BAE Systems to rebuild 164 Bradley armored combat vehicles and vetronics in $348 million contract
WARREN, Mich. –Armored combat vehicles designers at BAE Systems will rebuild and upgrade as many as 164 U.S. Army M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicles with revamped vetronics electrical systems, smart power management software, heavyweight torsion bars, track upgrades, improved suspension, and new shock absorbers.
Officials of the Army Contracting Command in Warren, Mich., announced a $348 million contract Thursday to the BAE Systems Platforms & Services segment in York, Pa., to build as many as 164 Bradley M2A4 and M7A4 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 many battlefield threats. The Bradley is maneuverable and fast enough to keep up with heavy armor during an advance.
The M7A4 Bradley, meanwhile, us 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.
Now 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 contract BAE Systems will do the work in York, Pa., and should be finished by June 2019. For more information contact BAE Systems Platforms & Services online at www.baesystems.com, or the Army Contracting Command-Warren at http://acc.army.mil/contractingcenters/acc-wrn.
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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.
