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Acting on behalf of the Polish Ministry of Defence, the Armaments Inspectorate announced that five local and international companies submitted their applications to take part in the technical dialogue procedure. This process precedes all future MoD tenders in Poland. This is the initial stage for the intended eventual delivery of next generation tank destroyers for the Polish Army under the Ottokar-Brzoza programme.

Photo: Michal Jarocki

This programme involves a series of next generation tank-destroyers, armed with anti-tank missiles and advanced sensors. These future tank-destroyers will replace the Soviet-era BRDM-2s still in use. Although equipped with 9P133 Malutka-P effectors, these obsolete land systems no longer meet the requirements of the modern battlefield and do not provide enough protection.

The new dialogue phase is actually a second iteration of a first technical dialogue, under which the Inspectorate sought to determine and better define a number of technical requirements for only a tracked vehicle system. This time the dialogue includes wheeled vehicle platforms. Afterward, the results will constitute the basis for launching the Ottokar-Brzoza programme.

Among the participants of this technical dialogue procedure are: AMZ Kutno, MBDA UK, Lockheed Martin Global, and state-owned PGZ – which acts on behalf a number of its subsidiary companies.  Of the PGZ state-owned subsidiaries Rosomak (formerly Wojskowe Zakłady Mechaniczne), OBRUM, Huta Stalowa Wola, Jelcz, Wojskowe Zaklady Motoryzacyjne, Wojskowe Zaklady Uzbrojenia are included in this number.  Also in this number of dialogue participants is Rheinmetall Defence Polska – a subsidiary of Rheinmetall Landsysteme GmbH

The companies offering wheeled options include AMZ Kutno and Rheinmetall Defence as are the PGZ and its subsidiaries. PGZ appears to be in a strong position with the addition of wheeled vehicles because of their success selling these to the Polish Army, namely: Krab / K9 (tracked) and the Rosomak (wheeled. 8×8 AMV – Patria joint venture.  Tracked or wheeled, there are strong arguments for an indigenous supplier.

However, Lockheed Martin and MBDA-UK are both renown manufactures of combat-proven anti-tank missile systems as well as armoured vehicles.  They are most likely to offer integration of its products for the Ottokar-Brzoza programme’s wheeled and tracked platforms.

Michal Jarocki