South Korea to manufacture M3 rigs locally
Hanwha Defense will license-produce the M3 amphibious rig to boost the South Korean army’s river-crossing capability.
The Republic of Korea Army (ROKA) will receive 55 sets of M3 amphibious rigs after a selection process reached fruition late last year. The competition had seen the General Dynamics European Land Systems (GDELS) M3 compete against the FNSS Armoured Amphibious Assault Bridge (AAAB) from Turkey.
Hanwha Defense will license-produce all the GDELS M3s by 2027 under an approximately $460 million contract. Each M3K set comprises two vehicles, and the first locally assembled systems will be delivered in 2023 with some minor customisation.
FNSS had partnered with Hyundai Rotem to offer the Otter AAAB. According to Shephard Defence Insight, the
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