[Ret10Echo]

MRAP II Deadline Passes

By KRIS OSBORN


The deadline has come and gone for makers of mine resistant ambush-protected vehicles (MRAPs) to submit their offerings as the Pentagon surges ahead with its MRAP II competition, an effort to develop and quickly field better-protected MRAPs.
The close of business Oct. 1 marked the deadline for MRAP-makers to submit proposals and vehicles for the competition, said U.S. Marine Corps Systems Command spokeswoman 1st Lt. Geraldine Carey. A government solicitation to industry was posted July 31, giving vendors 60 days to submit vehicles for blast and road testing.
Driven by an urgent need to counter enemy tactics in Iraq and Afghanistan, the new MRAPs must move faster and also offer better protection against explosively formed penetrators (EFPs), a particularly deadly type of roadside bomb, said a senior Marine Corps official.
“Any changes are designed to provide the most effective protection for the warfighter given the current threat environment,” said Carey.
A number of prominent vehicle and MRAP makers have submitted proposals. Oshkosh Truck has teamed up with Ceradyne and Ideal Innovations, Inc (I-3) and is offering the Bull vehicle, designed with a cutting-edge armor able to thwart EFP attacks, Ceradyne officials said.
“The Bull advanced technology armored solution, conceived by I-3 in 2005 and developed with Ceradyne in 2006, has been tested by the Army Test Center, Aberdeen, Md., and demonstrated to be capable of protecting vehicle occupants against IED, EFP and mine blast threats,” said a Oshkosh press release.
General Dynamics has two different MRAPs in the competition, one through Force Dynamics — their partnership with Force Protection — and one through General Dynamics Land Systems–Canada.
“We submitted a proposal which indicated how our existing vehicles could be upgraded to meet the MRAP II requirements,” said General Dynamics spokesman Rob Doolittle. The Force Dynamics MRAP II is offering a reinforced Cougar vehicle equipped with EFP-stopping armor. The GDLS Canada MRAP II is an upgraded RG-31.
Protected Vehicles (PV), based in North Charleston, S.C., delivered its MRAP II offering to Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Md. on Oct.1. Called the MRAP II version of their Golan vehicle, the ambush protected design is built to be more survivable than MRAP I. PV spokesman Drew Felty said “there are many differences, such as side doors and different armor.”
Also entering the competition is Navistar International, maker of the MaxxPro MRAP vehicle. Navistar has submitted a proposal for the MRAP II, according to Navistar officials.
Thus far, more than 1,900 MaxxPro MRAPs have been ordered by the Pentagon for roughly $1 billion.
Like the first round of MRAP contracts, the MRAP II contracts will be Indefinite Quantity/Indefinite Delivery, so the Defense Department can buy large quantities as needed depending upon wartime needs.
So far, the military has placed orders for 6,415 MRAPs and spent $5.6 billion on the program. Overall, 15,374 MRAPs have been approved for purchase by the Joint Requirements Oversight Council as of late September. In total, DoD officials estimate the 15,374 MRAPs to cost $11.3 billion.
In July, Senior Marine Corps officials said the MRAP II vehicles could be delivered by October or November, however the delivery timeline now will depend upon the pace and success of blast-testing, a Marine Corps official said.