Prototype Parade

All three companies competing for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle engineering and manufacturing development contract have announced that they have delivered 22 prototypes to the Army and Marine Corps ahead of schedule.

AM General, the current contractor for the humvee, announced today that it has delivered 22 of its Blast Resistant Vehicle-Off Road, or BRV-O, vehicles.

"Achieving this key program milestone is a testament to AM General's more than 50-year history of designing and manufacturing vehicles for the U.S Army and Marine Corps," John Ulrich, AM General's executive vice president and chief operating officer, said in a company statement. "Today's successful delivery reinforces the company's unmatched expertise in managing its supply chain to drive efficiencies in cost and enhanced reliability for our government customers. We have great confidence that BRV-O is the solution to our warfighters’ future light tactical vehicle needs."

Lockheed Martin also announced today that it was delivering its 22 prototypes ahead of schedule. "Our team has produced a highly capable, reliable and affordable JLTV for our customers," Scott Greene, vice president of ground vehicles for Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, said in a company statement. "These vehicles will meet the toughest demands of our soldiers and Marines. They deserve our best, and that’s precisely what we delivered."

Oshkosh Defense announced last week that its prototypes were set to be delivered to the military. "The JLTV will fill a vital capabilities gap in the military's light vehicle fleet and protect our men and women in uniform for decades to come," John Urias, the president of Oshkosh Defense, said in an Aug. 7 company statement. "The Oshkosh JLTV solution we are now submitting for government testing transforms the concept of what a light vehicle can be -- merging key design aspects of high-performance tactical vehicles and highly survivable combat vehicles. The result is a new level of protected mobility in a light platform."

All three companies were awarded $65 million EMD contracts one year ago. The Army ultimately wants to replace 50,000 humvees with JLTVs, while the Marines plan to purchase 5,500.

The EMD prototypes now head into 14 months of government testing, though Army and Marine Corps officials have warned that automatic budget cuts triggered by sequestration could the delay the program by as long as four months.

While JLTV remains the Army's prime tactical wheeled vehicle effort, critics and skeptics continue to eye the program's $30 billion price tag. In June, Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Amos told reporters he would not be willing to fund the JLTV over other vehicle priorities if the automatic budget cuts triggered by sequestration remain in place.