Vehicle Will Incorporate New GDLS 30mm Turret

On the first day of Land Forces 2018 in Adelaide on 4 September, General Dynamics Land Systems – Australia (GDLS) unveils its proposed solution for the Australian Army’s LAND 400 Phase 3 programme – the Mounted Close Combat Capability (MCCC) requirement.

Based on the AJAX family of armoured fighting vehicles (AFV), the GDLS solution fully addresses the requirements of the MCCC specification, including the Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV), for which the company will integrate a new in-house-designed 30mm turret.
AJAX incorporates cutting-edge and proven technology to provide an unparalleled balance of protection, lethality and mobility in a transportable medium-weight vehicle. The AJAX Family of Vehicles (FoV) offers an open generic vehicle architecture and a modular armour system that deliver enormous potential to combat future threats and insert new technologies throughout the anticipated life of the vehicles.

GDLS is actively engaging with Australian industry to develop an innovative and sustainable national supply chain to maximise the amount of work undertaken in Australia for LAND 400 Phase 3. This is a model that has worked successfully in the UK, where the AJAX programme currently supports 4,100 direct UK jobs across more than 230 UK-based companies, alongside the establishment of a new GDLS AFV production facility in the UK.

AJAX’s Common Base Platform will enable the nine required roles for LAND 400 Phase 3 to be delivered using only four variants, which will ensure a smaller logistics footprint and lower through-life costs due to component commonality across the fleet. These variants will allow the Australian Army to conduct sustained, expeditionary, full-spectrum and network-enabled operations in combined arms and multinational situations across a wide range of future operating environments.

“We are drawing upon the very best from across General Dynamics to deliver the Australian Army the latest generation AJAX-based solution that meets its needs, whilst maximising Australian industrial content on this flagship programme. AJAX is the world’s most advanced Family of Armoured Fighting Vehicles and we want the Australian Army to have the very best solution available,” commented newly-appointed Vice President of General Dynamics Land Systems – Australia, Kevin Connell.