The Portuguese Army has received the final of 139 armored vehicles that were delivered by the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA).
The latest batch included eight emergency response vehicles, ordered under the light armored tactical vehicle program or Viaturas Taticas Ligeiras Blindades (VTLC).
The delivery concludes a multiyear acquisition project aimed to provide the Portuguese armed forces with a fleet of armored vehicles composed of 107 troop transports, seven command vehicles, 13 medical evacuation and 12 special operations vehicles.
The contract was awarded to the Spanish company Urovesa in 2018 and included the supply of the vehicles with a weapon station, training, documentation and special tools.
The first batch of vehicles were delivered in October 2020 and have been deployed in support of Portuguese commitments to United Nations operations in the Central African Republic.
In September 2021, the Portuguese Army and NSPA project team participated in the first article testing and acceptance of the configured ambulance vehicles at the contractor’s production facility in Pontevedra, Spain. The process involved the physical inspection, trials and verification of the vehicles performance and characteristics against the Portuguese Army’s specific requirements.
The medical units have been equipped with collective Nuclear, Biological and Chemical protection systems. They also have a sanitary cell equipped with electromedical, immobilization and communications equipment, as well as diagnostic and treatment material. In addition, the medical units are highly armored and protected against ballistic and mine threats.
“The completion of this project represents an important milestone for NSPA and is the result of several months of intense work in a close cooperation with the Portuguese Army. We are grateful for the trust placed on our Agency to manage this major acquisition program and proud to enable the Portuguese Army’s future operations with the vehicles we have delivered”, assured Ian Bonallo, NSPA senior technical officer, who managed the project.
All vehicles are configured for a variety of roles and missions and provided with ballistic, blast and mine protection while providing high dynamic performance in terms of capacity loading and mobility on all types of roads and terrain.
