Royal Marines to be quipped with new snowmobiles
Royal Marines recently participated in the large-scale Nordic Response exercise, covering military drills in the Arctic with NATO allies. (Photo: Royal Navy)
The Royal Navy purchased the vehicles from Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP) for more than £10 million (US$12.6 million).
The UK Commando Force will receive 159 Lynx Brutal Over Snow Reconnaissance Vehicles for specialised troops operating in extreme cold weather who have been trained for combat and survival in Arctic territory.
The new snowmobiles, produced by a Finnish subsidiary of the Canadian firm BRP, will be supplied after March 2025.
The Royal Navy stated that the Lynx Brutal was equipped to operate in deep snow and reflected commandos’ changing tactics and challenges.
According to the Royal Navy, Royal Marines have previously partly moved on skis and snowshoes in snowy areas. A growing need to move quicker and over longer distances has resulted in the purchase of the new snowmobiles.
According to the Royal Navy, the new snowmobiles will arrive at a similar time as 60 future all-terrain vehicles, which will be expected to replace a fleet of Bv 206s and Viking vehicles.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
You may also like
More from Naval Warfare
-
![Funding for the future US Navy Trump-class battleship sparks controversy in Congress]()
Funding for the future US Navy Trump-class battleship sparks controversy in Congress
Lawmakers question the US Navy’s proposed $2 billion investment in the Trump-class battleship as concerns over cost, technology maturity and operational relevance fuel growing bipartisan scrutiny on Capitol Hill.
-
![Germany sinks F126 frigate programme in favour of cheaper MEKO A-200]()
Germany sinks F126 frigate programme in favour of cheaper MEKO A-200
On 24 June 2026, the German Ministry of Defence announced it was cancelling the F126 frigate programme in favour of procuring eight MEKO A-200 DEU frigates.
-
![UK’s Type 31 frigate balances cost pressure with long-term export ambition]()
UK’s Type 31 frigate balances cost pressure with long-term export ambition
The UK shipbuilder’s full-year results to the end of March revealed the impact of the £140 million charge linked to design changes and rework on the Royal Navy’s Type 31 frigate programme.
-
![US Navy expands non-standard acquisitions to rapidly field emerging technologies]()
US Navy expands non-standard acquisitions to rapidly field emerging technologies
The US Navy is increasing the use of OTA obligations to accelerate the procurement of seabed-subsea, littoral, expeditionary and uncrewed solutions.
-
![Can Portugal solve NATO’s uncrewed systems development challenge?]()
Can Portugal solve NATO’s uncrewed systems development challenge?
NATO has spent more than a decade building one of the world’s most sophisticated maritime uncrewed experimentation ecosystems, but still lacks a way to translate this testing into alliance-wide operational capability. Portugal now believes it has the answer.
-
![Eurosatory 2026: Schiebel’s frigate-first strategy indicates a shift in UAV competition]()
Eurosatory 2026: Schiebel’s frigate-first strategy indicates a shift in UAV competition
Schiebel is pursuing opportunities in the UK and France while leveraging its integration with Naval Group’s FDI frigate programme to create new naval business across Europe.
