BAE Systems to upgrade Army Bradley armored combat vehicles with vetronics and smart power management
WARREN, Mich. – Armored combat vehicles designers at BAE Systems will upgrade old M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicles into as-new M2A4 and M7A4 Bradley combat vehicles under terms of a $78.4 million order announced on Thursday.
Officials of the Army Contracting Command at Detroit Arsenal in Warren, Mich., are asking the BAE Systems Platforms & Services segment in York, Pa., to build the functionally new Bradley armored combat vehicles from various inducted legacy source variants.
BAE Systems has been busy creating upgraded Bradley Fighting Vehicles, which are armored personnel carriers with the speed and firepower to fight beside Army M1 Abrams main battle tanks and other modern armored forces.
Last October the company received a $288.4 million to upgrade old Bradley vehicles into as-new M2A4 and M7A4 Bradley combat vehicles, and won a $113.1 million contract in August to provide Army M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicles.
The upgraded vehicles include upgraded vetronics, electrical systems, smart power management software, heavyweight torsion bars, track upgrades, improved suspension, and new shock absorbers to create functionally new Bradley M2A4 and M7A4 combat vehicles.
The M2 Bradley is an infantry fighting vehicle for reconnaissance and to transport a squad of infantry. The armored vehicle protects warfighters inside from small arms fire, while its 25-millimeter chain gun provides firepower to counter many battlefield threats. The Bradley is maneuverable and fast enough to keep up with heavy armor like M1 Abrams main battle tanks during an advance.
The M2A4 Bradley Fighting Vehicle is a totally digital, full-tracked, medium armored vehicle that provides cross-country mobility, mounted firepower, communications, and protection to mechanized infantry. The armored combat vehicles have three seats for crew members and seven seats for squad members.
The M7A4 Bradley is an upgraded fire-support vehicle with integrated target location equipment to help direct artillery fire and airborne munitions. It has equipment for use by dismounted observers.
The first M2A4 Bradley Fighting Vehicles came off the manufacturing line in 2012 with heavyweight torsion bars and track upgrades, improved suspension, and new shock absorbers.
BAE Systems is rebuilding legacy Bradley vehicles with upgraded electrical systems and power train to accommodate today's high-power demands from a variety of systems upgrades such as networked vetronics, software-defined radios, air conditioning systems, and even mobile battery chargers.
On this order BAE Systems will do the work at locations to be determined with each order, and should be finished by March 2026. For more information contact BAE Systems Platforms & Services online at https://www.baesystems.com/en-us/our-company/inc-businesses/platforms-and-services, or the Army Contracting Command-Detroit Arsenal at https://acc.army.mil/contractingcenters/acc-dta/.
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.
