BAE Systems planning counter-drone demo for US Army using new prototype AMPV

BAE Systems planning counter-drone demo for US Army using new prototype AMPV
BAE Systems planning counter-drone demo for US Army using new prototype AMPV

The demo comes as the company’s other arms also seek out ways to equip vehicles with counter-UAS capabilities.

Marines eyeing driver simulator for ACV training

Marines eyeing driver simulator for ACV training
Marines eyeing driver simulator for ACV training

The effort is in parallel with a project to develop technology capable of objectively measuring surf conditions.

AMPVs and ACVs spur changes for BAE Systems’ York production line

AMPVs and ACVs spur changes for BAE Systems’ York production line
AMPVs and ACVs spur changes for BAE Systems’ York production line

Assembly of the Army’s new self-propelled howitzer program is moving out of the York facility to make way for an AMPV and ACV “Center of Excellence.”

New tech to help ACV in surf zone, general ‘looks forward’ to scrutiny after rocky training cycles

New tech to help ACV in surf zone, general ‘looks forward’ to scrutiny after rocky training cycles
New tech to help ACV in surf zone, general ‘looks forward’ to scrutiny after rocky training cycles

The Marine Corps has stopped and restarted waterborne ACV operations over the past two years due to various training incidents.

Marine Corps buys 30 more ACVs following rough year of waterborne ops training

Marine Corps buys 30 more ACVs following rough year of waterborne ops training
Marine Corps buys 30 more ACVs following rough year of waterborne ops training

The $153 million contract brings the Marine Corps investment in the BAE-made Amphibious Combat Vehicle to more than $2 billion.

Marines’ Berger sidelines AAV from waterborne ops despite improvements

Marines’ Berger sidelines AAV from waterborne ops despite improvements
Marines’ Berger sidelines AAV from waterborne ops despite improvements

The suspension comes months after an investigation into an accident that left eight Marines and one sailor dead.

SAIC’s Got No Regrets On Armored Vehicle Losses

SAIC’s Got No Regrets On Armored Vehicle Losses
SAIC’s Got No Regrets On Armored Vehicle Losses

SAIC not a traditional heavy-metal manufacturer and it shouldn’t be judged like one, CEO Tony Moraco and COO Nazzic Keene told me.

BAE Beats Upstart SAIC To Build Marine Amphibious Combat Vehicle

BAE Beats Upstart SAIC To Build Marine Amphibious Combat Vehicle
BAE Beats Upstart SAIC To Build Marine Amphibious Combat Vehicle

The initial contract announced today was just $198 million for the first 30 vehicles, to be delivered by next fall, but Marines want to replace approximately 870 existing AAVs with better-protected, more mobile ACVs “as rapidly as we can,” which will take into “the mid to late ’20s.”

Marines Need Speed From Ship To Shore

Marines Need Speed From Ship To Shore
Marines Need Speed From Ship To Shore

  ANNAPOLIS: Small, fast missile boats clear a path through coastal waters for Marine landing forces. Robot jet skis, surfboards, and mini-subs scout out landing sites ahead of the human force. High-speed landing craft carry troops, their gear, and vehicles to the beach. Those are some of the ideas the Marines are experimenting with as…

GAO Nitpicks Marine Amphibious Combat Vehicle: A 4-Month Delay?

GAO Nitpicks Marine Amphibious Combat Vehicle: A 4-Month Delay?
GAO Nitpicks Marine Amphibious Combat Vehicle: A 4-Month Delay?

UPDATED: Adds GAO rebuttal WASHINGTON: The latest GAO report on the Amphibious Combat Vehicle may reveal more problems with GAO’s approach than with the Marine Corps program. While the Government Accountability Office does its usual solid work on the numbers, when it recommends delaying production by four months to do additional testing, it’s acting from an excess…

SAIC, Singaporeans Challenge BAE For Marine Corps ACV: Tests To Begin

SAIC, Singaporeans Challenge BAE For Marine Corps ACV: Tests To Begin
SAIC, Singaporeans Challenge BAE For Marine Corps ACV: Tests To Begin

An upstart odd couple has challenged armored vehicle giant BAE for the right to build the Marine Corps’ swimming tank. One is Singapore’s ST Kinetics, maker of the Singapore Armed Forces‘ amphibious Terrex vehicle. The other is McLean, Va.-based SAIC, best known as a service contractor, which is working with the Singaporeans to build a…

A Bridgehead Too Far? CSBA’s Aggressive, Risky Strategy For Marines

A Bridgehead Too Far? CSBA’s Aggressive, Risky Strategy For Marines
A Bridgehead Too Far? CSBA’s Aggressive, Risky Strategy For Marines

UPDATED with Brig. Gen. Turner remarks on the report WASHINGTON: Marines are famously aggressive, but a new battle plan from a leading thinktank makes Iwo Jima look low-risk. The Center for Strategic & Budgetary Assessments’ proposed concept of operations is imaginative, exciting and more than a little scary: In a future war, rather than stay far…

BAE Unveils 1st Amphibious Combat Vehicle For Marines

BAE Unveils 1st Amphibious Combat Vehicle For Marines
BAE Unveils 1st Amphibious Combat Vehicle For Marines

After years of prototype testing, canceled programs, and rewritten requirements, contractor BAE Systems has unveiled the first production model of its 34-ton, eight-wheel-drive Amphibious Combat Vehicle at the Modern Day Marine show. BAE and SAIC are competing to replace the Marine Corps’ aging, ungainly, and thinly armored Amphibious Assault Vehicles. The AAVs are huge tracked machines…

BAE & SAIC Win Amphibious Combat Vehicle: It Swims!

BAE & SAIC Win Amphibious Combat Vehicle: It Swims!
BAE & SAIC Win Amphibious Combat Vehicle: It Swims!

The Marine Corps chose BAE and SAIC from a field of five competitors to build competing prototypes for the long-awaited Amphibious Combat Vehicle. BAE, a dominant player in tracked armored vehicles, had teamed with Italian armsmaker Iveco to offer a variant of the Italians’ wheeled SuperAV. SAIC, best known as a consulting firm, offered a variant of the Singaporean Terrex.…