Oshkosh Defense announced this week a number of major orders for its heavy tactical vehicles. The company will deliver 270 Heavy Equipment Transporters (HET) A1, under a $119 million order from the U.S. Army, to be fulfilled by Spetember 2012. This new version of HET includes increased protection, more powerful engine, higher capacity front suspension, standard air conditioning, electrical upgrades and improved diagnostics.
Under a separate contract the company was awarded the first order for new underbody armor protection kits for the Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck (HEMTT) A4 vehicles. The armor was developed in response to an urgent need in the field to increase protection for HEMTT wreckers and Light Equipment Transporters (LET) recovering Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles in Afghanistan’s challenging terrain. The company will deliver more than 400 underbody armor protection kits for the vehicles, under a $26 million contract awarded by the U.S. Army TACOM Life Cycle Management Command (LCMC).
The HEMTT platform’s 13-ton payload and off-road capabilities make it the backbone of the U.S. Army’s logistics fleet. The HEMTT A4 is compliant with the Army’s Long-Term Armor Strategy (LTAS). As such, it is produced with factory-installed armor and attachments for mounting add-on armor (B-kit), raise protection levels to match specific threat levels.
The vehicle also has a wrecker variant, capable of recovering vehicles weighing in excess of 50 tons, it is able to flat tow 55 tons, and lift and tow 48 tons. The Marines have been operating the Logistics Vehicle System Replacement (LVSR) wreckers in Afghanistan since September 2009. The Marine Corps Systems Command (MARCORSYSCOM) recently awarded Oshkosh an additional $12 million order for the supply of 15 up-armored LVSR wreckers, as part of the corp’s effort to protect Marines recovering MRAPs in theater. Delivery of the armor kits and up-armored LVSR vehicles is expected this summer.
