Patria AMVs to the UAE

Finnish manufacturer Patria has announced the sale of their AMV 8x8 vehicle to the United Arab Emirates. The size of the order and delivery schedule have not been made public.

"Patria AMV 8x8 - with well over 1200 vehicles contracted and some 200 already delivered - is the choice of the Polish, Finnish, Slovenian, South African, Croatian and now also United Arab Emirates’ armies. Patria AMV is currently in serial production in three countries – Finland, Poland and Slovenia - and production will be starting soon in Croatia and South Africa.

Being fully NATO compatible, Patria AMV offers effective protection, increased mobility, modularity and combat proven performance. The vehicle is very easy to operate and maintain. Patria AMV is one of the few wheeled vehicles in the world capable of carrying also heavy weapon systems, like the 105 mm cannon or the 120 mm mortar turrets without reducing the mobility of the vehicle.

Patria AMV is the only vehicle in its kind to have passed the demanding ARMSCOR mine tests in South Africa. The AMVs (Rosomaks in Polish) are currently in active use in the mission in Afganistan by Poland. The experiences have been very positive and shown that Patria AMV vehicles deliver what they promise: excellent mobility, protection and performance."

Source: Press Release

Czechs cancel Pandurs

The cancellation of the Czech Republic's order for Pandur 8x8s is news. It is not, however, totally unexpected. The agreement had been signed during the last weeks of the previous government and selection of a singular APC platform has been questioned. In August, for example, Croatia chose the Finnish Patria vehicle but is receiving a mixture of 8x8 and 6x6 platforms.

Whatever the reason(s) are for the cancellation reported quality issues effecting acceptance of initial deliveries were reasons enough. What will happen? Certainly manufacturer Steyr-Daimler-Puch Spezialfahrzeuge is not going to let a billion dollar contract die without a fight. Expect to hear them come back with a mixed platform offering, at least. Original contract semifinalists Patria and Rheinmetall are bound to be knocking on doors in Prague as we speak.

Sources: Various
Photo: Czech Army

Bison upgrade

Originally conceived as an infantry carrier the Bison now supports the LAV III in five converted, or "re-roled", variants. These are: Ambulance, Electronic Warfare, Mobile Repair Team, Maintenance and Recovery, and NBC Reconnaissance.

In response to experience in Afghanistan a re-roled C3I version (Command, Control, Communications and Intelligence) is now coming out of the Dew Engineering shop in Miramichi, New Brunswick. In addition to a bolstered electrical system there is increased operator protection and significant add-on armour. Twenty one of the 3CI platforms are expected to deploy to Afghanistan.

Sources: Dew Engineering, The Trident Photo: Canadian Forces