Oshkosh Truck awarded $878M deal for tactical vehicles

Oshkosh Truck Corporation announced February 23 that the company has been awarded an $878 million contract by the U.S. Army’s Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM). The contract enables Oshkosh Truck to continue producing the Family of Heavy Tactical Vehicles (FHTV) that is currently in use by the Army.

“The award of this contract ensures the uninterrupted production of the U.S. Army’s heavy vehicle fleet,” said John Stoddart, Oshkosh Truck executive vice president, and president, defense. “Oshkosh’s heavy tactical trucks have proven critical to military operations in theater, and their continued production is important to ensure that readiness remains at a high level across the fleet. We are proud to continue to deliver that capability across our vehicle lines.”

The FHTV contract covers new production of the Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck (HEMTT), Palletized Load System (PLS) vehicle, and PLS trailer. The vehicles and trailers are designed for logistics support roles in the Army and transport everything from fuel and water to ammunition and supplies. Under the contract, Oshkosh will deliver 1,857 new vehicles and 2,599 new trailers.

In addition to new vehicle production, the contract calls for the remanufacture of 1,130 HEMTTs. Under the Recapitalization (RECAP) program, vehicles that have reached the end of their service lives, or have been damaged, are returned to Oshkosh Truck, where they are completely rebuilt and equipped with recent technology upgrades. The vehicles are returned to the Army, some in their original configuration, while others are brought up to the latest configuration, depending on the specific vehicle. All RECAP vehicles are delivered with a new vehicle warranty.

Oshkosh Truck has produced the HEMTT since 1982 and the PLS vehicle and PLS trailer since 1993. There are nearly 25,000 of these trucks and trailers in the U.S. Army inventory today.