Rheinmetall wins $2.9 billion contract to supply Boxer 8x8s to the Bundeswehr
The German Federal Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) will procure up to 123 Boxer 8x8 vehicles from Rheinmetall in a deal worth around €2.7 billion (US$2.9 billion).
The deal, which was this week approved by Budget Committee of the German Bundestag following a contract signed in March 2023, will include service and maintenance with delivery scheduled to begin in 2025.
The “Schwerer Waffenträger Infanterie” (Heavy Weapon Carrier for the Infantry) will provide the German Army’s medium forces with firepower and rapid mobility. It has been based on the Boxer Combat Reconnaissance Vehicle (CRV), the Rheinmetall-supplied wheeled armoured reconnaissance vehicle of the Australian Defence Force.
The 8x8 combat vehicles will feature an armoured reconnaissance mission module including the two-person Lance turret. Its main weapon will be the Rheinmetall MK30-2 ABM automatic cannon and its multi-role guided missile system will enable the vehicle to provide anti-tank defence.
Armin Papperger, chairman of the executive board of Rheinmetall AG, revealed: “In order to be able to provide the Army with the required combat vehicles as quickly as possible, we are integrating not only our German but also the Australian sites in our Rheinmetall network.”
The Bundeswehr vehicles will utilise production capacities at Rheinmetall’s Military Vehicle Centre of Excellence (MILVEHCOE) in Redbank, Queensland, alongside Combat Reconnaissance Vehicles being produced for the Australian Defence Forces.
John Abunassar, head of Rheinmetall’s Vehicle Systems Division, claimed the deal would be “one of the largest Australian defence exports in the country’s history”. Rheinmetall, which employs more than 900 employees in the country, claimed to be further integrating Australian defence industry capabilities within the company’s global supply chains via the Boxer deal.
More from Land Warfare
-
US Army chooses Textron Systems and Griffon Aerospace in final showdown for FTUAS
The US Army plans to procure a Future Tactical UAS (FTUAS) to replace the Textron Systems RQ-7Bv2 Shadow tactical UAV currently in service with the US Army's Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs). The FTUAS is being developed under the wider Future UAS (FUAS) programme.
-
Lockheed Martin signs Australian air and missile defence system deal
Air 6500 Phase 1, worth AU$500 million (US$326 million), will result in a sovereign system that can provide greater situational awareness and help to defend against hostile aircraft and missiles. It will sit at the core of Australia’s Integrated Air and Missile Defence programme.
-
Rheinmetall wins communications deal that could be worth up to €400 million
The systems have been purchased under a special fund which has already been tapped into for the purchase of 60 CH-47F Block II Chinook helicopters worth up to €8 billion (US$8.7 billion) and thousands of Rheinmetall Caracal airmobile special operations vehicles worth €1.9 billion.
-
The Philippines looks to Israel for military equipment amid South China Sea tensions
The southeast Asian country has been enhancing its military readiness by procuring advanced Israeli defence platforms and systems.