The US Marine Corps has awarded BAE Systems a contract for the design and development of an Amphibious Combat Vehicle Recovery (ACV-R) variant.
The ACV-R will replace the legacy Assault Amphibious Vehicle recovery variant (AAVR7A1), and will provide direct field support, maintenance, and recovery to the ACV family of vehicles.
This contract is for the first phase of the program, which focuses on the design and development of the ACV-R during a 20-month period. The second phase of the program will include delivery of production test vehicles for user evaluation.
“The recovery variant will provide crucial recovery capability in the amphibious fleet,” said John Swift, vice president of amphibious programs at BAE Systems. “It also expands the ACV family of vehicles and demonstrates the base vehicle’s proven design, allowing it to be seamlessly integrated into the fleet without compromising performance.”
The ACV program is in full rate production with BAE Systems, and the company is under contract to deliver two other variants in the ACV family of vehicles: the ACV personnel variant (ACV-P) and the ACV command variant (ACV-C).
The company has also received a design and development contract for a 30mm cannon variant (ACV-30).
BAE Systems also said it has received task instructions from the Marine Corps to complete a study of incorporating advanced reconnaissance, command, control, communication and computers/unmanned aerial systems mission payload into an ACV variant.
The US Marine Corps awarded BAE Systems a $184 million contract to begin full-rate production of the ACV after picking BAE as the preferred contractor in 2018.
The ACV is an eight-wheeled vehicle that will provide protection similar to the mine-resistant ambush protected vehicle, with landward maneuverability and mobility that is superior to that of the AAV. Developed in cooperation with IVECO Defence Vehicles, the ACV provides substantially increased horsepower, with its six-cylinder, 690 horsepower engine, making it capable of land speeds exceeding 55 mph. It’s also designed to provide Marines the flexibility to address additional mission roles and future technologies through its modular design.
Full operational capability is scheduled for 2023.
