General Dynamics details ammunition orders
General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems will supply a variety of ammunition products and a munition system to the US military under a range of new contracts, the details of which were released on 1 October. The contracts have a total value in excess of $113 million.
The company was awarded an engineering and manufacturing development (EMD) contract for the Mission Payload Module - Non-Lethal Weapon System (MPM-NLWS) being developed for the US Marine Corps.
The system, to be mounted on marine corps vehicles, will allow operators to selectively vary the intensity of MPM-NLWS munitions' effects to match operational requirements. It is being developed to provide counter-personnel and graduated-response options for scenarios involving crowd control, access or area denial, convoy operations or direct-threat engagement. The company’s $26.5 million EMD contract will be complete by May 2016.
The US Army awarded the company a $31 million IDIQ contract for 40mm L/60 HEI cartridges via the Canadian Commercial Corporation. The L/60 HEI cartridge is fired from the 40mm M2A1 cannon for air-to-surface engagements by the US Air Force's AC-130 gunship aircraft. Work under this contract will be performed by the company's Canadian operations and is expected to be completed by September 2015.
Additionally, General Dynamics will supply 20mm and 30mm tactical and training ammunition for use on a range of navy, army, and air force platforms. This work will be conducted under a number of different production contracts worth a combined $55 million, and will be completed by December 2015.
Tim Bagniefski, vice president marketing and business development, General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems, said: ‘These contract awards demonstrate our commitment to meeting the evolving needs of US warfighters with responsive and affordable munition solutions. Both the MPM-NLWS and the 40mm L/60 ammunition awards represent long-term opportunities to provide new products to domestic and international customers.’
More from Land Warfare
-
![Estonian Army receives first 50 of 230 light armoured vehicles]()
Estonian Army receives first 50 of 230 light armoured vehicles
The armoured vehicles are fitted with 12.7mm heavy machine guns and came off the production line with specific Estonian requirements. Only the communications subsystems and some other minor equipment were added to vehicles in Estonia.
-
![Thales to supply 500 of its new Vehicle Mounted SquadNet Radios to a NATO country]()
Thales to supply 500 of its new Vehicle Mounted SquadNet Radios to a NATO country
The newly disclosed Thales UK Vehicle Mounted SquadNet Radio (VMSR) offers full interoperability with the soldier radio variant to provide secure and reliable voice connection.
-
![Modern militaries crawl towards electrification of the battlefield]()
Modern militaries crawl towards electrification of the battlefield
Full electrification of their land and air vehicles may be beyond modern militaries for now. But how close are they to the tipping point of the widespread use of electric vehicles?
-
![Pearson Engineering to supply mine ploughs and dozer blades for Polish Abrams tanks]()
Pearson Engineering to supply mine ploughs and dozer blades for Polish Abrams tanks
The contract follows news released in 2023 that a first customer had taken into service Pearson Engineering’s new Slice system enabling the interoperability of Front-End Equipment (FEE) between main battle tanks and dedicated engineering vehicles.
-
![Aselsan successfully tests Gökberk system against FPV drones]()
Aselsan successfully tests Gökberk system against FPV drones
The system had been previously proven to work against rotary and fixed-wing kamikaze drones, with Aselsan now working on new capabilities for Gökberk to counter UAV swarms.
