Ground Mobility Vehicle
Written by Dave Ahearn
SOTECH 2012 Volume: 10 Issue: 1 (February)
Special Operations Command is seeking a better ride for its stealth warriors, one that will provide them with superior agility, safety, C4ISR/communications, armaments and more. The ground mobility vehicle (GMV) 1.1 will offer advances over the current HMMWV-based GMV, which comes in several SOF-specific versions.
In a combined sources sought announcement, SOCOM stated a requirement to procure a modified-government off-the-shelf vehicle with SOF peculiar modifications.
One requirement is that the vehicle must be highly mobile, meaning a vehicle that can move quickly. During a decade of war in Afghanistan and Iraq, as the enemy employed ever-larger IEDs targeting U.S. vehicles, heavy armor was added that caused vehicle performance to suffer. In the next iteration of the GMV, SOCOM wants a vehicle that can deftly move at speed, whisking special operators to an objective and then extract them just as swiftly.
The GMV is classified as the medium-weight part of an overall special ops tactical mobility requirement that ranges from very lightweight assets such as all terrain vehicles up to heavyweights such as MRAPs, M-ATVs and Strykers modified for special ops missions.
One requirement for the GMV is that it must be transportable on the Boeing CH-47 Chinook helo. Chinooks can carry up to 28,000 pounds of payload. SOCOM does not, however, require the more difficult challenge of transportability on a V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft, which has a payload of up to 8,400 pounds, depending upon desired range.
The GMV program has attracted the interest of major and smaller vehicle makers, involving a proposed production rate of about 200 vehicles annually over five years (base year plus four option years). But the program also has attracted the interest of scores of companies poised to offer vehicle components, ranging from suspension systems to transparent armor, from vehicle protection systems to electronics and much more.
For the overall main contracts, SOCOM envisions awarding an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract, with the acquisition process divided into two phases: First there will be a written proposal with certified test data from each contractor, and from the field of proposals SOCOM will award up to two contracts for test and evaluation.
In the second phase, SOCOM might buy prototypes from each of the companies. Then SOCOM will select the single winner and move ahead to production.
This scenario can be altered, depending on comments that contractors provide.
Advanced Vehicles
Lockheed Martin has a singular offering for the GMV, Ric Magness, director of the Havoc 8x8 Program in the Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control sector, explained. The common vehicle meets the GMV criteria, he continued, and importantly, the “common vehicle is the best choice for commonality among the military fleet, as hundreds in its family are used and sustained by U.S., NATO and coalition forces in theater today.”
Further, choosing this asset means dealing with an immensely experienced provider, the largest defense contractor in the world. “Lockheed Martin is an established ground vehicles provider for the U.S. and allies worldwide,” Magness explained. “We’ve produced and have been sustaining common vehicles for U.S. customers for eight years, and we think it will be a seamless fit into the existing fleet.”
In other words, SOCOM has the opportunity to obtain a known asset from a known vendor. “Common vehicle is an off-the-shelf solution, having over 700 vehicles in its family in operation around the world, so the infrastructure for support is already there,” he emphasized. “It really shines when it comes to capability, and there are few vehicles that can approach its agility, speed and performance in theater. Common vehicle also fits internally in many airborne assets, like the CH-47 and CH-53, making it one of the most transportable combat vehicles today.”
The common vehicle provides the capabilities that special operators need, Magness continued. “Common vehicle is an off-road combat vehicle that can move quickly [over 80 mph] at long ranges [440 miles with auxiliary tank], giving dangerous missions maximum flexibility,” he said. “It’s fast for quick entry and egress, and it is designed for inhospitable environments, so teams don’t have to be tied to the road.”
Although the common vehicle isn’t a huge piece of hardware, it can carry what special operators require. “Despite its light body and quick speed, common vehicle is a heavy hauler, and it exceeds the GMV payload requirement,” Magness said. ♦