General Dynamics’ Land Systems division will rebuild 66 Stryker infantry combat vehicles to incorporate a “newer, more survivable” design, according to a new contract placed by the U.S. Army’s TACOM Life Cycle Management Command. The project to adapt the double-V hull (DVH) design is worth $66 million, the contractor announced, and deliveries of the rebuilt vehicles will be completed by February 2015.
The IAV Stryker is a family of eight-wheeled armored fighting vehicles with 4-wheel drive steering (8x4) that can be switched to all-wheel drive (8x8).
As explained by General Dynamics, it launched the Stryker DVH-exchange pilot program in 2012 in partnership with the U.S. Army, to validate that components from the current flat-bottom design variant can be refurbished quickly and installed on a new, more survivable double-V hull variant, at less cost than producing a new vehicle. The pilot program was completed earlier this year, with 52 Stryker vehicles redesigned.
The DVH design includes an improved, semi-active suspension, a reshaped hull into a shallow V design, to offer better protection against roadside mines and improvised explosive devices.
The redesign also includes additional armored steel plating for the vehicles’ sides, redesigned hatches that minimize gaps in the armor, blast-absorbing/mine-resistant seating, non-flammable tires, an improved remote weapon station that allows soldiers to fire on the go, increased 500-amp power generation, a solid-state power distribution system and data bus, and automotive and power plant systems improvements to support a 25% gross vehicle weight increase.
The final assembly work will be performed at the Anniston Army Depot in Alabama, according to General Dynamics, but some work will be conducted at the General Dynamics’ plant in Scranton, Penn.
