Dutch Bushmasters’
first Afghan patrol
(click to view full)

Despite ongoing US procurement of M1151/M1152 Hummers, the retreat from Jeep-like vehicles is accelerating among Western militaries. Insufficiently protected against land mine threats in modern conflict zones, and insufficiently protectable due to inherent design limitations, conventional vehicles like G-Wagens, Land Rovers, and HMMWVs are being replaced in manufacturer lineups and military acquisitions by more protectable truck-based models, or by dedicated mine-resistant patrol vehicles. DID has covered the USA’s ramped-up purchases of M1117 Guardian ASVs, as well as its 15,000+ vehicle MRAP program that includes PVI/RAFAEL Golans, BAE’s RG-31s/RG-33s/Caimans, Force Protection’s Cougars, and Navistar/Plasan’s MaxxPro. We’ve also covered Iraq and Britain’s acquisition of Force Protection’s Cougar variants; Belgium’s buys of Dingo and Iveco Panther vehicles as the mainstays of its future fleet; Bulgaria’s purchase of M1117s; Canada’s emergency buy of RG-31 Nyalas and emergency order for mine clearance vehicles; Denmark’s order for MOWAG Eagle IV vehicles (no longer HMMWV-based like the Eagle III) and Duro trucks; Luxembourg’s Dingo-2 PRV reconnaissance vehicles, Norway and Spain’s emergency procurement of Iveco MLV/Panthers, and the Czech Republic’s November 2007 buy of Dingo-2s and Iveco MLVs. Public tenders for more vehicles will soon be underway in Spain and the Czech Republic, even as nations that were ahead of the curve continue to add to their stocks: Germany’s additional 149 KMW Dingo 2 vehicles, and Australia’s near-doubling of its original order by adding 293 Bushmasters, offer ample evidence of the seriousness with which they view the global trend toward IED land mines in conflict zones.

ISAF, S. Afghanistan
(click to view full)

During the summer of 2006, the Netherlands also adopted Australia’s Bushmaster IMV from Thales-ADI, a dedicated mine-resistant patrol vehicle that has proven itself with Australian forces in Iraq, to strengthen its Uruzgun force as NATO takes on greater responsibility in Southern Afghanistan.

The agreement was concluded in close cooperation with TWO friendly foreign governments, and it has just received another order…

HMMWV, IEDed
(click to view full)

According to the Defence-Aerospace.com translation, the need for an additional Dutch patrol vehicle was recognized in the Afghan province of Uruzgan, where Dutch forces are operating as part of NATO/ISAF. The new vehicle had to offer more protection than the Mercedes Terreinwagen in use, and also had to “ensure more flexibility” than their 1970s vintage Patria and YPR armoured personnel carriers.

On June 23/06, the Defensie Materieelorganisatie (defence procurement agency, DMO) started an acquisition project that has resulted in the selection of ADI’s Bushmaster. This was an urgent requirement, and was completed in about one month – a timeline that offers ample testament to the contract’s urgency.

Oops.
(click to view full)

Thales subsidiary ADI will supply 25 V-hulled Bushmaster armored patrol vehicles for EUR $24.9 million ($31.7 million at current conversion), 23 of which will be available by August 28 for transport to Afghanistan. The other 2 will be used back in Holland for training. Each vehicle can carry up to 8 soldiers + 2 crew at speeds of up to 90 km/h. Of these 25 vehicles, 12 will replace the pintle-mounted machine gun up top with “overhead weapons systems” that use advanced optics and thermal imaging, and can be controlled from inside the vehicle.

ADI Ltd. (“Bushmaster Goes To Europe,” PDF format) and Thales-Nederland (“Thales contracts for Dutch mission in Afghanistan”) have now issued their own releases.

• They confirm that the remote weapons system on the 12 equipped vehicles will indeed be Thales SWARM, though Recon/Optical has since maintained on July 9/07 that a $2.2M production contract was signed to supply 17 RAVEN R-400 RWS for integration onto Dutch Bushmasters.

• Thales SOTAS M2 will be supplied as the communications system. SOTAS 2 can be used in practically any military vehicle, between vehicles, and between vehicles and command posts. It enables speech, video and data transfer and can be used to set up a local area network. Its noise filters ensure unambiguous communication. Thales Land & Joint Systems in Huizen, The Netherlands will suuply them.

The delivery time is possible because the Australian government will provide the 25 vehicles out of its own stocks for conversion to Dutch systems; ADI’s Bendigo plant will then use some of the funds to replenish the ADF’s fleet. Australian forces are apparently serving in the Dutch area of operations, and fight with them on combined operations, so the commonality is doubtless welcome and the infrastructure already in theater.

Other in country project support in Afghanistan will be provided by Thales Netherlands, and through-life support will be provided by ADI’s US partner Oshkosh in The Netherlands and in Afghanistan.

3 Governments in a Cooperative Effort

RG-31, IEDed
(click to view full)

Funding for this project was appropriated by the Dutch cabinet as a supplemental, and the procurement also involves two governments. Australia has pledged to provide close cooperation (and is taking the 25 vehicles from its own stocks; see above), while Canada is loaning Dutch forces in Uruzgun 10 of its RG-31 Nyala armoured patrol vehicles as an interim solution; 5 vehicles have just been handed over, and the remaining 5 will arrive in early October 2006.

The Canadians are serving as part of the same ISAF force in Southern Afghanistan, under British command; though no quid pro quo was specified, DID has noted the Canadian Forces’ need for CH-47 helicopter support in theater, and the fact that Canada had sold all of its machines to The Netherlands. A barter of RG-31s in exchange for specified CH-47 support would appear to make great sense for all concerned.

(Originally published on August 2, 2006.)

UPDATES:

Damaged Bushmaster
(click to view full)

Nov 20/07: The Dutch MvD places a EUR 8.5 million (about $12 million) order for another 10 Bushmasters as combat replacements, after 2 vehicles are destroyed and 2 others heavily damaged by IED land mine attacks in Afghanistan. It’s not unusual for blast-resistant vehicles to be destroyed by land mines and still protect their crew, however, an outcome that is considered a success. No details regarding that aspect of those incidents are released, but the MvD usually announces casualties and includes vehicle types; DID has searched, but seen no reports involving the Bushmaster. MvD release [in Dutch] | Accompanying brief: “Aanvullende behoefte Bushmaster-patrouillevoertuigen.”

Oct 18/06: The Dutch Ministry of Defense announces that Bushmaster vehicles have made their very first operational patrol with Dutch forces in Afghanistan, as escorts for a trailer carrying 2 YPR-765 tracked APCs from Kandahar to the front lines near Karin Towt. How the new vehicles hold up will be their next big test, as this has been a problem for previous equipment. Note this line: “The extreme circumstances in Afghanistan, such as heat and terrain, take a high toll of material. The maintenance and repair units thus have their hands full.”

See Ministerie Van Defensie release in Dutch | Defense Aerospace translation. See also the Dutch MvD’s Bushmaster NLD APC equipment profile page.

Additional Readings:

• Thales Australia/ ADI – Bushmaster

• Digger History – Bushmaster

• Defense Technology International (Sept 7/07) – IEDs Trigger Vehicle Procurement Rush. Talks about European programs, with a strong focus on Germany.

• CASR (August 2006) – Armour for Afghanistan – ISAF Military Leaders Agree: Troops Need More (and Better) Armoured Vehicles

• Australia DoD, Army newspaper (Aug 11/05) – Masters of the Desert: Aussie-made IMV a success on first deployment