US to give African countries French-made APCs from Volvo

[kscarbel2]

IHS Jane’s 360 / October 7, 2015

The US military's Africa Command (AFRICOM) has ordered French “Bastion” armored personnel carriers (APCs) from Volvo Group subsidiary ACMAT Defense for several African countries via Volvo Group’s Mack Defense unit.

The USD25 million contract was announced on 25 September when the US Department of Defense said that Mack Defense will supply 62 APCs (armored personnel carrier) to Cameroon, Ethiopia, Somalia, Tunisia, and Uganda on behalf of AFRICOM, but did not identify the vehicles or say how many each country will receive.

Mack Defense told IHS Jane's on 6 October that all the vehicles are Bastion APCs: a type made by the French company ACMAT, which is owned by Renault Trucks Defense.

Mack Defense and Renault Trucks Defense are part of the Volvo group.

The original Bastion APC consists of the chassis from ACMAT's VLRA range fitted with an armoured body that offers protection up to the STANAG 4569 standard. It is now also available with a new high-mobility chassis with independent suspension. It has a gross vehicle weight of 12 tonnes and can carry up to 10 people, including the driver.

Mack Defense said 32 Bastion APCs will be delivered to Somalia next year, 17 for the Ugandan contingent of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and another 13 for AMISOM's Somali contingent. (The Somali National Army operates alongside AMISOM, but is not formally part of the force.)

Four will be delivered to Tunisia, 15 to Cameroon, and 12 to Ethiopia before the end of October 2016, according to Mack Defense. All the countries will also receive at least one spares kit.

Pictures and further information - http://www.acmat.eu/Defense/BASTION/BASTION-APC

[kscarbel2]

If our government wants to hand out free APCs to foreign countries, the least it can do is spend that $25 million worth of U.S. tax dollars in America, by acquiring these vehicles from U.S. companies like Oshkosh, Navistar and others.

Why isn't the government instead "giving" these countries 62 of the MANY leftover late model MRAPS that they don't know what to do with and can't give away fast enough? Nothing like efficient use of American tax dollars.

[41chevy]

Like Obama's Jobs tour a few years ago? Telling us to buy and support American Companies so they can employ more Americans, while using a Canadian made bus as oppose to one made here. White Houses reasoning to the purchase was" the Canadian bus was less costly than the U.S. made Counterpart"

AS for giving our later model vehicles to them . . .Barry and Kerry promised them to ISIS so they can transport all the weapons and humanitarian aid we give them via the U.N..