12 Jun 18. BATTLESPACE Editor Julian nettlefold met up with Mike Ivy, Sr. Vice President of International Programs and Global Product Support for Oshkosh Defense at Eurosatory to discuss the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) export campaign.
Oshkosh Defense, LLC, an Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE: OSK) company, exhibited the (JLTV) at Eurosatory in Paris, France June 11-15, 2018. The JLTV is the next-generation light tactical wheeled vehicle that delivers unmatched protection, speed and off-road mobility never before seen on today’s battlefield.
In July 2017, the Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency, which manages Foreign Military Sales (FMS), announced that the State Department approved the sale of Oshkosh-designed and manufactured JLTVs through the FMS process to satisfy the United Kingdom’s Group 1 requirement for the Multi Role Vehicle Protected (MRV-P) Program. This is the first FMS case to be initiated since Oshkosh was awarded the U.S. contract in August of 2015 to replace up to 16,901 U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps in-service uparmored High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWVs).
“The UK is the first overseas customer for JLTV, can you tell us about other export prospects?” The Editor asked.
“Government-to-Government negotiations are underway for an FMS buy for JLTV for the UK and we hope to have news of Main Gate for 737 vehicles developments in due course. The final specification is currently being formalised and we don’t expect any major changes. The robust protection and mobility of the JLTV clearly make it a great candidate for global light Tactical Wheeled vehicle (TWV) requirements,” said Mike Ivy. “We can tailor the vehicle to meet specific customer requirements to optimize performance in virtually any operating environment. Earlier this year, we had the opportunity to demonstrate the JLTV in the United Kingdom for the British Ministry of Defence as well as many of our allies in the region. The feedback received from our customers was incredibly positive. We look forward to continuing to work with them to bring this revolutionary vehicle to forces around the world. We will have a vehicle at JLTV to demonstrate to potential customers including Lithuania and Denmark and the Press.”
“What is the current status of JLTV in the US?”
“We have delivered more than 1600 vehicles and manufactured more than 2000 under the current LRIP Program. We expect Milestone C for Full Production of 17,000 vehicles in December 2018 for a production contract in First Quarter 2019. The total current buy is 49,099 (Army) 5,500 (USMC). There are two main variants of JLTV the 2 door Cargo Variant with a similar payload to the HMMV Caro variant and the 4 Door Variant. These variants are broken down into M1278 Heavy Guns Carrier, M1279 Utility, M1280 General Purpose and M1281 Close Combat Weapons Carrier. The vehicle can be underslung from a CH-47 and two under a CH-53. There is a ‘B’ Kit added armour option.
“Are you looking at other options?”
“Yes, we showed an Air Defence version with the Boing Avenger system at last year’s AUSA and are actively looking at other options including a Special Forces, Troop Carrier and EoD vehicle. We don’t envisage JLTV as a Gun Tractor given its cross-country speed.”
“The export version you have on show here is with an FN Herstal OWS, is this the specification required by the UK?”
“No we are showing a number of options for an OWS with the FN offering being one of many.”
The JLTV will provide U.S. and allied forces around the globe with a next generation, lightweight, all-terrain vehicle that is protected, mobile, and proven.
* Protected: The JLTV base vehicle (right off the production line) provides small arms and ballistics protection. With an add-on B kit, the JLTV achieves levels of protection equivalent to the base M-ATV.
* Mobile: The JLTV combines the latest in suspension technologies, using the Oshkosh TAK-4i™ intelligent independent suspension system to deliver off-road speeds that are 70% faster than today’s gold standard, the M-ATV.
* Proven: Working closely with our government customer, we have completed Reliability Qualification Testing, accumulating over 100,000 miles, exceeding requirements.
The JLTV program office expects the first Army unit equipped by mid-FY19 and both the Army and Marine Corps to achieve Initial Operating Capability (IOC) in early FY20.
“Is the US keeping the L-ATV and M-ATV in the inventory?”
“Very much so, we expect the M-ATV to remain in service with the US and overseas armies for many years to come. We are actively marketing a series of vehicles depending on customer’s requirements.