An upcoming Initial Operational Test and Evaluation event will help service leaders determine just what near-term and long-term changes they want to make to the light tank.
By Ashley RoqueGray Eagle is the low-cost, low-risk answer to Army modernization
Gray Eagle STOL and Gray Eagle 25M are the best options for Army aviation as it assesses where to move from its current inflection point.
Service FY24 budget documents unveil plans to buy fewer “light tanks,” M88 recovery vehicles, and halt upgunned Stryker procurement in the outyears.
By Ashley Roque The Pentagon’s chief weapons tester recently revealed that when soldiers fire the main gun, “high levels of toxic fumes” fill the vehicle.
By Ashley Roque
With all eyes on Ukraine this year, several existing Army weapon lines received renewed interest this year.
By Ashley Roque
The Army is testing the MPF light tank; evaluating concepts for the OMFV troop carrier; preparing for major tests of high-tech Robotic Combat Vehicles and workhorse Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicles in 2022; and will test a full battalion of 18 ERCA howitzers in 2023.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
General Dynamics has already delivered at least two of its Mobile Protected Firepower prototypes to Fort Bragg, but BAE is lagging behind – although it says its MPFs will make the Army’s Jan. 4 deadline to start testing.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
BAE and General Dynamics are vying to build 504 Mobile Protected Firepower vehicles to support light infantry units, especially in places the massive M1 Abrams cannot go.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
Military innovation and savings: Go commercial
DoD uses FAR Part 12 acquisitions to save hundreds of millions of dollars in “of a type” systems like civil landing systems with applicability to military aircraft.
The Army estimated the OMFV troop carrier would cost $46 billion and the MPF light tank would cost $16 billion. The GAO has doubts.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
SAIC not a traditional heavy-metal manufacturer and it shouldn’t be judged like one, CEO Tony Moraco and COO Nazzic Keene told me.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr. The Army’s said it wants 504 of the MPF light tanks. But analyst Byron Callan is betting that either the Marine Corps or foreign buyers (or both) add another 106, bringing the total to 610 machines.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr. Yes, MPF is much lighter and less heavily armored than the M1 Abrams or even Russian tanks like the T-90. But MPF is going to light infantry units that currently have no armored vehicles at all, just a handful of Humvees, towed M777 howitzers, and whatever weapons the men can carry on their backs.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
BAE System’s CV90 Mark IV is the latest upgrade of a 25-year-old vehicle widely used in Europe; the Rheinmetall-Raytheon Lynx is an all-new design, although individual components have a good track record; but the General Dynamics Griffin III is in the middle, combining a new gun and new electronics with the time-tested chassis from the European ASCOD family.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
WASHINGTON: Over the next few weeks, US Army leaders will make major decisions about the Futures Command they’re standing up this summer. The new organization will be the biggest departure in how the Army buys weapons in 40 years. Important as it is, however, it’s also just one of many changes the Army must make…
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
UPDATED with expert comment AUSA: After 15 years of cancellations and delays, the US Army is pushing through some vital upgrades for its armored vehicles. Service leaders recently ordered sweeping reforms to speed up acquisition, but the Program Executive Office for Ground Combat Systems has already started accelerating. The upgunned Stryker, the Trophy anti-missile system, and,…
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
