Joint Light Tactical Vehicle

The Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) is a United States military (specifically U.S. Army, USSOCOM, and U.S. Marine Corps) program to replace the Humvee that is currently in service with a family of more survivable vehicles with greater payload. In particular, the Humvee was not designed to be an armored combat and scout vehicle but has been employed as one, whereas the JLTV will be designed from the ground up for this role. Production is planned for 2015. The U.S. Army planned to buy 60,000 and the U.S. Marine Corps planned for 5,500 vehicles in 2010.

The JLTV program is related to, but not the same as, the Future Tactical Truck Systems (FTTS) program. Lessons learned from the FTTS have been fed into the JLTV requirements. The future family of vehicles will comprise five armored versions, ranging from light armored vehicle, infantry fighting vehicles, command post vehicles, reconnaissance vehicles, and armored utility vehicles.

There will probably also be an armored personnel carrier and a number of other non-armored versions for other purposes such as ambulances, utility vehicles and general purpose mobility. Such a design could also be used in place of an armored personnel carrier or unarmored trucks. However, the JLTV program was in danger of being outpaced by the rapid development of lightweight MRAPs.

It appeared the U.S. Army had reduced its support for the program, since JLTV numbers were omitted from its tactical vehicle strategy published in June 2010. However, the U.S. Army clarified that JLTVs are slated to both replace and complement the Humvee. On 5 January 2012, TACOM announced that the program had entered the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase; EMD contracts were awarded on 23 August 2012. Planned orders are now 50,000 vehicles for the U.S. Army and 5,000 for the Marines.

History


The following companies and partnerships initially bid for the JLTV contract:
 * Boeing, Textron and Millenworks
 * General Dynamics and AM General (as 'General Tactical Vehicles')
 * Force Protection Inc and DRS Technologies (officially rejected on 14 August 2008).
 * BAE Systems and Navistar
 * Northrop Grumman, Oshkosh Truck and Plasan
 * Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems Land & Armaments Global Tactical Systems, Alcoa Defense and JWF Industries.
 * Blackwater and Raytheon

On 29 October 2008, the Pentagon narrowed the field of vendors to the Lockheed Martin, General Tactical Vehicles and BAE Systems/Navistar teams to compete for the final version and contract for the JLTV. Each team were awarded contracts worth between $35.9 million and $45 million to begin the second phase of the program, which could ultimately be worth $20 billion or more. The Northrop Grumman/Oshkosh group contested the awards but, their protest was denied by the Government Accountability Office on 17 February 2009.

Australia signed an agreement in February 2009 to fund nine of the first 30 JLTV prototypes. While a final decision has yet to be made, the Australian Government is now pursuing the Hawkei a domestically developed vehicle through Thales-Australia India became interested in the program in 2009.

As part of a cost-cutting measure, the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform suggested canceling the JLTV. Despite this, the program moved forward. On 24 January 2012, the Humvee Recap program was canceled for funding to be moved to the JLTV.

As of 28 March 2012, there were 6 proposals for the JLTV contract:
 * BAE Systems Valanx
 * General Tactical Vehicles JLTV Eagle
 * Lockheed Martin JLTV
 * Navistar Saratoga
 * Oshkosh L-ATV
 * AM General BRV-O

EMD
On 23 August 2012, the Army and Marine Corps selected the Lockheed Martin JLTV, the Oshkosh Defense L-ATV, and the AM General BRV-O as the winners of the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase of the competition. The three companies were awarded a contract to build 22 prototype vehicles in 27 months to be judged by the services. Losing bidder Navistar filed a protest with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) over the evaluation criteria on 31 August 2012. The company withdrew the protest on 4 September 2012.

The Lockheed JLTV family underwent a design understanding review from December 18–20, 2012. The government design review assessed all elements of the design and confirmed its overall maturity and requirements compliance. Lockheed used a production-enhanced model, which is lighter and cheaper than the earlier technology demonstration model. By then, the Lockheed JLTV design had over 160,000 combined testing miles. Vehicles produced for the EMD phase of the program began deliveries in spring 2013.

On 14 February 2013, Oshkosh unveiled the utility variant of their L-ATV (Light Combat Tactical All-Terrain Vehicle) for the program. The utility variant fulfills the JLTV requirement for a two-seat cargo vehicle, while the L-ATV base variant meets the requirement for a 4-seat multipurpose vehicle. In addition to hauling cargo, it can be outfitted as a shelter carrier to carry standard shelters for communications systems, on-board electronics, and other functions. The utility vehicle has two crewmen and has a 5,100 lb payload.

In June 2013, L-ATV prototypes participated in an event hosted by the U.S. JLTV Joint Program Office in Quantico, Virginia. The vehicles successfully completed the severe off-road track (SORT) without failure. The SORT demonstrated the L-ATV's ability to maneuver steep inclines, turn sharply, and operate in rugged terrain.

On 26 June 2013, Lockheed Martin completed the last of 22 JLTVs produced for the EMD phase. Long-term testing and evaluation was scheduled for 22 August.

On 8 August 2013, Oshkosh delivered its first L-ATV JLTV prototype to the Army for government testing following a successful vehicle inspection by the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA). The four-door multi-purpose variant and two-door utility variant will be provided for evaluations.

On 14 August 2013, both AM General and Lockheed delivered their 22 vehicles to the Army and Marine Corps. The vehicles will participate in a 14-month government evaluation and testing process.

On 27 August 2013, the Army and Marine Corps announced that full-scale testing of JLTV prototypes would begin the following week, with all three vendors having had 66 vehicles delivered. Each company delivered 22 vehicles and six trailers to Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, and Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona. Previous testing had already put the vehicles through more than 400 ballistic and blast tests on armor testing samples; underbody blast testing; and more than 1,000 miles in shakedown testing. Soldiers from the Army Test and Evaluation Command and personnel from the Defense Department's Office of Test and Evaluation will put the vehicles through realistic and rigorous field testing during 14 months of government performance testing. Testing is to be completed by FY 2015, with a production contract to be awarded to a single vendor for nearly 55,000 vehicles, with each vehicle coming off the assembly line not exceeding $250,000. The Army is to begin receiving JLTVs by FY 2018, with all their vehicles planned delivered in the 2030s. On 3 September 2013, full-pace, full-scope JLTV testing began at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Yuma, and Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. The program is on track despite sequestration, but if budget issues are not worked out the schedule could slip. One vendor will be selected by July 2015, and produce 2,000 vehicles for three years of additional testing to fine-tune the assembly line and full-up the system.

Testing of the JLTV was temporarily halted in early October during the two-week 2013 U.S. Government shutdown. Civilian workers were furloughed and test sites were closed within hours. Work restarted immediately when the shutdown ended, though one site remained closed until October 22. The testing schedule would be in danger again in January 2014 if a continuing resolution filed to pass. The Army and Marine Corps have vowed commitment to buying nearly 55,000 JLTVs even in the face of sequestration cuts. This level of support is given while major acquisition programs like the Ground Combat Vehicle are in danger of cuts, which may mean the Army is favoring replacing Humvees more than the M2 Bradley. Army leaders worry that the Marine' priority of the Amphibious Combat Vehicle program may cause them to back out of JLTV procurement. However, the Marines say procurement plans for the two efforts do not overlap and should not conflict with each other. The number of light vehicles that will need to be reduced from cuts is still being determined, but the effects are hoped to be directed to the existing Humvee fleet rather than planned JLTV numbers.

On 1 October 2013, the Defense Department Inspector General launched a year-long audit of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle program. It is one of about a dozen acquisition programs outlined in the IG's FY 2014 "audit plan." The audit is to determine whether Army and Marine officials are overseeing and managing the program effectively before low-rate production begins. A June 2013 report by the Congressional Research Service estimated the program cost at $23 billion, at $400,000 per vehicle. Military leaders contend the unit cost will be $250,000. With fiscal pressures, program efforts are being challenged and focus is being put into oversight.

Design requirements
In 2006, Joint Light Tactical Vehicle design requirements included the following.

The JLTV will have two armor kits: the A-kit and a B-kit (which adds additional protection to the A-kit). It will also include an extra spall liner to minimize the perforation effects within a vehicle when the vehicle takes hostile fire.

The vehicle will be capable of traveling one terrain feature after having endured a single small caliber arms sized perforation to the fuel tank, engine oil reservoir, or coolant system. It will be able to run on two flat tires.

The USMC requires a vehicle that can be transported by their current and planned systems. In April 2009, Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Conway warned that the Marines “will not buy a vehicle that’s 20,000 lb.”

The vehicle's jam-resistant doors will allow the passengers to easily escape after the vehicle has taken damage. It will include an automatic fire extinguishing system,

The JLTV will be equipped with a diagnostic monitoring system that will electronically alert the operator of equipment failures so that they can be fixed. The electronic monitoring will observe the fuel, air intake, engine, cooling, transmission, energy storage, power generation and vehicle speed as well as other systems.

The JLTV will have a trailer capable of carrying the same payload as its prime mover over the same speeds and mission profile. It will have the capacity to carry various kinds of ammunition.

The JLTV is to fill a capability gap in the light vehicle fleet for the 21st century strategy for a vehicle that balances performance, payload, and protection. It is to provide the same level of protection as an M-ATV while being more mobile and transportable, and have better network integration than the Humvee.

Logistical mobility
JLTV is transportable by sea, rail, and air. The JLTV will be transportable on all classes of ocean-going transport ships with minimal dis-assembly. It is required to be rail-transportable on CONUS and NATO country railways. Air transportability will be by fixed-wing aircraft as large as or larger than the C-130 Hercules and sling-loadable with rotary-wing aircraft such as the CH-47/MH-47, and CH-53. The ambulance variant must be air-dropable by C-5 and C-17 fixed-wing aircraft.

Countermeasures and Survivability
The JLTV utilizes signature reduction techniques and materials. The JLTV mounts up to four M7 Light Vehicle Obscuration Smoke Systems. The JLTV is designed with a base structure called an A-structure and B-kit armor that provides higher protection levels. JLTV also incorporate various additional survivability technologies to meet requirements.The JLTV is designed to accept transparent window armor. To prevent casualties due to fires, the fuel tanks are mounted outside the crew compartment and are required to be self-sealing. Fires in the engine compartment are to be detected and extinguished within 10 seconds to minimize vehicle damage. In addition, the driver also has access to a small portable fire extinguisher.

Versions


There are three primary variants of the JLTV, which are categorized by their payload and general mission, and within that category, further variations may exist for specific purposes. All vehicles share some capabilities, while certain configurations may have additional capabilities. All variants are transportable externally by CH-47 and CH-53 helicopters and internally by C-130 aircraft.

Payload Category A
Payload Category A vehicles will fill the role of "Battlespace Awareness" with a payload capacity of 3,500 lb (1,600 kg).

General Purpose Mobility: General Purpose Mobility (JLTV-A-GP) is the only variant in Payload Category A, designed for general purpose utility vehicle for use by the Army and Marine Corps, with a 4 person capacity. Unlike other variants a C-130 is capable of transporting two vehicles at a time.

Payload Category B
Payload Category B vehicles will fill the role of "Force Application" with a payload capacity of 4,000–4,500 lb (1,800–2,000 kg).


 * Infantry Carrier: The Infantry Carrier (JLTV-B-IC) has a 6 person capacity, and is designed to carry a fire-team of army soldiers or Marines. Each service may get a different vehicle, or they may use the same one.
 * Reconnaissance, scout: Six seat configuration for use by the US Army.
 * Reconnaissance, knight: Six seat configuration for use by the US Army.
 * Command and Control on the Move: Four seat command and control (JLTV-B-C2OTM) configuration for use by the US Army.
 * Heavy Guns Carrier: Heavy Guns Carrier for use by the US Army and Marine Corps for convoy escort, military police, and patrol with four seats and a gunner position.
 * Close combat weapons carrier: Four seat close combat weapons carrier for use by the US Army and Marine Corps.
 * Utility vehicle: Two seat utility vehicle for use by the USMC.
 * Ambulance: Ambulance configuration for use by the US Army and Marine Corps. 3 seats and 2 litters.

Payload Category C
Payload Category C vehicles will fill the role of "Focused Logistics" with a payload of 5,100 lb (2,300 kg).


 * Shelter carrier/utility/prime mover: Two seat shelter carrier/utility/prime mover for use by the US Army and Marine Corps.
 * Ambulance: Higher capacity ambulance configuration for use by the US Army and Marine Corps. 3 seats and 4 litters.