BAE Systems, a British multinational aerospace, defense, and information security company, recently announced that it secured a $79 million contract with the U.S. Marine Corps. Based in London, England, BAE Systems has been the largest British arms manufacturer since 2017. This news is only the latest in a series of big contracts undertaken by the company in recent years.
New Class of ACV-Rs To Be Delivered in 2024
Under this contract, BAE Systems will “build and deliver production representative test vehicles (PRTVs) for the Amphibious Combat Vehicle Recovery (ACV-R).” The vehicles are to be delivered within this year (2024).
The ACV-R specializes in providing “direct field support, maintenance, and recovery to the ACV family of vehicles (FOVs).”
According to BAE Systems’ Garrett Lacaillade, vice president of amphibious programs, “One of the most challenging things that can happen on the battlefield is for a vehicle to break down or need to be recovered.”
“The ACV-R is a modern, highly capable recovery and mobile repair unit that provides critical expeditionary support to immobilized ACVs in the field and provides maintenance support capabilities without risking our Marines’ safety.”
This contract follows directly in the footsteps of a $34.9 million contract awarded to BAE Systems by the U.S. Marine Corps in 2022. This contract tasked BAE Systems with the design and development of an ACV-R variant to replace the legacy Assault Amphibious Vehicle recovery variant (AAVR7A1).
BAE Systems successfully completed this contract within the stipulated 20-month timeframe. It delivered the first three ACV 30mm cannon (ACV-30) variant PRTVs to the Marine Corps for testing in January 2024.
Meeting a Tight Delivery Deadline
Now, BAE Systems has kicked off full-scale production of its latest range of ACVs alongside strategic partner Iveco Defence Vehicles. This includes the ACV Personnel (ACV-P) and ACV Command and Control (ACV-C) variants.
In order to meet its tight deadline, production and support will take place at multiple locations, including Stafford, Virginia.; San Jose, California; Sterling Heights, Michigan; Aiken, South Carolina; and, York, Pennsylvania facilities.
Strengthening Ties Between U.S. Army and BAE Systems
In March 2024, BAE Systems also announced a $318 million contract to provide technical and sustainment support services for the U.S. Army’s fleet of M109A6 and A7 Self-Propelled Howitzers (SPH) as well as the M992A3 carrier, ammunition, tracked (CAT) vehicles.
In turn, this contract came on the back of a $418 million production contract awared to the company for the M109A7 in November 2023.
Just one day later, it was also revealed that BAE Systems secured a $754 million contract to continue producing the Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV) family of vehicles (FoV) for the U.S. Army. This contract represents the second phase of this particular agreement with the U.S. Army, with full-scale production set to take place between March 2026 and February 2027.
A Strong Market Position
BAE Systems seems to be going from strength to strength as it’s becoming an indispensable partner for multiple arms of the U.S. military, offering both manufacturing and support services for essential military vehicles. With contracts totaling over $1 billion and set to continue their partnership for at least another five years, this won’t change in the near future.
