The Swiss defense ministry has signed a contract with GDELS-Mowag for the delivery of military engineering variants of the Piranha IV vehicle for the Swiss Army.
A total of 60 units are being procured as a replacement for the tracked M113 that has served with sappers in this role since 1963. The current vehicles will reach the end of their service life in 2030 and will need to be replaced.
According to the defense ministry, the contract is worth 360 million Swiss francs (approx. US$364M) and will see first vehicles delivered from 2026.
The Piranha IV vehicles will be equipped with weapon stations, while various other systems to be procured will include 60 clearance shields, 24 manipulator arms and 12 minesweepers.
With this new procurement, the capabilities of the armored sappers will adapt to the current threats, in particular the changed conflict picture and the increasingly overbuilt terrain, the defense ministry said.
Switzerland expects to use this vehicle in the engineering vehicle role well into the 2050s.
The Piranha is one of the more popular 8×8 wheeled armored vehicles, with over 12,000 units in service with 20 user nations including Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, Romania, and Spain.
Switzerland already operates Piranhas in the Mörser 16 self-propelled mortar variant.
