US Army Orders 165 More Strykers
July 2/07: The GM-GDLS Defense Group L.L.C. Joint Venture in Sterling Heights, MI receives a delivery order amount of $256.9 million as part of a $5.41 billion firm-fixed-price contract for Stryker family vehicles based on the General Dynamics Mowag LAV-III. Work will be performed in Sterling Heights, MI (60%), and London, Ontario, Canada (40%), and is expected to be complete by Jan. 31, 2010. Bids were solicited via the World Wide Web on April 6, 2000, and 17 bids were received by the U.S. Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command in Warren, MI (DAAE07-00-D-M051).
A General Dynamics release adds that this 165-vehicle order calls for 31 Stryker ICV M1126 Infantry Carrier Vehicles, 25 Stryker RV M1127 Reconnaissance Vehicles, 19 Stryker MC M1129 Mortar Carriers, 46 Stryker CV M1130 Command Vehicles, 14 Stryker FSV M1131 Fire Support Vehicles, 11 Stryker ESV M1132 Engineer Squad Vehicles, and 19 Stryker MEDEVAC M1133 Medical Evacuation Vehicles. Additionally, the delivery order calls for 88 Kongsberg Protector Remote Weapons Stations in the Block II Configuration.
Stryker vehicles have performed better than many critics had anticipated on Iraq’s urban battlefields, but recent events indicate that enemy forces may now have a better understanding of its weak points (including limited mine resistance).