Now with the ASCOD SV, a tracked armored vehicle, named as the preferred vehicle to meet the scout and other specialist vehicle requirements, Lockheed has revealed it has teamed with Rheinmetall Land Systems to use a version of the German company's Lance turret.
General Dynamics beat BAE Systems' CV90 tracked vehicle to an initial deal to supply about 250 scout vehicles, plus recovery, protected mobility and repair versions of the ASCOD SV, to the British Army.
The medium-caliber Lance turret, which will only be carried on the scout version of the British tracked vehicle requirement, will house the 40mm CT40 cannon developed by BAE and Nexter, its French partner in the venture. More than 75 percent of the scout turret will be manufactured in the United Kingdom, Lockheed officials said.
Lockheed also is using key aspects of the Rheinmetall turret in an extensive upgrade program being considered by the MoD for the British Army's Warrior infantry fighting vehicle. A decision on the winner of the upgrade program, known as the Warrior Capability Sustainment Programme, was expected last week. BAE also is competing for the Warrior program.
However, the MoD said it was postponing an announcement and asking the two companies to revise their bids. The delay is attributed to how strapped for cash the British defense budget will be in the early years of the program.
Media reports here say the program could be pushed back a year.
Industry executives last week said Lockheed's selection for the scout role could give it an edge in the Warrior contest on commonality grounds.
Defence Procurement Minister Quentin Davies sought to play that issue down. Speaking to Defense News, he said, "In my view, commonality is not an overriding requirement."
Lockheed officials, though, appear to think otherwise. In a statement to Defense News on the Lance, the contractor listed a range of common subsystems.
"The Lockheed Martin UK turret system has a level of commonality between Scout SV and Warrior CSP. ... We have developed a bespoke turret for the FRES SV scout mission with common subsystems to Warrior, which include the ammunition handling system, CT40 cannon, cannon mounting structure, turret drive motors and electronics, displays, processors, power nodes, elevation drive and counterbalance structures," the company statement said.
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26-03-2010, 19:49
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