The Army yesterday said it has taken an undefinitized contract action (UCA) with Textron [TXT] to produce up to 440 Medium Armored Security Vehicles (MASVs) for the Afghanistan National Army (ANA).
The UCA has a potential value of approximately $543 million, and authorizes initial funding of $125.9 million to begin work leading to the delivery of 240 MASVs and associated support equipment, spare parts, field service representatives, training and training aids. The first vehicle is expected to be delivered in November.
The contract includes an option to produce an additional 200 vehicles with a potential value of approximately $286 million, which would complete by December 2012.
The MASV, manufactured by Textron’s Marine and Land Systems, is based on the Army’s M1117 Armored Security Vehicle (ASV) platform.
Sharing approximately 70 percent commonality with the ASV, the MASV consists of nine different variants, each designed to meet specific combat roles and enhance the quick reaction capability of the ANA, the service said in a statement.
The nine variants include the ASV and armored personal carrier configurations, as well as the command and control, ambulance, engineering, maintenance, mortar, and reconnaissance variations.
“This is a big step forward for the Afghanistan Army,” said Col. David Bassett, the Army’s project manager for tactical vehicles. “The design of the MASV will provide the ANA with a level of MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) protection in a combat vehicle platform.”
The enhanced survivability, which is standard on all of the variants, represents a new range of mission set capabilities.
“Coupled with the affordable nature of the ASV, the MASV will provide a ‘leap ahead’ in capability for the ANA. The enhanced protection that will be fielded on the ANA MASVs marks the first fielded ASV to achieve the MRAP protection standard,” said Lt. Col. Mark Morano, the Army’s product manager for the ASV.
The ASV has been in the Army’s inventory since September 2000. It is an organically supported vehicle with an impressive reliability rate and is easily sustainable.
“One of the reasons the Army selected the ASV for the ANA mission was based on its proven logistics,” said Morano. “The ASV’s ease of maintenance and repair will allow for the eventual mission transition from the U.S. to the ANA, giving the ANA the capability to accomplish these tasks and provide for its own internal security.”
The ANA will be trained to maintain the MASV.
The vehicles will be produced at Textron facilities in the New Orleans area, with an estimated completion date of June 2012.
The vehicles are being contracted through the Army Foreign Military Sales (FMS) process and funded through the Afghan Security Forces Funds (ASFF). ASFF are funds appropriated by Congress for the Army to equip, train, and sustain Afghan National Security Forces, which includes the Afghan National Police and the Afghan National Army.
The Army’s Product Manager for Armored Security Vehicles (PM SAV) is managed under the leadership of Project Manager for Tactical Vehicles (PM TV) within the Program Executive Office for Combat Support and Combat Service Support (PEO CS&CSS).