Marine Corps begins evaluating Advance Reconnaissance Vehicle Prototypes

 via Press Release

Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va.— The Marine Corps has started its evaluation of the Advanced Reconnaissance Vehicle prototypes.

The Government – through Program Manager Light Armored Vehicles – took delivery of the prototypes offered by General Dynamics Land Systems and Textron Systems in December 2022.

A third prototype, offered by BAE, is also undergoing evaluation to provide the Marine Corps with trade space between a government off-the-shelf and purpose-built solution.

The ARV will employ transformational sensors, communications, and combat capabilities to collect and communicate information, while integrating robotics and artificial intelligence technologies into manned-unmanned teams.

During the competitive prototyping phase, testing will focus on mobility in complex terrains common to the ARV mission profile, properly stressing the Command, Control, Communications and Computers, Unmanned Air Systems capabilities, other vehicle performance and characteristic testing. The test data will support evaluation by the Marine Corps to determine an achievable requirement.

PM LAV announced awards to both GDLS and Textron Systems in late summer of 2021. The vendors were tasked with developing and building one ARV-C4UAS prototype each in 15 months. The program office used the Middle Tier Acquisition pathway to accelerate the project.

“Through our use of Middle Tier Acquisition authorities, and with support of our industry partners, we maintained schedule and delivered innovative capabilities for evaluation in order to inform the Marine Corps path forward towards mobile reconnaissance,” said Steve Myers, Program Manager Light Armored Vehicle.

By using an existing contract for the Amphibious Combat Vehicle, BAE developed a C4UAS mobile systems integration lab.

The ARV will enable a crew to sense the operating environment and convey that information using advanced on-board sensors and networked communications systems that are augmented by unmanned systems to detect, recognize, identify, and report threats at extended ranges.

The initial increment of testing is planned to be completed in the third quarter of 2023. The findings will be delivered to the Marine Corps and are expected to inform a multi domain reconnaissance decision.

The ARV is expected to give the Fleet Marine Force a survivable, mobile, networked, and lethal platform optimized for naval transport and amphibious employment in the littoral operating environment.

I like the Textron offering but I have to wonder if the specs will change and instead of many vehicles (for the Marine Corps that is), a bigger of payload of UAVs will carry the day.

Berger is still penny pinching so that could tilt the contest toward the ACV.

Regardless LAR will be something no one recognizes real soon. It's already morphing into a hybrid of something weird as I type this. 

I really have to wonder why they just didn't set up an ISR platoon/company within LAR and put all these UAVs on FMTV trucks and call it a day while maintaining the ability to actually fight for info with the ARV.