Combat vehicles: AMV35 - Candidate for Australia

The modernization of the Australian Army is progressing briskly: As another example of the new military doctrine of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), the tender at the beginning of 2015 for a new generation of combat reconnaissance vehicles can be considered. Here, the previously used 257 LAV-25 (Light Armored Vehicle) scout tanks are to be replaced by a total of 225 more modern and combat-stronger models by 2030 as part of the Land400 Phase 2 program. The project has an estimated financial volume of AUD 4-5 billion (3.67 billion euros) and is entering its final decision phase these days. SPARTANAT author Udo Lücken introduces one of the two remaining candidates today.

Of the original six international bidders, only two remain in the final phase. At the end of July 2016, the two providers, BAE Systems Australia – with the AMV35 – and Rheinmetall – with the Boxer CRV, were approved and confirmed for troop testing (Risk Mitigation Activities - RMA). Three vehicles of each model will undergo a challenging test series under operational conditions during the twelve-month RMA phase.As the general contractor for the AMV35 project, the global company BAE Systems has established a consortium consisting of the Patria Group Finland and BAE Systems Hägglunds Sweden as its main partners. The alliance offers the AMV35, a modern, highly agile, and modularly protected vehicle equipped with the proven E35 turret, which provides strong firepower.

At the Eurosatory fair in Paris, BAE Systems Australia Chief Executive Glynn Phillips stated in an interview: "If we are chosen for the successful tender, BAE Systems will produce the AMV35 in Australia and contribute to strengthening the Australian economy with the expected 30-year duration of the project. Our team is now focused on implementing and realizing this project for the Australian Army." BAE Systems has committed to involve as much Australian industry as possible in this vehicle to support the growth of local industries and integrate into an Australian production line. Mika Kari, President of Patria Land Company, confirmed this concept: "BAE Systems and Patria have developed a great solution here for Australian soldiers and the Australian economy. We are forging stronger connections with the Australian industry."

Because the Australian territory (7.7 million square kilometers) is considered predominantly uninhabitable due to extreme climatic conditions, and with a relatively small army (around 60,000 military personnel), it would not be defendable, the Department of Defence (DoD) focuses its defense strategy on the eight strategic industrial centers in the coastal regions as outlined in the current "White Paper" Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century: Force 2030. This is a key aspect of the new Australian defense orientation.

The Land 400 concept aims to significantly improve the close combat capability of the Australian land forces.

The Land 400 concept aims to significantly improve the close combat capability of the Australian land forces. The program will equip the new armored combat reconnaissance vehicles with improved firepower, high levels of protection, extensive mobility, and digital communication to be able to compete in all future operational areas. The restructured army units are not only intended to establish and maintain "contact" with enemy forces as before, but to actively seek out delaying contact. This gives the main forces a valuable time window and the opportunity to gather for counterattacks.

BAE Systems and Patria are jointly offering the AMV35, based on the Patria AMV, for Australia's LAND 400 Phase 2 requirement. Introduced in the early 2000s, the Patria AMV serves in a variety of versions in Poland, Sweden, Finland, Croatia, Slovenia, the United Arab Emirates, and is also deployed in South Africa as the Badger infantry fighting vehicle. The model range has been constantly modernized in the following years.

INNOVATIVE VEHICLE PRESENTATION: the AMV35 as APP - Download for Android and iOS HERE

Tactical mobility is described as a basic capability in the current 8x8 market. When fully loaded, the weight of the AMV35 is approximately 32 tons, making it about five tons lighter than the heaviest vehicle in the competition. It has a top speed of over 100 km/h, a climbing capability of 60 percent, a maximum side slope of 30 percent, can cross vertical obstacles up to 0.7 meters high, and can cross ditches up to two meters. The operational range is up to 800 km.

The AMV35 is equipped with a BAE Systems Hägglunds Mk 3 CV9035 35mm turret, providing the vehicle with the highest firepower. The electrically driven technology of the ATK Bushmaster III 35mm cannon is derived from an Oerlikon 35 mm anti-aircraft system. The 35mm programmable KETF ammunition contains 407 pre-formed tungsten fragments.

In the overall evaluation process of Phase 2, the protection of vehicle crews ranks higher than lethality and mobility. The basic protection level is STANAG 4569 Level 4 Kinetic (14.5 mm armor-piercing) and Levels 4a/4b Explosion (10 kg under wheel/under body). According to a product brochure, the optional application of armor provides ballistic protection against armor-piercing fin-stabilized projectiles of up to 30 mm. Experiences from operations in Afghanistan showed that despite numerous RPG hits and IED attacks, none of the around 100 Rosomak vehicles serving in the Polish Army in Afghanistan experienced penetration of the vehicle hull. Survivability can be increased through the installation of a signature management system, anti-RPG nets, acoustic and thermal gunshot detectors, coupled with an automatic self-defense system.

The AMV35 online: http://www.baesystems.com/en-aus/feature/land-400