Textron Marine and Land Systems used AUSA Annual as the venue to unveil their Commando family of vehicles.
The Commando family is based on the company's Armored Security Vehicle (ASV), which is in service with the US Army.
Speaking to Shephard, Richard Valenti, VP business development and capture manager, said that ASV was originally a 'one trick pony' but the company had realised that it could develop the base vehicle to give 'MRAP levels of protection' while maintaining high levels of mobility.
Beyond the baseline Commando Advanced the company can now offer two further variants of the vehicle - the Commando Select which offers MRAP Level 1 blast protection and the Commando Elite which MRAP 2X blast protection. The former has already has been bought by the US to equip Iraqi forces while the latter is the basis for the Canadian Tactical Armoured Patrol Vehicle programme.
As well as the 600 Commando Select's being delivered to Iraq the company is also contracted to deliver 500 Commando Elite's to Canada for the TAPV programme with an option for a further 100 vehicles. As well as adding further levels of protection the Elite variant also includes a digital backbone that allows the 'plug and play' of a variety of sensors and other systems.
In the summer Textron participated with the Commando Elite in summer trials in the United Arab Emirates. The country is considering the vehicle as a reconnaissance platform for the Presidential Guard and Valenti said that there could be further requirements in the country.
Looking to the future the company wants to continue improving the Commando offering. Among the improvements that Textron is looking at are further lethality options. However, Valenti said that the company would remain focused on providing the right vehicles at the right cost.
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