Tag Archives: OMFV

Ground Forces

XM30 program

The U.S. Army has awarded American Rheinmetall Vehicles (Sterling Heights, MI) and the industry leading companies of Team Lynx – Textron Systems, Raytheon Technologies, L3Harris Technologies, Allison Transmission, and Anduril Industries – a contract for the Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV) Phase 3 Detailed Design and Phase 4 Prototype Build and Test phases of the five-phased program, now named the XM30 Mechanized Infantry Combat Vehicle program. The Army awarded a total of two contracts for Phase 3 and 4 performance. The two competitors will now complete the designs that began in the Phase 2 Concept Design phase and build at least seven and as many as 11 prototypes for Army evaluation with a full contract value in excess of $700 million.

XM30 program
American Rheinmetall Vehicles and Team Lynx win contract for Phase 3 and 4 of the Army’s XM30 program

«American Rheinmetall Vehicles and our teammates are excited about the award and we look forward to continuing our important work with the Army in this critical modernization program», said Matthew Warnick, Managing Director for American Rheinmetall Vehicles. «Team Lynx brings together some of the finest defense technology companies in the world and will deliver a truly transformational, modern Infantry Combat Vehicle that ensures our Soldiers can fight, survive, and win on future battlefields».

American Rheinmetall Vehicles and Team Lynx are developing a next-generation XM30 that achieves the Army’s requirements for a combat vehicle with superior protection, unsurpassed firepower, and unbeatable mobility. Operating with other units or independently, the vehicle can sense, move, and strike in a connected, rapidly changing, complex, and lethal operational environment unlike any Infantry Combat Vehicle before.

With its modular design and open architecture, the Army can tailor the Lynx OMFV to meet specific missions or threats, rapidly evolving to adapt to future requirements. These features also significantly reduce the training and logistics burden, leading to greater operational readiness. The Lynx OMFV’s Ground Combat Systems Common Infrastructure Architecture (GCIA) hosts an electrical, software, and structural architecture that results in a uniquely modular concept that reduces production and lifecycle costs. This open systems approach to the vehicle architecture, coupled with weight growth margin and electrical power reserve, delivers a transformational platform today that is prepared for rapid adoption and insertion of the emerging new technologies of the future – ensuring overmatch today and overmatch tomorrow.

«American Rheinmetall Vehicles has brought together remarkable companies, ideas, technologies, and approaches to deliver a truly next-generation, lethal, survivable, and enduring infantry fighting vehicle concept», said retired U.S. Army Lieutenant General Bill Mayville, a member of the ARV Board of Directors. «This team is delivering on the Army’s highest and most ambitious priorities and I am confident it will continue to bring exceptional solutions as part of this important modernization effort».

Design work for the upcoming phases will primarily take place at American Rheinmetall Vehicles’ facility in Sterling Heights, Michigan, with support from partners across the country. Final prototype assembly is slated to be done at the Textron Systems production facility in Slidell, Louisiana. Upon completion of Phases 3 and 4, the Army plans to down select to one vendor for Low-Rate Initial Production in Phase 5 of the program near the end of 2027.

Rheinmetall – Exclusively Lynx XM30 for the U.S. Army’s next-gen combat vehicle program

Ground Forces

XM30

General Dynamics Land Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics (GD), announced on June 27, 2023 that it has been selected by the U.S. Army to advance to the detailed design and prototype build and test phases of the XM30 Mechanized Infantry Combat Vehicle competition.

Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV)
General Dynamics Land Systems awarded $769 million to advance to next phase of OMFV competition

Formerly known as the Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV), the XM30 is the Army’s next generation infantry fighting vehicle developmental program that will replace the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. The U.S. Army Contracting Command awarded General Dynamics Land Systems $768.7 million firm-fixed-price contract for Phase III and IV detailed design and prototype build and testing.

«We are proud that our years of innovation, research, development and investment have led to this next-generation XM30 solution for the Army», said Gordon Stein, vice president and general manager of U.S. operations at General Dynamics Land Systems. «Our highly affordable XM30 development approach maximizes performance to the Army’s requirements, and delivers a vehicle that is purpose-built for the mission».

«Our XM30 was designed from its inception in our digital engineering environment, allowing efficient and agile integration of transformative capabilities on a platform that embodies the Army’s vision for the Ground Combat Systems Common Infrastructure Architecture (GCIA)», said Stein.

Ground Forces

Optionally Manned Vehicle

BAE Systems is teaming with Elbit Systems of America, Curtiss-Wright Corporation, and QinetiQ Inc. on its design for the U.S. Army’s Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV).

Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV)
BAE Systems announces partners for Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle design

The companies will work together to produce an innovative, purpose-built, next-generation combat vehicle designed to meet the U.S. Army’s requirements for an agile, lethal, and survivable solution that will help redefine land combat operations and maneuverability in future conflicts. The proposal was submitted to the U.S. Army earlier this month and on November 30, 2022, BAE Systems announced details of how the companies are collaborating.

BAE Systems and Elbit Systems of America are leveraging their extensive experience in the evaluation, demonstration, and validation of next generation combat systems. For OMFV, Elbit is providing its 50-mm Unmanned Turret (UT50), one of the most versatile armament configurations with multiple mission payloads and capabilities, which recently completed a successful live fire demonstration at the Aberdeen Test Center. The UT50 features a XM913 50-mm cannon and a high-capacity ammunition handling system.

The OMFV design will use a standardized, Modular Open Systems Architecture (MOSA), designed by BAE Systems and Curtiss-Wright Defense Solutions. MOSA solutions are critical for enabling the customer to rapidly refresh technology to field new capabilities and meet emerging threats on the battlefield. The two companies are also providing vital electronics and control systems into the OMFV.

BAE Systems has invested in and collaborated with industry for more than 40 years to advance Hybrid Electric Drive (HED) technology. BAE Systems and QinetiQ Inc. are developing and integrating the HED technology with an electric cross-drive transmission, a key component of an HED system for tracked combat vehicles, to ensure the OMFV has the speed, reliability, and maneuverability necessary to dominate in the toughest battlefield conditions. QinetiQ Inc.’s Modular E-X-Drive transmission has been tested and proven in a wide range of tracked vehicles and weight classes over the last decade.

«The synergy from our diverse and highly capable team allows us to deliver the next-generation, transformational technology and capabilities our customer is looking for», said Andy Corea, vice president and general manager for BAE Systems Combat Mission Systems. «Together we have continually researched, developed, innovated, and delivered and we believe this team can provide a purpose-built vehicle with the winning solutions for future battlefields and, most importantly, for the men and women who put their lives on the line for us each and every day».

BAE Systems already has the expertise, infrastructure, and resources to deliver results for the U.S. Army’s OMFV platform, with plans to complete project elements at facilities across the U.S. that contribute a diverse set of workforce talent and manufacturing quality.

Ground Forces

Weapon System

Oshkosh Defense, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Oshkosh Corporation, has entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) Armaments Center (DEVCOM) at Picatinny Arsenal.

Medium Caliber Weapon System (MCWS)
Oshkosh Defense partners with U.S. Army DEVCOM to develop, integrate, and test Medium Caliber Weapon Systems

Under the CRADA, Oshkosh Defense and DEVCOM will cooperate in the development, integration, and testing of innovative armament technologies to provide a transformative, next-generation lethality capability for the Warfighter. Additionally, the CRADA will enable both organizations to mature their technologies for eventual transition to direct fire medium caliber platforms such as the U.S. Army’s Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV). Development activities will leverage the proven Oshkosh Defense Stryker Medium Caliber Weapon System (MCWS) 30-mm turret.

«We are already starting with a robust weapon system platform with our Stryker MCWS turret», said Pat Williams, Vice President and General Manager of U.S. Army and Marine Corps Program for Oshkosh Defense. «This CRADA allows us to explore additional weapon system capabilities and apply them to our OMFV solution to provide our Soldiers with the cutting edge technology required on the modern battlefield».

In June 2021, the U.S. Army selected Oshkosh Defense, Pratt Miller Defense, and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems to provide a precision lethality capability to the Stryker Brigade Combat Teams (SBCTs) as part of the Stryker MCWS program. Production of the Oshkosh Defense Stryker MCWS is expected to begin in Spring 2022. In July 2021, the U.S. Army also selected Oshkosh Defense to participate in the OMFV Concept Design Phase, which culminates in Q1FY23. Oshkosh Defense has partnered with Pratt Miller Defense, Hanwha Defense USA, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, QinetiQ Inc., and Plasan for the OMFV Concept Design Phase.