American Rheinmetall Vehicles and GM Defense have successfully delivered three prototype trucks for the first phase of the US Army’s Common Tactical Truck (CTT) programme, Rheinmetall announced on 7 February 2024.
The aim of the multi-phased programme is to replace the army’s family of heavy tactical trucks, involving production of up to 40,000 trucks valued at up to USD 14 billion (EUR 13 billion).
American Rheinmetall Vehicles and GM Defense formed a strategic collaboration in 2022 to compete in the programme. The team’s offering, the HX3 CTT, is the latest generation of trucks in Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles’ highly successful, combat-proven HX family of trucks, which are in service with a number of NATO and allied nations. The HX family of trucks derives from MAN Truck and Bus commercial truck offerings, bringing a high degree of commerciality to the fleet, which is a priority for the army in the CTT programme.
The drive-by-wire HX3 CTT, which features an advanced, interchangeable protected cab design, has enhanced on- and off-road mobility, integrated survivability, and an open digital architecture that supports advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and is enabled for autonomous vehicle operation.
Combined with this open architecture, the commercial backbone of the HX3 CTT will support persistent modernisation and allow for rapid increases in capability as technologies mature, to include robotic and autonomous operations.
The HX family also has a global footprint of 20 user nations, providing a basis for optimised lifecycle costs and service support to the US Army around the globe.
“We are committed partners to the army, bringing tremendous operational capability coupled with advanced safety features, ensuring our soldiers can achieve their mission safely and effectively,” Matthew Warnick, managing director of American Rheinmetall Vehicles, was quoted as saying in a company press release. “Together our team delivers a transformational truck that leverages the commercial strengths of our partners, Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles and General Motors, and the commonality of the HX3 CTT design.”
“Today marks a significant milestone that brings this partnership one step closer to delivering the army’s next generation Common Tactical Truck,” added Steve duMont, president of GM Defense. “I’m proud to celebrate along with our American Rheinmetall Vehicles teammates and look forward to leveraging the deep expertise that both of our companies bring to this competition to deliver a modern, American-made truck that will best support our warfighters today and into the future.”
