Procurement: Bushmaster Gets More Orders

Archives

August 24, 2007: The Australian army has bought another 250 Bushmaster armored trucks. These will be the improved models, that include a remotely controlled (from inside the vehicle) machine-gun turret. This has been a very popular feature in other armored vehicles. There are also several improvements in crew protection, and a new cooling system for the drinking water supply

Early models cost about $1.3 million each, but the new order will be a little under a million dollars per vehicle. The Bushmaster is made in Australia and based on a South African design concept, with a V shaped underside, to deflect mine and bomb blast. The 4x4, 15 ton vehicle has a crew of two and carries eight troops in what amounts to an armored box. The vehicle is protected against 12.7mm machine-gun bullets, and bombs and mines containing up to 21 pounds of explosives. The vehicle has a top road speed of 125 kilometers an hour and a max road range of 1,000 kilometers. Lots of bulletproof glass is used, and in the troop compartment, there are firing ports under the windows. The vehicle carries a gun ring, on a hatch near the front of the crew compartment, that can mount a 5.56mm or 7.62mm machine-gun. This is normally replaced by the remote control turret. The vehicle is a comfortable ride. The Australian army already has over 400 Bushmasters, and the vehicles are popular with the troops.

 

X

ad

Help Keep Us From Drying Up

We need your help! Our subscription base has slowly been dwindling.

Each month we count on your contribute. You can support us in the following ways:

  1. Make sure you spread the word about us. Two ways to do that are to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
  2. Subscribe to our daily newsletter. We’ll send the news to your email box, and you don’t have to come to the site unless you want to read columns or see photos.
  3. You can contribute to the health of StrategyPage.
Subscribe   contribute   Close