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LAV-III: stuck
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In late November 2008, Canada’s Department of National Defence (DND) announced its intention to combine 3 programs into one general set of upgrades to its armored vehicle fleets. The C$ 2 billion meta-program would include (1) a “close combat vehicle,” in order to perform as a tracked Infantry Fighting Vehicle or Armored Personnel Carrier alongside Canada’s new Leopard 2A6 tanks; (2) a new “armoured tactical patrol vehicle”; and (3) some kind of follow-on for the existing LAV-III wheeled APC fleet.

The “close combat vehicle” appears to be the most urgent purchase. As “Tanks for the Lesson: Leopards, too, for Canada” discussed, the LAV-IIIs cannot operate in key terrain within Afghanistan, and keeping them in the field requires a lot of maintenance. Canada’s M113 tracked APCs have been used successfully, but the Canadians appear to be leaning toward a heavier vehicle…

• The Close Combat Vehicle
• The Armored Tactical Patrol Vehicle
• LAV-IIIs, and the RESET/RECAP Imperative
• Updates and Developments
• Additional Readings & Sources

The Close Combat Vehicle

CF M113, Afghanistan
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An Ottawa Citizen reports drives the mobility point home:

“Defence sources say the current LAV-3 does not have the mobility needed for the job in off-road conditions. The likely preferred option is to go for a tracked vehicle.”

The question is, what kind of tracked vehicle?

Existing M113s could be upgraded with cage and/or explosive reactive armor, upgraded with a higher caliber turret or remote weapon system, and have their engines and transmissions upgraded to M113A3 or better status. Australia has taken this approach, absent the full explosive reactive armor protection required to defeat early model Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) anti-tank rockets. Canada ’s own M113 Life Extension Project has been underway since 2000, but its aim has mostly been to improve maintenance with new engines and transmissions, while converting most of Canada’s M113s to specialty support variants. This makes them less than ideal candidates.

Swedish CV90-40
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At the moment, the preferred CCV choice appears to be BAE Hagglunds’ CV90 series. This popular armored vehicle comes in a number of variants, including IFV troop carriers with turret options ranging from 30mm-40mm, up-gunned 105mm and even 120mm assault guns and tank killers (105 or 120T), reconnaissance and forward observation (FOV), C2 forward command (FCV or COM), armored recovery (ARV), and a 40mm anti-aircraft model (AAV). Canada had expressed interest during the vehicle’s initial development, but backed out; a purchase now would make them its 7th customer, alongside Sweden, Denmark, Finland, The Netherlands, Norway, and Switzerland.

If Canada does purchase CV90s, there are rumors that it will adopt that same approach used to buy Leopard 2 tanks: immediate lease from an existing owner to get the vehicles into the field quickly, followed by a longer-term purchase or lease-to-buy arrangement. Sweden would be the most likely lease owner candidate, and that country recently announced its intent to deploy its own CV90s to Afghanistan in light of a growing threat from RPGs.

Their decision was helped along by the fact that CV90s have been decisive for the Norwegians in 2 separate battles. In November 2007, CV90s saw heavy combat during Operation Harekate Yolo in Afghanistan, where they were used alongside outnumbered Norwegian 2nd battalion and Kystjegerkommandoen troops to beat down a Taliban attack on in the Ghowrmach district, near Mazar-e-Sharif. In May 2008, 2nd battalion used them during Operation Karez in Badghis Province. An attempted Taliban ambush used heavy machine gun fire and RPG volleys, which could have been devastating against unarmored or lightly armored vehicles. Instead, 2nd battalion used its CV90s to kill the ambushers. Norwegian casualties? None.

RAF CH-47 w. BvS10,
Afghanistan
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The other touted contender in press reports is the German Puma IFV, which is under contract but not yet operational. Canada would become the vehicle’s 2nd customer behind Germany, but this version offers no possibility of immediate bridging leases or lease-to-buy arrangements from an existing customer.

Despite their successful use by British forces in Afghanistan, and the presence of Bv206 vehicles that performed well with the Princess Patricia Canadian Light Infantry Battle Group during Afghanistan’s Operation Anaconda, the much lighter BvS10 all terrain armored vehicle has not been mentioned in reports to date. Canada appears to prefer a heavier vehicle with a demonstrated capacity to defeat RPG rounds, over the BvS family’s improved air and ground mobility.

BAE’s M2A3 Bradley IFV is a vehicle in that category, which would be available as rapid-delivery vehicles from the US Army and its Bradley remanufacturing lines. It has also been absent from press mentions to date.

The Armored Tactical Patrol Vehicle

RG-31 and G-Wagen
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The second program, for an Armored Tactical Patrol Vehicle, is more ambiguous. Canada currently operates 50-75 RG-31 Nyala “Armoured Patrol Vehicles” in Afghanistan, which have had some maintenance issues but performed well as route-clearance vehicles and convoy leads. A handful of heavier Cougar 6×6 and Buffalo vehicles currently round out Canada’s blast-resistant vehicle fleet, with 50 more on the way. They are accompanied by a large number of Mercedes G-Wagen vehicles, whose protection level is very low – far too low for deployment as a patrol vehicle in combat zones.

The ATPV could be Canada’s long-term MRAP buy of blast-resistant vehicles, replacing and supplementing its RG-31s. It could also wind up as something closer to the American/Australian JLTV competition for a lighter 7-10 ton vehicle set, with blast protection that compares with an RG-31 but possessed of far better off-road and urban mobility.

Time will tell.

LAV-IIIs, and the RESET/RECAP Imperative

Canadian LAV-III,
Afghanistan
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The third vehicle program would involve Canada’s LAV-III fleet, which is being ground down by Afghan operations. An up-armoring program is underway for the existing fleet, but that fleet will eventually need to be RESET, remanufactured, or replaced.

General Dynamics Canada, which manufactures the LAV-III for Canadian and American customers, has reportedly floated the idea of a LAV-H (Heavy) replacement that would incorporate a slightly v-hulled sub-floor for added mine protection, while raising the vehicle’s maximum recommended weight from 17.2t/ 38,000 pounds to 25t/ 55,100 pounds in order to cope with additional equipment and heavier armor.

The other option for the Canadian Forces is some form of full RESET program, similar to the efforts by the US Army to restore its vehicles to “zero mile” configuration. At present, the CASR think tank states that “All Afghan-deployed LAV IIIs must be rotated out for refit and repair every 12 months”; but this is more akin to depot maintenance than full disassembly and RESET.

The Canadian Army adds that this problem is not unique to the LAV-III platform, as they grapple with the same vehicle wear issues experienced by the Americans, British, and Dutch. From the Ottawa Citizen:

“All of our equipment is either deployed, being reset, used in training or broken and waiting either labour or spare parts,” wrote army commander Lt.-Gen. Andrew Leslie in the January [2008] report.”

Updates and Developments

Canadian Parliament
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November 2008: These proposals are in the draft stage. The Ottawa Citizen quotes defense minister MacKay’s press secretary, Jay Paxton:

“The government has been clear in that they will provide our troops with the equipment and protection needed to do the jobs asked of them…. Having said that, no proposal has come forward to Minister MacKay’s office on this particular vehicle acquisition.”

Despite the Conservative Party’s consistent support of defense requests, this bundled proposal may also face political hurdles. Not least of which is the fallout from the Conservative Government’s proposal to withdraw public funding for Canada’s political parties. That proposal has endangered its minority government, and a successful no-confidence vote could result in either a new coalition, or a new election to follow the one in October 2008. A new coalition would be almost certain to include the socialist NDP party, which has traditionally been hostile to both Canadian defense spending and the Afghan mission.

Additional Readings & Sources

• CASR – Background – FLCS Project – Future Combat Systems for the Army.

• CASR – Background – Future Combat Systems – Close Combat Vehicle Project. CCV is a component of FLCS.

• Ottawa Citizen, David Pugliese’s Defence Watch (Nov 17/08) – Canadian Forces Looks at CV90 for Close Combat Vehicle.

• Ottawa Citizen (Nov 17/08) – DND seeks more than $2B for vehicles for Afghanistan