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bobdina
05-26-2009, 03:39 AM
EFV draws fire from critics, rolls forward

By Dan Lamothe - dlamothe@militarytimes.com
Posted : Monday May 25, 2009 11:39:25 EDT

Opening up with 7.62mm machine gun fire and its 30mm Mk 46 weapon system, the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle pummeled ancient tanks downrange, an explosion ripping through the air as each round found its mark.

It was the most attention-getting of a series of EFV demonstrations conducted in May at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., as program officials displayed the vehicle’s amphibious capabilities for Pentagon officials, reporters and more than 100 employees with industry partner General Dynamics.

The day came on the heels of similar showings earlier in the month, where Marine officials, Defense Department leaders and members of Congress have viewed the EFV as part of the effort to drum up support for funding the program.

A target for critics who want tighter defense spending, the EFV survived a recent round of budget cuts at the Pentagon but was referred by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review, a Pentagon study that examines strategic priorities every four years.

Marine officials said seven new prototypes will begin rolling off the assembly line this fall at the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center in Lima, Ohio. The manufacturing was approved after the EFV passed a critical design review in December — three years after the vehicle had an embarrassing series of failures during milestone testing that highlighted the program’s skyrocketing costs.

The complete cost of the program has jumped from about $8.4 billion in 2000 to about $13 billion this year, although the number of vehicles to be purchased was slashed almost in half, from 1,013 to 573.

Col. Keith Moore, EFV program manager, said the new prototypes will incorporate a variety of improvements to the existing models, which can travel up to 45 mph on land and 30 mph on water while carrying armor and weapons.

“Given [the success at the design review] and the current advanced testing that we have been conducting on various components, we are extremely confident that the next generation of amphibious vehicles will provide the country and the Marine Corps the capability it will need to conduct joint force entry operations,” Moore said. “EFVs are specifically suited to maneuver operations from the sea and sustained operations ashore, and they have been certified to Congress as essential to national security.”

At Quantico, Marines from the infantry platoon of Combat Instructor Company, The Basic School, demonstrated the vehicle, with nearly two squads of Marines disembarking from it after the vehicle roared over hilly terrain on a secluded range.

Although the personnel carrier variant of the EFV carries 17 combat-ready Marines, it packs them in tight, the Marines said. Unlike its predecessor, the Amphibious Assault Vehicle, the EFV has a large compartment in the back that dominates the center of the vehicle and houses the turret basket, separating an aisle of seats that runs along each side wall.

Sgt. David Holt, a TBS combat instructor who deployed to Iraq three times with 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, of Twentynine Palms, Calif., said Marines will be able to get in and out of the vehicle effectively despite the close quarters, which require Marines to disembark one at a time.

“It’s tight, but it’s not the Humvee, which is close quarters at its finest,” he said.

As summer progresses, the existing EFV prototypes will be split among the Amphibious Vehicle Test Branch at Camp Pendleton, Calif.; Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.; and Camp Lejeune, N.C. They will undergo blast testing at Aberdeen and riverine and gunnery tests at Lejeune, officials said.

ghost
05-26-2009, 07:10 PM
Nice article. Hopefully they can get some nice results. I'm also curious to see what the new prototypes look like.

bobdina
05-26-2009, 07:29 PM
yeah we'll have to see SECDEF Gates wants the Corps to re-think thier amphibous role so it would not surprise me to see him try to cut this out. But my god the Corps needs new vehicles.

ghost
05-27-2009, 12:02 PM
yeah we'll have to see SECDEF Gates wants the Corps to re-think thier amphibous role so it would not surprise me to see him try to cut this out. But my god the Corps needs new vehicles.


Woah woah woah.... He wants the Marine Corps to "rethink" their amphibious role????? What does that even mean? Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised either, if he tried to cut this program. But yeah, they do need new vehicles. They need to start upgrading their M1A1s to A2 models, and perhaps do something with their LAV-25s; those are in need of an upgrade, as well. Yes, the Corps is definitely in dire need of an equipment upgrade. They've always gotten the bottom of the barrel.

bobdina
05-27-2009, 01:54 PM
It's funny you mentioned LAV upgrades Corps has big plans to upgrade LAV fleet

By Dan Lamothe - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday May 14, 2009 6:09:42 EDT

Blast-resistant seats, improved suspension and tougher, lighter armor are among a list of upgrades planned for the Corps’ light-armored vehicle fleet in coming years, the top officer overseeing LAVs said.

Col. Michael Micucci, head of the Corps’ LAV program, said the upgrades are planned as part of an overhaul of the entire LAV fleet, which has been in service since the 1980s. Other upgrades are planned for specific variants of the LAV, with the vehicle recovery version expected to receive a new crane, winch and generator and the anti-tank LAV receiving a new weapons system.

“We’re in a situation now where we need to replace the system,” Micucci said of the anti-tank vehicle. “All of the [light-armored reconnaissance] battalion commanders — all four of them, in unison — said we need to replace this vehicle. That doesn’t happen very often, and if four different commanders agree, we need to improve this vehicle.”

Micucci’s comments came April 28 at the second Tactical Vehicles Summit, a gathering of defense contractors and military acquisitions officials in McLean, Va. The upgrades will follow other changes made to the LAV in recent years, including the installation of blast shields, an automatic fire suppression system and an electric turret drive.

Changes coming soon
A major focus in the next round of upgrades will be the LAV-25, which carries six combat-ready Marines and two crewmen and is the most common LAV, comprising 400 of the Corps’ 870-plus fleet.

Unlike other variants, the LAV-25’s fuel cell is along the back wall, increasing the possibility of a “catastrophic event” for Marine scouts, who man a seat on top of the cell, Micucci said.

“They sit on the fuel cell,” he said. “It’s not a good recipe. We’re looking to mitigate the effects of a blast to the fuel cell or to relocate the fuel cell, and I think where we’re heading towards is to relocate it to an inside wall of the vehicle.”

Other variants of the LAV already have the fuel cell along an inside wall, but the LAV-25 will need a partial redesign of its cabin to do the same, Micucci said. Officials requested information from defense manufacturers for the project, but have not narrowed down the options. The project is scheduled for completion next year.

The Corps also wants to replace bench seating with blast-resistant, shock-absorption seats, and develop a new underbelly armor kit that is lighter than the version initially fielded in 2005 to protect Marines against blasts from improvised explosive devices.

“We believe the blast seats and the underbody armor had to be a [combined] approach,” Micucci said in an interview. “We can’t place shock-absorption seats in the back with the way it’s configured. We had to move the fuel cell because the seats won’t fit.”

Among upgrades to specific variants, the Corps is planning:

• A replacement for the aging M901A1 weapons system on all 117 anti-tank LAVs. The system, which fires TOW-2 missiles, has been discarded by the Army, but remains in use on LAVs despite excessive corrosion, decreasing readiness rates, limited visibility for vehicle commanders and other problems, Micucci said. Funding is included in the budget for 2010, he said, but the cost was unavailable.

• New cranes, winches and generators on 50 vehicle recovery LAVs. They will be tested and integrated this year.

• Development of a new command-and-control variant. The vehicle is built by Lockheed Martin and is expected to go to final operational testing and evaluation this summer, Micucci said.

Marine officials also wanted to upgrade its mortar variant, replacing the 81mm in use since the 1980s with the 120mm mortar the Corps rolled out this year as part of the new Expeditionary Fire Support System, a two-vehicle system that fits inside the MV-22 Osprey and tows the mortar on a trailer. Due to funding constraints, however, the program is expected to be cut.

“It’s OK,” Micucci said. “The 81mm is pretty good. The 120mm would have given us a little bit more range, but we will survive with the 81mm mortar.”

Long-term plans
The Corps is also planning a series of yet-to-be-funded changes, including a “comprehensive weight reduction study” and an effort to give LAVs a more robust suspension system that could prove helpful in rocky Afghanistan.

The Corps requested the money for the two projects as part of the proposed fiscal 2010 supplemental budget, Micucci said. If the programs don’t make the cut there, the Corps will build them into its budget for 2012.

Long term, the Corps also is in the early stage of reviewing what to do with the entire LAV family, which has an estimated service life that extends through 2025. Micucci said the Corps is planning to ask for money in the 2012 budget to review what LAR battalions could look like at that time.

“I think it’s something we want to think about,” Micucci said. “We’re in the very, very early stages of even considering a replacement of the vehicle because the commandant could say, ‘I want LAVs to stay until 2035.’”

The LAV fleet:
The Corps has more than 870 light-armored vehicles, with seven variants. A look at the options:

• LAV-25: The most common LAV in the fleet with 400 vehicles, it carries six combat-ready Marines and two crewmen. There are about 56 in each of the Corps’ four light-armored reconnaissance battalions.

• LAV-AT: The anti-tank variant of the LAV is equipped with a M901A1 weapons system that fires TOW-2 missiles. There are about 16 per LAR battalion.

• LAV-L: The logistics variant of the LAV carries ammunition, rations and supplies needed on the battlefield. There are about 12 per LAR battalion.

• LAV-M: The mortar variant is equipped with an 81mm mortar. There are about eight per LAR battalion.

• LAV-R: The recovery variant has a crane, winch and generator. There are about four per LAR battalion.

• LAV-C2: The command-and-control variant has a raised roof, leaving room for communications stations. There are about four per LAR battalion.

• LAV-MEWSS: The Mobile Electronic Warfare Support System LAV carries a driver, a commander and five electronic warfare specialists. It is capable of intercepting radio communications and performing electronic warfare missions.

ghost
05-27-2009, 05:02 PM
Excellent. I hope they get the funding they need, for that program.

So, I wonder what type of upgrade the AT version will get? Perhaps a vehicle mounted Javelin missile? :evilgrin0039:

I'm surprised that the Air Defense version wasn't mentioned... What happened with that? I think that they should look into some of the British AA systems, if they plan on upgrading that.