Minister J. Olekas: “The Contract for 88 IFVs Is the Signal That Lithuania Takes Care of Its Security”
(Source: Lithuania Ministry of Defence; issued Aug 22, 2016)
Less than 8 months since selecting the Boxer in December 2015, Lithuania has signed a €400 million contract to buy 88 of the vehicles, becoming the third NATO member to buy the vehicle, which will be delivered from 2017. (Artec photo)
The contract was endorsed by the Lithuanian Minister of National Defence Juozas Olekas, managing directors of ARTEC GmbH, the Boxer IFV manufacturer, Stefan Lischka and Christoph Heuman, and OCCAR director Tim Rowntree.
By the contract, combat vehicles manufactured by a German-Dutch consortium with Israeli-made turrets and armed with 30 mm cannons and “Spike LR” antitank missiles are bought for the average price of EUR 4.38 m per one.
Lithuania and the IFV manufacturer agreed that the vehicles will be renamed from “Boxer” to IFV “Vilkas” IFVs to retain the ties with the history of Lithuania and the traditions of the Lithuanian Armed Forces.
The first IFVs “Vilkas” are expected to be delivered in late 2017, and the rest would arrive by 2021.
“The signature today crowns the efforts of the Ministry of National Defence to provide the Lithuanian Armed Forces with quality and value for money product. It is a long-term investment into national defence and also a signal that Lithuania takes its security and investments into it seriously,” Minister of National Defence Juozas Olekas said.
“Today’s contract signature is a key milestone in the delivery of a modern and highly effective armoured vehicle capability to Lithuania. Within less than eight months, our strong joint team from Lithuania, Germany, The Netherlands, the BOXER industry and OCCAR have developed this highly capable and value for money package, which will provide Lithuania with world class capability and flexibility for decades to come. I and my team are honoured to play our role in delivering this vital programme for the defence and security of Lithuania and I am delighted to welcome Lithuania to the OCCAR community,” OCCAR director Tim Rowntree said.
The new IFVs will be distributed to the Lithuanian Grand Duke Algirdas Mechanised and the Grand Duchess Birutė Uhlan Battalions of the Mechanised Infantry Brigade Iron Wolf.
“The IFVs will provide greater mobility, force protection and firepower for the battalions and the entire Brigade. In operational terms, we will not only have the ability to take troops to the battlefield safely, but also to be effective on the battlefield as we destroy armoured and unarmoured targets at the distance of up to 4 km. In technical term, our units will be better at integration and operation side by side with our allies,” – Chief of Defence Lieutenant General Jonas Vytautas Žukas said.
Prior to signing the IFV procurement contract the memorandum of understanding between Ministry of National Defence of Lithuania, the Ministry of Defence of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the Federal Ministry of Defence of the Federal Republic of Germany was signed.
Another contract signed by representatives of OCCAR and Lithuania defined the scope, guidelines and authority of cooperation of Lithuania and OCCAR.
Lithuania joined the OCCAR Boxer Programme and authorised OCCAR to supervise execution of the procurement project and conduct qualitative expertise of the “Vilkas” IFVs vehicles bought. As part of the Boxer Programme, Lithuania will benefit from all the advantages offered: smaller development and maintenance costs, sharing technologies, and better interoperability with other participants of the programme.
The Boxer IFVs manufactured by ARTEC, a joint venture of German Krauss-MaffeiWegmann and Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles, and Dutch Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles Nederland, were selected for the needs of the Lithuanian Armed Forces as the best value for money choice and as fulfilling additional Lithuanian Armed Forces’ requirements for maximum personnel protection and delivery time.
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Lithuania Joins BOXER Programme
(Source: OCCAR; issued Aug. 22, 2016)
The contract was signed in Vilnius by the Lithuanian Minister of National Defence, Dr. Juozas Olekas, OCCAR Director Tim Rowntree and the ARTEC Chief Executive Officers Stefan Lischka and Christoph Heumann. The ceremony was witnessed by German, Netherlands and Lithuanian officials and by representatives from Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles, the shareholders of ARTEC GmbH.
The contract includes the delivery of 88 BOXER in four Infantry Fighting Vehicle versions developed for Lithuania which will be called “Vilkas” within the Lithuanian Armed Forces. The Infantry Fighting Vehicles will be equipped with a remote controlled turret with a 30 mm cannon and an anti-tank missile. First Lithuanian BOXER vehicles will be delivered by the end of 2017. The BOXER vehicle will provide the Lithuanian Army on short term with a state of the art, mechanised infantry capability.
The BOXER multi-role armoured vehicle was developed by ARTEC for Germany and the Netherlands which had tasked OCCAR to execute the BOXER Programme as their joint management organisation. The BOXER vehicle comprises a modular design with a common drive module and exchangeable mission- and nation-specific mission modules.
The BOXER entered into service in 2009 and has proven its high performance, combat readiness and reliability during its successful deployment to Afghanistan. The Lithuanian order increases the total number of BOXER vehicles to be produced to nearly 700.
Prior to the contract award, Lithuania was formally integrated as a Participating State into the OCCAR BOXER Programme with an amendment to the OCCAR BOXER Programme Decision.
The contract and the Lithuanian entry into the BOXER Programme were prepared by Lithuania, Germany, the Netherlands, OCCAR and ARTEC in less than eight months between January and August 2016!
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Third NATO User Nation: Lithuania Buys Boxer In Deal Worth Almost €400 Million
The order was placed on 22 August 2016 in Vilnius via OCCAR, the Organization for Joint Armament Cooperation, which in turn contracted with ARTEC GmbH – a joint venture of Rheinmetall and KMW – to supply the Boxers. These will be configured as infantry fighting vehicles armed with a turret-mounted 30mm automatic cannon.
Thanks to its advanced composite armour, the Boxer is one of the world's best-protected 8x8 protected vehicles. Moreover, it assures high mobility both on and off road, even in the toughest terrain. Powered by a 530 kW (720 HP) turbo-charged diesel engine, the Boxer has a top speed of over 100 km/h with a combat weight of 36.5 tonnes. The vehicle's modular concept – consisting of driver cab and mission modules – results in outstanding flexibility and versatility.
The Bundeswehr already has 405 of these vehicles in its inventory, while the Dutch armed forces own a further 200. Operational experience gained in Afghanistan confirms the Boxer's significant contribution to military sustainment and mobility. Among other factors, positive tactical outcomes and the compelling results of Lithuanian field trials strongly influenced the Baltic nation's decision to choose the Boxer.
The Lithuanian military will call the vehicle the Vilkas, which means 'wolf'.
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Lithuania Boosts Army with 88 Boxer Vehicles
(Source: Krauss Maffei Wegmann; issued Aug 22, 2016)
ARTEC, a joint venture between Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) and Rheinmetall, will deliver the vehicles with medium-calibre weaponry in a remote-controlled turret. Consequently, the BOXER family is now extended by the Infantry Fighting Vehicle variant. Production will be carried out by ARTEC's two parent companies. 53 vehicles will be manufactured by KMW and 35 by Rheinmetall.
The German Armed Forces already have more than 400 BOXER vehicles in different variants in use or in the procurement process, and the Dutch Armed Forces have 200. Together with the Lithuanian vehicles, just short of 700 vehicles therefore have been contracted by three user nations.
Globally, the BOXER is one of the best-protected 8x8 wheeled vehicles. It offers its crews maximum protection from mines, IEDs and direct fire, and is characterized by high mobility, both on roads and in the roughest terrain.
The concept of drive and mission modules provides high flexibility and a diversity of variants covering an unsurpassed spectrum of capabilities.
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