WFEL DSBs for the Philippines

The Armed Forces of the Philippines will receive Dry Support Bridges (DSBs) to provide temporary infrastructure for disaster relief operations and military scenarios. British manufacturer of military bridges WFEL, a subsidiary of Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, has announced that it will deliver the bridges from 2023, loaded on 10 x 10 carrier vehicles 45M from Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles. The bridge modules can be transported inside a standard ISO container or on flat beds. The contract includes an integrated logistical package with spare parts and support from WFEL’s technical teams.

The DSB systems can be set up by eight soldiers within 90 minutes in a free-standing forward position and can bridge terrain gaps of up to 46 m. In addition to a 4.3 m wide roadway, pedestrian walkways can be added. The load capacity is specified as Military Load Class (MLC) 80 for tracked vehicles and MLC 96 for wheeled vehicles. MLC 120 (for wheeled vehicles) is approved as an exceptional load.

The DSB was developed according to the specifications of the US Army and has been in use since 2003. The bridge system is also used in Turkey, Australia and Switzerland, among other countries. The British MoD is considering the system as a replacement for the BR90 bridge systems.

Gerhard Heiming