Blake Hall
The Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) contract came down to three major players that possess the ability to churn out massive, wheeled armored vehicles (on a large enough scale) well enough to replace the beloved Humvee.
AM General. Lockheed Martin. Oshkosh Defense.
Wait … Oshkosh … Defense?
Yeah, not the clothing company — Oshkosh B’Gosh — the good people who have over decades become the AUTHORITY in the United States when it comes to crafting tiny overalls for farm and city kids alike.
No, we’re talking about the Oshkosh Corporation (formerly Oshkosh Truck), which is an automotive manufacturer based out of Wisconsin. They’re the ones who have just been awarded the U.S. Defense Department contract worth an estimated $30 billion over the coming years.
The deal will effectively phase out the Humvee as the “go-to” all-terrain vehicle for the United States Army and Marine Corps, with the first phase of the process beginning in 2016 when low-rate initial production (LRIP) will build 17,000 of the state-of-the-art automobiles. That’ll run the government almost $7 billion.
Here’s what the president of Oshkosh Defense had to say about the vehicle they manufacture, via the Washington Post and Foxtrot Alpha:
“Our JLTV has been extensively tested and is proven to provide the ballistic protection of a light tank, the underbody protection of an MRAP-class vehicle, and the off-road mobility of a Baja racer.”
For reference, ladies and gents, this is a Baja racer:
And this is Oshkosh’s star — demonstrating what it can do in live action:
The contract isn’t exactly set in stone just yet though. There’s still a little bit of wiggle room. More from Foxtrot:
The Army’s JLTV decision will almost certainly be formally protested by Lockheed Martin and AM General which could drag the program’s timeline down in the near term. Still, the decision today marks a final departure from the Humvee, of which some 280,000 have been built since going into production in 1984.
You know what else made its debut in 1984? This:
Probably time for a change.