The US Army has delivered its first 20 armored personnel carriers, officially known as Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicles (AMPVs), to Soldiers. The new vehicle will replace the M113 armored personnel carriers that entered service more than 60 years ago and which are currently used by medical, support, and other second-echelon troops. Front-line infantry units will continue to use the M2 Bradley.
The Army wants to build 3,000 AMPVs in the next 20 years.
The AMPVs were delivered to the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, located at Fort Stewart, GA, which will be the first Army unit to field the new vehicle.
The need to field a replacement for the M113 has accelerated because the U.S. has given Ukraine hundreds of those vehicles in support of its war against Russia.
The AMPV provides Soldiers with better protection, mobility, reliability, and interoperability than the legacy M113 and has 73% more carrying capacity than the M113s it will replace. The new vehicle is built by BAE Systems and has the same tracks and transmissions as the Army’s M2 Bradley APCs. It also incorporates some elements of the M-109 self-propelled artillery systems. The Army is also considering building different variants of the AMPV.
“… These modernization efforts increase our capacity to deter adversaries and, if necessary, fight and win in combat,” said Col. Peter Moon, commander of the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division.
“We look forward to the capabilities that AMPV will bring to the battlefield to ensure we remain lethal and ready to win the fight,” Moon added.
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The Army awarded the contract to BAE in 2014, with the first vehicle being manufactured in 2016, however, there were delays related to production quality and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We did have a lot of struggles in the beginning, but we’re pretty confident now that the prime contractor, BAE, has worked through that,” Jim Schirmer, the deputy Program Executive Officer for Ground Combat Systems, said. “They’ve been delivering on time for the majority of the past year, and the quality problems that we were seeing early on have largely been corrected. So, at this point, we’re pretty satisfied with where we are.”
The company is now awaiting the Army’s approval — which is expected at the end of March — to ramp up to full production. At that point, BAE would be producing 16 vehicles per month and, with a goal of 197 vehicles per year, could equip a brigade and a half during that period. Increasing production of the new AMPVs will also free up more M113s to potentially be sent to Ukraine.
To keep up with the demand for AMPVs, the company is planning on expanding its York, PA facilities with the possibility of building manufacturing plants at other locations.
Feature Image: The AMPV undergoing testing at Tropic Regions Test Center in the jungle of Panama, 2022. (U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground)
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It is great to see the BFV-M2 is still be an important part of the US ARMY, and the M113 been part of the equipment sent to help Ukraine. I worked for FMC Coporate Technology Center in Santa Clara, CA, a research and development organisation thad provided support to FMC Ground Systems Division in San Jose. Your writings are of interest. Good job. Thanks!!