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Italy to buy 64 Oto Melara gun turrets for LMV vehicles
September 9th, 2009 | DSEI 2009 | Posted by Tom Kington
Oto Melara's Hitrole 12.7mm turret
Italian firm Oto Melara is to “imminently” sign a contract with the Italian government to supply 64 Hitrole Light remote controlled gun turrets for mounting on Italy’s Light Multirole Vehicles, an official said on Wednesday.
The order is worth 18.8 million euros said Oto Melara CEO Carlo Alberto Iardella at the DSEi 2009 show in London. A spokeswoman said full delivery could be made by early 2011.
Italy has deployed its Iveco LMV vehicles to Afghanistan with a roof hatch through which a soldier mans a machine gun. That policy was questioned in Italy in July after an LMV gunner was killed when the vehicle was hit by an IED in Afghanistan. A competition to find a remote controlled gun turret had previously been launched in May. On July 30, days after the attack, Oto Melara’s turret was given preliminary approval by the Italian government. The firm, which is a unit of Italy’s Finmeccanica, was the only company to enter the competition, said Iardella.
The company spokeswoman added that the orginal requirement had stood at 83 turrets, but based on the funding made available, Oto Melara offered 64 turrets, which was accepted. Each turret will come supplied with interchangeable 12.7mm and 7.62mm machine guns as well as a 40mm grenade launcher. The turrets also feature a thermal camera, laser range finder and TV camera supplied by Selex Galileo. Oto Melara expects to supply the first turret four months after a contract signing, with trials by the customer to follow. The firm then expects to conclude deliveries six to seven months after the first delivery.
An official at Iveco, which builds the LMV, revealed at DSEi on Tuesday that the firm had meanwhile received a separate, rushed order in August for around 60 protective guards for LMV vehicle gunners. The system consists of a cylinder of composite material to protect the gunner on a ring mount. Oto Melara CEO Iardella said that some LMVs would get the protective guards supplied by Iveco and others the remote control turrets supplied by Oto Melara. “There will be a mix of both solutions,” he said.
Separately, industrial sources said Wednesday that in July Oman ordered three Centauro wheeled tanks – built jointly by Oto Melara and Iveco — bringing its total order to nine. Oman ordered six Centauro tanks with 120mm cannons in 2008, plus an option for six more. The decision to order three of the options was made after successful trials of the vehicle, the source said. Deliveries of the first six vehicles will be completed in 2010 and the further three will be delivered in 2011.
Tags: Hitrole, LMV, Oto Melara
Italy makes rush order for vehicle gunner protection
September 8th, 2009 | DSEI 2009 | Posted by Tom Kington
The Italian government has ordered around 60 protective guards for vehicle gunners following the death of a gunner in Afghanistan in July, an industrial official said on Tuesday.
Italian vehicle firm Iveco was contracted in August to provide the guards which it will deliver from September onwards for mounting on the Light Multirole Vehicles it supplies to the Italian military.
The systems comprise a ring mount to be placed on the roof hatch of the vehicle, an electric motor to turn it and a cylinder of composite material to give protection to the soldier manning the roof gun, said Flavio Marchesoni, Iveco Defence Vehicles sales and marketing manager.
Italian soldiers have praised their LMV vehicles, dubbed Lince in Italy, for protecting them from IED attacks, although exposed gunners have fared badly when vehicles overturn.
The contract appears to be a stop gap measure as the Italian ministry of defense has previously opened a competition to equip Italy’s Lince vehicles with remotely controlled gun turrets which avoid the need to expose a soldier.
Speaking at the DSEi 2009 show in London, Marchesoni said that Iveco would also deliver 30 Lince vehicles to Italy next year designed to carry the Israeli Spike anti-tank missile, which Italy has purchased.
He also confirmed that Iveco was interested in competing in the UK’s new Light Protected Patrol Vehicle program. “We may pitch a variant on the LMV, albeit wider, longer and heavier, while still less than eight tonnes,” he said.