support (PEO CS&CSS) Brig Gen Luke Peterson said. '[CTT] will... seek to streamline the army’s supply, maintenance and training requirements.'
Wolfgang Petermann, project manager, Transportation Systems, PEO CS&CSS, added that the programme is intended to redesign the fleet to integrate commercial technologies such as driver assist systems, foundations for future autonomy, fuel efficiency, exportable power and prognostics and predictive maintenance.
Evaluation of prototypes is due in early 2024, after which the PEO, will present a Capabilities Development Document to the Army Requirements Oversight Council for a decision in FY2026.
If approval is granted, the PEO will then conduct an open competition, with bidders delivering production-representative vehicles for run-off testing, leading to a production contract.
Mack Defense's bid is believed to be based on the company's Granite range of vehicles; Oshkosh Defense will submit modernised versions of its Family of Heavy Tactical Vehicles line; while American Rheinmetall and GM Defense will use the HX3 design as the basis of its prototypes. Navistar had not publicised any details of its submission at the time of writing.
The CTT programme could run to production of 40,000 vehicles worth $14 billion,
The US Army is keen to hear about vendor designs, strategies and potential hardware and software solutions to inform requirements for procurement efforts.
Top attacks have proven effective against heavily armoured vehicles in Ukraine. A new family of uncrewed aerial system-delivered munitions is looking to press that advantage further.
The Israeli company hopes that producing its Sigma artillery system wholly in the US will help it win a key US Army contract, but it will be up against the popular CAESAR Mk II wheeled weapon and the K9 tracked.
Germany has ordered 84 RCH 155 self-propelled guns, as system incorporating Boxer 8×8 vehicles and the Artillery Gun Module, and 200 Puma Infantry Fighting Vehicles while the UK has committed to a single Early Capability Demonstrator RCH 155.
While integration of guided weapons on modern armoured vehicles usually takes the form of a podded launcher on the turret exterior, recent developments suggest the concept of firing missiles from a tank’s main gun could be seeing a revival.
The order is a further boost for the Common Armoured Vehicles System programme which has notched notable successes in the past 12 months. The first vehicle, made in Finland, will be delivered next year with local production expected to ramp up in 2027.