Thales has joined with Oshkosh Defense [OSK] to submit seven vehicles to the Australian Department of Defence for Comparative Evaluation Testing as part of Australia’s Land 121 ‘Overlander’ program.
Phase 3 of the Overlander program seeks to upgrade the Australian Defence Force’s (ADF) fleet with more than 3,000 light, medium and heavy military vehicles, as well as approximately 3,000 trailers.
Thales Australia and Oshkosh Defense are competing for the Medium/Heavy Capability segment of Phase 3, which seeks to procure more than 2,000 Military Off The Shelf (MOTS) trucks.
The Land 121 ‘Overlander’ program is undergoing a refresh and Comparative Evaluation Testing of all tenderer’s vehicles following changes to ADF requirements. Comparative testing is expected to be conducted through October 2009.
Oshkosh Defense is submitting five variants based on its Marine Corp Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement (MTVR) platform for Comparative Evaluation Testing alongside two Thales Bushmaster Single Cab vehicles, which are variants of the combat-proven Bushmaster Protected Mobility Vehicle.
“Oshkosh Defense and Thales Australia bring to this program the best military logistic vehicles for the ADF fleet,” said Andy Hove, Oshkosh Corporation executive vice president and president, Defense. “The MTVR is combat proven, operating successfully with U.S. forces in a number of different combat operations. Its exceptional off-road mobility means no mission is out of reach.”
“Every soldier deserves the highest level of protection,” said Chris Jenkins, Thales Australia’s managing director. “Together, Thales Australia and Oshkosh Defense can provide the ADF with a vehicle range that offers exceptional crew protection, mobility, combat flexibility and reliability.
“The Thales Bushmaster has served the Australian and Dutch armed forces successfully in operational deployment, protecting and saving lives during numerous incidents.”
The Thales Bushmaster family of vehicles are highly mobile, mine and improvised explosive device (IED) blast-resistant military vehicles. The Bushmaster vehicles support troops across a diverse range of operational tasks including troop movement, command and control, engineer support and medi-vac.
The Oshkoshr MTVR family of vehicles consists of highly protected, all-terrain, multipurpose logistics vehicles used by the Marines, Navy Seabees and U.K. Ministry of Defense. The MTVR is produced in several variants to transport troops, materials or equipment. It offers high levels of protection through the addition of proven survivability enhancement kits, with potential to further grow this capability, a capability, which is seen as critical to the ADF’s future operational roles. Incorporation of Oshkosh’s TAK- 4r independent suspension system gives the MTVR superior off-road mobility, load capacity and ride quality in comparison to straight-axle vehicles. More than 1,500 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles are being equipped with the TAK-4 system to provide improved mobility in Afghanistan.