MERKAVA - 40 Years of Action

MERKAVA - 40 Years of Action

This year the Merkava tank is celebrating its 40th years anniversary. For four decades the Merkava program remained on track, keeping pace major revolutions in technology, strategy, economy and political. “It was not an easy task” Brigadier general Yaron Livnat, Merkava Tank Program Manager (PM) told Defense Update. In 2006 the program reached its lowest point, awaiting the general staff decision to pull the plug on the Merkava program and, in fact, the entire armored corps. (Read More...)

Israeli Active Protection Systems for Armor

Based on its latest combat experiences, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is moving forward with the development and fielding of active protection systems (APS) for tanks and armored infantry fighting vehicles (AIFV). Both systems are utilizing destroying threats without ever having to initiate their warheads, at ranges that significantly reduce risk to dismounted infantry or collateral damage. (Read More...) 

Enter the Namer

“For 38 years we produced only tanks, but in the last two years we have expanded into a family of vehicles, with the development and production of the Namer IFV." Brigadier general Yaron Livnat, Merkava Tank Program Manager (PM) told Defense Update. "The Mk 4 entered service four years after its development started. The development of the Namer began in 2007, and by mid-2010, a mere three years later, it is under full-rate production, with sufficient number of vehicles supplied, to equip several infantry battalions."  The Namer is based on the basic technology of the Merkava, but is actually a completely new vehicle concept. (Read More...)

Namer – to be Made in the U.S.A?

At present all the Namer AFVs are produced for the IDF, sharing the production capacity created for the Merkava tanks. Since the IDF Ground Forces Command would like to field more vehicles than the plant can currently produce, in an effort to quickly phase-out obsolete APCs, the IMOD is facing a tough choice – whether to minimize or even sacrifice the production of the Merkava tanks,  to rush more Namer vehicles into the field, or to turn to the U.S. and spend part of the Foreign Military Funding (FMF) military assistance Washington is allocating to Israel, for the acquisition of defense products made in the U.S.A. Israel is hopeful that if the Namer will be assembled in the U.S., and be shipped to Israel for completion, with locally made systems, the IDF will be able to accelerate the fielding process of more vehicles to active units. (Read More...)

This Metal Piece Could Save Your Life!

Today’s armor solutions significantly increase vehicles survivability by preventing objects from penetrating the crew compartment; however, even without perforating the armor, the shockwaves created by the blast are propagating through the frame with deadly effect to the vehicle's occupants. The human body is not designed to endure the accelerations and shock waves transferred through the rigid vehicle body, especially in the vertical direction (see IED Blast Related Brain Injuries). (Read More...)

Three Light Armored Vehicles to Compete for A$1 Billion Land 121 Phase 4 Procurement

Three Australian led teams were downselected earlier this week to develop protected mobility vehicle prototypes, competing for the 'Project Overlander' Land 121 Phase 4, a procurement of about 1,300 of the next generation of light protected mobility vehicles, worth over A$1 billion. The vehicles will be provided to the Army’s combat units and Air Force’s Air Field Defence Guards and will be designed to operate in future conflict environments. (Read More...)

Army Begins GCV Contractor Selection Process

The U.S. Army closed the industry Request for Proposal (RFP)submission process today, effectively launching the formal Ground Combat Vehicle (GCV) contractor selection process. The Army will award up to three competitive contracts in late fourth quarter of Fiscal Year (FY) 2010 to build and test GCV 'Technology Demonstrator' vehicles, over a period of 27 months. (Read More...)

Oshkosh Defense Unveils New M-ATV Ambulance Variant

Oshkosh Defense is unveiling a new version of its MRAP All-Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV) tactical ambulance variant at the 2010 Association of the United States Army’s (AUSA) Institute of Land Warfare (ILW) Army Medical Symposium and Exposition, which is being held May 18-20 in San Antonio, Texas. (Read More...)

Stealthy Hy-DRA Takes Hybrid-Electric Technology Off-Road

Raytheon is entering the automotive market with an innovative new All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) aimed at the special forces market. Hybrid-Defense Reconnaissance Assault (Hy-DRA) was officially launched at the Special Operations Forces Exhibition (SOFEX), held in Amman, Jordan in May 2010. What sets Hy-DRA apart from other all-terrain vehicles is the advanced, hybrid-electric drive system (HED) enabling the vehicle to perform with unique stealth capabilities. The vehicle has a top speed of 96 km/h (60 mph). Its range is 563 km (350 miles) in hybrid mode. (read more about the Hy-DRA...)

Zibar MkII - Israel's New Extreme Strike Vehicle

A new Israeli all-terrain vehicle is on display at Eurosatory 2010 for the first time. The vehicle, 'Zibar Mk II' is the second generation of the Zibar M, an all terrain light vehicle developed by Israel's top off-road vehicle specialist Ido OffRoad Center (IORC). According to Ido Cohen, owner and chief designer of the vehicle, the company has received significant orders for the vehicle and is gearing to expand its production lines, by teaming with local companies for manufacturing and marketing of the Zibar. Sofar more than 20 Zibar vehicles are operational. One of the applications currently operational overseas is the Mobile Support Vehicle (MSV) offered by Aeronautics Defense Systems. (read the full story...)

The U.S. Army Recalls 44,000 Advanced Combat Helmets

The U.S. Army is recalling 44,000 Advanced Combat Helmets produced by the ArmorSource company (formerly Rabintex USA), after the Program Executive Office (PEO-Soldier) raised concerns about their ballistic protection. The case is currently being investigated by the Department of Justice. According to an All Army Activities message released May 14. “There is evidence that ArmorSource and Rabintex ACHs were produced using unauthorized manufacturing practices, defective materials and improper quality procedures which could potentially reduce ballistic and fragmentation protection." (more...)

Israeli Company Develops Thermal Stealth Suite for Combat Vehicles

Thermal stealth technology being developed by the Israeli company Eltics promises to render military vehicles, combat helicopters and even entire naval surface ships invisible to thermal imaging surveillance sensors, targeting systems or missile seekers employing thermal sensors. The patented system, dubbed 'Black Fox' is designed to be applied as an add-on layer, on top of existing armor, or be embedded into the outer layer, comprising one layer in the 'onion ring' defensive concept of modern platforms. (read the full story...)

France's Embarks on the Scorpion Land Forces Transformation

The French Ministry of Defense is expected to select the a system architecture and design team to lead the development of the transformational 'Scorpion' program - the French Army's 10 billion euro ($13.2 billion) modernization program. Scorpion will integrate advanced weaponry and network-centric technology to empower the French land forces' legacy equipment, enabling battle groups of tomorrow to maintain battlefield dominance through the next decade. The current definition of the architecture phase is expected to lead the DGA to launch the request for proposal by 2012 for an advanced armored combat vehicles expected to be the principal new platform of the Scorpion program. Other elements are expected to comprise a variety of unmanned systems of different sizes. (Read More...)

Oshkosh turns the SandCat into an Off-road Border Patroller

Oshkosh Defense has introduced a new, high mobility, protected vehicle designed for border security. Oshkosh is unveiling the new 'Tactical Protector Vehicle' (TPV) at the Border Management Summit, held in Phoenix, Az. this month. The vehicle can be customized for a variety of high-risk missions in places ranging from rural outposts to city streets. The vehicle offers NIJ Level IV protection, and is capable of stopping multi-hit, armor-piercing rounds. Other protection measures include high-energy-absorbing under-body armor, ballistic-steel roof and suspended-seat systems and run-flat tires (Read More...)