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Oshkosh M-ATV

2009 MODERN

Oshkosh M-ATV History

The Oshkosh M-ATV is a 4x4 armored vehicle now in service with the US Army. Years of combat operations have shown that light armored vehicles are extremely vulnerable to enemy improvised explosive devices (IEDs), especially on the front lines in Iraq and Afghanistan. The base HMMWV vehicle was poorly equipped, forcing the program to "arm" the system. However, due to the limited success of this approach, some plans were developed to find special mine-protected vehicles, which most people refer to as "MRAPS".

With crew and system survivability at the forefront of their design, these vehicles are as rugged as military vehicles, while still offering some of the conveniences found in civilian sedans. One such outcome was the mighty Oshkosh M-ATV, which had the protective features of its larger four- and six-wheeled brothers, but with the maneuverability of a smaller vehicle.

Such vehicles would come in handy in intense urban battles.

The Oshkosh M-ATV was selected on June 30, 2009 from a panel of five potential applicants as the winner of the MRAP competition and awarded a $1,060,000,000 contract for approximately 2,244 vehicle. Oshkosh products were selected as lead candidates due to their proven survivability characteristics, including lightning resistance, off-road capability, affordability of production and maintenance, and Oshkosh's modern and robust manufacturing facilities. The first few M-ATV vehicles made their debut in Afghanistan sometime in October 2009.

The M-ATV is expected to adopt the common utility shell of the well-known HMMWV (Hummere) family of armored vehicles.

From the outside, the M-ATV is designed throughout. The M-ATV is mostly deployed in a solid desert primer and doesn't apologize for its lack of aesthetics. She sits on four large rubber hoops at the very end of the design. This leaves 16 inches of clearance under her chassis. The engine is front-mounted, and the air grille divides into three stylish entry points along the front fascia.

The hood above the engine bay bends to a high-angle front bulletproof windshield. The driver usually sits in the front left of the cab. There are four armored hatches with smaller bulletproof windows. A pair of mirrors hang from a wire frame in front of each front door system. The front door employs double hinges at its front edge and opens conventionally, while the rear door unit employs double hinges at its rear edge and does not conventionally open rearward.

The cab features flat sides and a flat roof. The power tower is located on the roof. The spare tire is mounted along the plane of the rear compartment.

The base weight of the vehicle is approximately 25,000 lbs and the total weight is 32,500 lbs. The armor is made of Plasan composites (Plasan is an Israeli vehicle manufacturer with experience building military-grade armored vehicles). It can accommodate up to five people inside, including the rooftop gunner.

Power is provided by a Caterpillar C7 7.2-liter inline-6 ??turbodiesel making up to 370 horsepower. The engine is mated to an Allison 3500SP Series 6-speed automatic transmission with "manual" shifting, a system that shares some of the inherent elements of manual transmission shifting.

The suspension system is an independent 4x4 TAK-4 system that accommodates the axles to two large, heavy-duty coil springs. Anti-lock braking and traction control are provided for the driver, while the entire crew can enjoy the comfort of the cabin air conditioning and heating system.

They have a payload carrying capacity of about 4,000 pounds. Performance figures suggest a top speed of 65 mph and a range of about 320 miles under ideal road and road conditions.

The M-ATV is mounted on an MTVR (Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement) chassis, a 7-ton six-wheel drive all-terrain system used by USN and USMC. The range of hull armor is similar to that of the US Army's SOCOM/USMC JLTV (Joint Light Tactical Vehicle) system. Like other systems in this category, the M-ATV has a V-shaped hull to improve crew survivability against IED or mine threats. The motor is designed to continue working after a direct hit from pistols up to 7.62mm caliber. Thanks to the integrated Central Tire Pressure System (CTI) with two channels and four terrain settings, the tires are designed to "deflate" about 30 miles after damage.

M-ATVs can lose both tire systems this way and still operate.

Like other vehicles in the growing military class, the M-ATV uses a powerful weapon that can adapt to a growing mission base as needed. Her roof turret can be fitted with a variety of weapon systems in the U.S. Army's inventory. The beauty of the M-ATV design is that the turret mounted gun can be fired from the turret itself or from the crew compartment to protect the gunner.

The M-ATV's weapon system includes a 7.62mm M240 general purpose machine gun, a 40mm Mk 19 automatic grenade launcher and a BGM-71 TOW wire-guided anti-tank missile system. This impressive display of weapons means the vehicle can engage infantry, structures, light armoured vehicles and enemy tanks with equal lethality.

Production is handled by the Oshkosh Truck Company of Oshkosh, Wisconsin. In fiscal 2010, the cost per unit of product was $470,000 to U.S. taxpayers. Currently, the U.S. Army has 8,079 prototypes on order. Delivery of the first vehicles should be completed sometime in March 2010.