General Dynamics to deliver prototype ARV to Marine Corps

General Dynamics Land Systems will deliver its prototype Advanced Reconnaissance Vehicle to the Marine Corps for evaluation on Friday, according to a company announcement.

The vehicle is designed to serve as a "battlefield quarterback," connecting to onboard and offboard sensors and unmanned aerial vehicles.

Delivery will mark the start of formal government evaluation of the vehicle. The prototype will be measured against Textron Systems’ Cottonmouth ARV prototype, which was delivered to the Marine Corps earlier this month.

The Marine Corps selected both General Dynamics and Textron Systems to build ARV prototypes in July 2021.

In addition to the vehicle, General Dynamics delivered a blast hull for survivability testing and a system integration lab, the release states.

The Marine Corps initially viewed the ARV as a replacement for its Light Armored Vehicle, but service Commandant Gen. David Berger’s force design priorities invalidated this need and reshaped the ARV into a more versatile mobile reconnaissance platform to serve as the “quarterback” of manned and unmanned teams.

“The ARV is highly mobile on land and in the water and will allow Marines to sense and communicate like never before. Our design also ensures growth margins and modular open architecture to rapidly incorporate new technology as it develops,” said Phil Skuta, General Dynamics Land Systems director of strategy and business development for Marine Corps and Navy programs, in a statement included in the release.