BAE/Iveco & SAIC/ST Kinetics in the ACV competition

via USNI News.

 The Marine Corps’ Amphibious Combat Vehicle is on track for testing this year and a down-select and contract award a year from now, the Program Executive Officer for Land Systems told lawmakers and reporters today.

The ACV 1.1 test schedule had to be pushed back three months due to a contract award protest filed by General Dynamics Land Systems in December 2015, after the Marine Corps awarded its two engineering and manufacturing development contracts to BAE Systems and SAIC. But since the test schedule was revised, PEO Land Systems John Garner said the two competitors have been delivering vehicles and conducting multiple types of tests at facilities across the country.

“Both contractors are delivering, it is a competitive environment. One of them is ahead on the delivery schedule, is meeting all criteria and is ahead on testing, and by the end of this week we will have 13 vehicles from one of them, we currently have 12 already,” Garner said during a hearing at the Senate Armed Services seapower subcommittee. USNI News understands he was referring to BAE Systems when discussing the company that has delivered 12 vehicles.

“The other one, we’re accepting four vehicles today. … We already had two, so we’ll have six. By the end of next week it will be 15 from one and it will be 12 from the other, and that’s enough to fully support the test schedule and maintain the critical milestones, the Milestone C about this time next year.”

Garner told reporters after the hearing that testing is currently taking place at two locations now: blast tests and other assorted assessments at Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland, and mission-focused testing at Amphibious Vehicle Test Branch in California. The vehicles will also undergo soft soil testing in Mississippi and various other test events around the country, in about five locations total, he said.

An ACV operational assessment will take place early next year, Garner told reporters, with a Milestone C declaration made around June 2018 and a low-rate initial production contract awarded to one of the two bidders around the same time.

First.  Oh My God!  They're gonna be testing in Mississippi?  If anyone knows when that will happen and where then PLEASE let me know!  That's right around the corner and I'd LOVE to get there to take pics!

Second.  If you've been keeping up with ACV news then you know that BAE/Iveco are ahead of schedule in delivering their vehicle.  I'm really kinda surprised that ST Kinetics/SAIC are lagging.

Knowing ST Kinetics they probably went over their vehicles with a fine tooth comb and then got behind a bit when they probably did a last minute design change right before delivery.  It's just speculation but I seriously get the impression that ST Kinetics is on the verge of being "anal" when it comes to their gear...and I know from talking to enough people that they really want this contract bad.

I still think its going too slow.  Still believe we should have a bigger buy but its going forward.