A New Amphibious 6×6 Armored Vehicle to Replace the BRDM-2 in Polish Army Service

[Major Shaitan Singh]

Addressing the Light Armored Recce (LOTR) requirement, the new vehicle will replace the BRDM-2 currently in Polish Army service.
Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles GmbH (RMMV) is teaming with the Polish defence contractor Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa SA (PGZ) through its subsidiary Obrum sp. z o.o. to develop a new wheeled vehicle designed to replace hundreds of Russian made BRDM-2 armored vehicles currently in service with the Polish military.

Currently in the early design phase, the new amphibious 6×6 wheeled armoured vehicle will be tailored to address the Polish Army requirement for light armoured reconnaissance vehicle, as defined by the LOTR procurement programme.

Fully amphibious, the LOTR will feature a high level of protection and an attractive payload-to-total weight ratio. With a Gross Vehicle Weight of up to 20 tonnes, the new vehicle will have a carrying capacity of 3.5 tonnes, opening up a wide variety of options during reconnaissance missions and other military operations. Design and development of the LOTR will take special account of experience gained in current asymmetric conflicts, the first vehicle of its kind to do so. It is slated to replace the Soviet-era BRDM-2 still in service with the Polish Army.

The team is positioning the vehicle to meet the future needs of Poland and other nations, for a combat vehicle replacing the obsolete Russian made BRDM-2 which is still widely used with many world armies. Poland is the largest BRDM-2 operator in Eastern Europe, having a fleet of some 460 vehicles of different types; many operational vehicles are now re-engined with Iveco diesel engines, some are also up-armored. RMMV and Obrum plan to market the new vehicle and its derivatives internationally, and are set to establish a joint venture for this purpose.

“We see this development contract as an important first step in a highly promising cross-border strategic alliance in the field of military wheeled vehicles”, Pietro Borgo, managing director of RMMV and member of the executive board of Rheinmetall Defence, declared. He added that the new vehicle offers the perfect technological base for cooperating with partners around the world. “We also see excellent opportunities for marketing the LOTR outside of Europe”, Borgo noted.

The Polish holding company PGZ has a stake in several of the country’s defence contractors, including a majority interest in Obrum, a major supplier of the Polish armed forces. “Signing this contract with RMMV makes us an equal partner of a globally leading defence technology enterprise.”PGZ Chairman Wojciech Dabrowski said, “Propelled by the success of the Rosomak armoured transport vehicle, we launched this ambitious project, which will result in a new wheeled armoured vehicle.”

In 2013 Rheinmetall was awarded a €36 million contract to provide the Bundeswehr new 6×6 Fuchs/Fox 1A8 armored transport vehicles – a new version of the Fuchs fitted with higher level of protection. Photo: