British aerospace giant BAE Systems has been awarded a $34.9 million contract to design and develop an Amphibious Combat Vehicle Recovery (ACV-R) variant for the US Marine Corps.
According to the company, the ACV-R will provide direct field support, maintenance, and crucial recovery capability to the ACV family of vehicles.
“It also expands the ACV family of vehicles and demonstrates the base vehicle’s proven design, allowing it to be seamlessly integrated into the fleet without compromising performance,” BAE vice president John Swift explained in a press release.
The ACV-R is expected to replace the service’s legacy Assault Amphibious Vehicle recovery variant.
The second phase of the ACV-R program will include the delivery of test vehicles for evaluation.
In addition to the ACV-R, BAE Systems is under contract to deliver two other ACVs, the ACV personnel (ACV-P) and ACV command variants (ACV-C).
The company has also been tasked with studying the integration of advanced reconnaissance, command, control, and communications, as well as unmanned aerial systems mission payloads onto the ACVs.
‘Fulfill Complex Missions’
The Amphibious Combat Vehicle is an 8×8 platform that features open-ocean amphibious capability, land mobility, and improved survivability.
It is designed to accommodate the evolving operational needs of the US Marine Corps.
The vehicle can carry up to 16 military personnel at a maximum speed of 65 miles (104 kilometers) per hour on paved roads or six knots (11 kilometers or 6.9 miles per hour) in water.
BAE Systems said that the combat vehicle allows space for the integration of new capabilities, such as anti-air and electronic warfare.
