Chile opens bidding for new wheeled armored vehicles

SANTIAGO, Chile — The Chilean Army is calling for bids as part of its effort to acquire 40 new eight-wheel drive, all-terrain armored infantry transport vehicles.

The new platforms are to replace a fleet of 160 six-wheel drive Mowag Piranha armored vehicles , built locally under license by Cardoen Industries in the 1980s and assigned to infantry units in central Chile.

Several companies, including the United States’ General Dynamics Land Systems, Italy’s IVECO, Finland’s Patria, and Turkey’s Otokar and BMC, have expressed interest in the potential contract, worth $111.8 million.

Chile plans to award and finalize a contract within the first trimester of 2024.

The potential business derived from winning this contract goes beyond its initial financial worth, as the country is seeking more than 200 armored vehicles in the long term, according to military sources in Santiago, who spoke to Defense News on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the press.

The government had considered buying secondhand vehicles or local production under license, but it ultimately dropped that approach. Now, the requirements are for brand new vehicles with a maximum weight of 38 tons, with all equipment, including weapons and communications systems, fitted to the platform.

That maximum weight requirement — more than triple the 11-ton weight of the Piranha vehicles — reflects Chile’s expectation the new vehicle offer far higher levels of survivability and protection to the combat troops onboard.

The country also requires the vehicle meet the NATO STANAG 4569′s level 3 standard. That means the vehicle’s body must resist grenade and mine blasts with up to 8 kilograms of explosive, and resist impacts of 7.62mm х 51 armor-piercing bullets with a tungsten carbide core at a maximum distance of 30 meters with a velocity of 930 meters per second.

Chile also requires that same standard’s level 3A, which means the vehicle can survive a mine or improved explosive device blowing up under any wheel. In addition, the platform must meet level 3B specifications to survive the same type of explosion under the center of the vehicle’s hull.

The vehicle should use a Euro III diesel engine with a power of at least 550 horsepower and carry enough fuel to travel 500 kilometers (311 miles). It should also fit a driver, a radio operator, a commander and eight infantry riflemen.

The vehicles included in the anticipated order, besides four command post vehicles, should include a remote controlled weapons station featuring a M2 .50-caliber machine gun and a Mk 19 automatic grenade launcher. All vehicles are to be fitted with optional 7.62mm machine guns and two quadruple smoke grenade launchers.

Chile began considering a replacement for its Piranha vehicles in the early 2010s, but the transfer of half the fleet to the uniformed national police since 2018 added an urgency.

The police force, known as Carabineros, deployed their Piranha vehicles in a so-called macro-zone south in southern Chile, where Indigenous people of the Mapuche group are rebelling against the Chilean government’s use of land. The Army has also deployed its Piranha vehicles to the southern region, where special forces and infantry troops have supported the police there since 2020.

This first batch of new armored vehicles are to be assigned to the 1st Infantry Regiment “Buin,” based in Santiago. The regiment provides one mechanized infantry battalion to the Southern Cross, a joint Chilean-Argentine formation made available for U.N. peacekeeping and humanitarian operations.

But the future fleet’s headquarters is to be on Peldehue military camp, a large training ground north of Santiago. From there, the vehicles will be available for training infantry troops from other Chilean Army units.

José Higuera is a Latin America correspondent for Defense News.

智利圣地亚哥——智利陆军正在公开招标，计划采购 40 辆新型八轮驱动全地形装甲步兵运输车。

这些新平台将取代 160 辆六轮驱动的 Mowag Piranha 装甲车，这些装甲车是 20 世纪 80 年代由 Cardoen Industries 公司在当地获得许可后制造的，并分配给智利中部的步兵部队。

包括美国通用动力陆地系统公司、意大利依维柯公司、芬兰帕特里亚公司以及土耳其奥托卡公司和BMC公司在内的多家公司都对这份价值1.118亿美元的潜在合同表示了兴趣。

智利计划在 2024 年第一季度内授予并最终确定合同。

据圣地亚哥的军方消息人士透露，赢得这份合同带来的潜在商机远不止其最初的经济价值，因为该国长期来看需要采购 200 多辆装甲车。这些消息人士在接受《防务新闻》采访时表示，他们没有被授权接受媒体采访，因此要求匿名。

政府曾考虑购买二手车辆或获得许可进行本地生产，但最终放弃了这一方案。现在，政府要求采购全新车辆，最大重量为38吨，所有设备，包括武器和通信系统，都必须安装在平台上。

最大重量要求——是 Piranha 车辆 11 吨重量的三倍多——反映了智利对新型车辆的期望，即为车上作战部队提供更高的生存能力和保护水平。

该国还要求该车辆符合北约STANAG 4569 3级标准。这意味着该车辆的车身必须能够抵御装有高达8公斤炸药的手榴弹和地雷的爆炸，并且能够抵御7.62毫米×51毫米、碳化钨弹芯、最大射程30米、速度930米/秒的穿甲弹的冲击。

智利也要求达到该标准的3A级，这意味着车辆能够承受地雷或改良型爆炸装置在任何车轮下方爆炸的冲击。此外，该平台还必须满足3B级规范，才能承受同类型爆炸发生在车体中心下方的冲击。

该车辆应使用符合欧III排放标准的柴油发动机，功率至少为550马力，并携带足够行驶500公里（311英里）的燃料。车内还应配备一名驾驶员、一名无线电操作员、一名指挥官和八名步兵。

预计订单中的车辆，除四辆指挥车外，还应包括一座配备M2型.50口径机枪和Mk 19型自动榴弹发射器的遥控武器站。所有车辆均可选装7.62毫米机枪和两具四联装烟雾弹发射器。

智利在 2010 年代初就开始考虑更换其 Piranha 车辆，但自 2018 年以来，一半的 Piranha 车辆被移交给国家警察，这使得更换车辆变得更加紧迫。

智利宪兵队（Carabineros）在智利南部一个被称为“宏观区域”的地方部署了“食人鱼”（Piranha）装甲车。该地区居住着马普切族原住民，他们正在反抗智利政府对土地的使用。自2020年以来，智利陆军也已向该南部地区部署了“食人鱼”装甲车，特种部队和步兵部队一直在该地区为警方提供支持。

首批新型装甲车辆将配属给驻扎在圣地亚哥的第一步兵团“布因”。该团向“南方十字星”部队提供一个机械化步兵营。“南方十字星”是智利和阿根廷联合组建的部队，专门用于联合国维和及人道主义行动。

但未来这支车队的总部将设在佩尔德韦军事营地，这是一个位于圣地亚哥北部的大型训练场。届时，其他智利陆军部队的步兵部队将可以使用这些车辆进行训练。

何塞·伊格拉是《防务新闻》拉丁美洲记者。