Army makes some of the last Humvee orders before JLTV contract is awarded later this year
WARREN, Mich., 9 June 2015. U.S. Army combat vehicle experts are ordering 50 high mobility multi-purpose wheeled vehicles -- otherwise known as Humvees -- and their associated vetronics from AM General in South Bend, Ind.
Officials of the Army Contracting Command's Tank and Automotive segment in Warren, Mich., announced a $9.5 million contract to AM General on Friday for 25 M1151 A1B1 armament carrier Humvees, 25 M1152 A1B2 cargo- and troop-carrying Humvees, as well as engines and spare parts.
This order may represent one of the last orders for the venerable Humvee before the Army awards a contract later this year for the Humvee's eventual replacement -- the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV). The Humvee has been in service with the Army for more than 30 years.
The M1151 version of the Humvee is designed as an armament carrier, and provides for the mounting and firing of various weapons that are ring-mounted with a 360 degree arc of fire. It operates over all types of roads, as well as cross-country terrain, and in all weather conditions.
The M1152 version of the Humvee is like an armored military pickup truck for carrying cargo or troops. It is a two-man vehicle that can carry as many as eight passengers under the armor troop carrier or troop seat options.
Related: Quest for the humvee-mounted mobile data center for the battlefield edge
The Humvee, much-criticized for its light weight and relative inability to withstand the punishment of roadside bombs and other kinds of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), is nearing the end of its useful life, and the JLTV will replace it.
The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) wants to buy 54,599 JLTVs -- 49,099 for the U.S. Army and 5,500 for the U.S. Marine Corps. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) estimates that the DOD will spend more than $53.3 billion on the JLTV program -- $1.1 billion for research and at least $52.3 billion for procurement.
The JLTV program is in a 33-month engineering and manufacturing development phase. The three competitors -- AM General, Lockheed Martin, and Oshkosh -- are vying for the low-rate initial production contract, which the U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) expects to award to one contractor later this year.
On Friday's Humvee order, AM General will do the work in Mishawaka, Ind., and should be finished by June 2016. For more information contact AM General online at www.amgeneral.com, or the Army Contracting Command Tank and Automotive segment at www.tacom.army.mil.
John Keller | Editor
John Keller is editor-in-chief of Military & Aerospace Electronics magazine, which provides extensive coverage and analysis of enabling electronic and optoelectronic technologies in military, space, and commercial aviation applications. A member of the Military & Aerospace Electronics staff since the magazine's founding in 1989, Mr. Keller took over as chief editor in 1995.
