After the German and Dutch parliaments had given their approval in advance, Germany signed a framework agreement with the German armaments group Rheinmetall for the delivery of up to 3,058 vehicles - in the variants vehicle for passenger, group and material transport as well as ambulance vehicles - of the type Caracal closed. Rheinmetall announced this on July 10, 2023. In 2022, Germany and the Netherlands decided to jointly replace the vehicle fleet of their airborne troops. In this binational project, Germany acts as the leading nation and contractual partner with the industry.
The potential total order volume is 1.9 billion euros. In a first step, 1,508 vehicles – 1,004 for Germany and 504 for the Netherlands – worth around EUR 870 million including VAT were firmly ordered from the framework agreement.
Der Caracal ist das Ergebnis einer Partnerschaft zwischen Rheinmetall, der Mercedes-Benz AG und der Armoured Car Systems GmbH, wie Rheinmetall in seiner Pressemitteilung schreibt. Die Auslieferung der ersten Erprobungsmodelle soll Rheinmetall zufolge bereits im ersten Quartal 2024 erfolgen, der Beginn der Serienlieferung ist für Anfang 2025 geplant.
Die Endmontage der Fahrzeuge soll Rheinmetall zufolge komplett in der Niederlande erfolgen. „Die Endmontage aller deutschen und niederländischen Fahrzeuge wird in unserem Werk im niederländischen Ede und bei VDL Special Vehicles B.V. in Eindhoven, unserem designierten Partnerunternehmen, stattfinden. Mit zwei Montagestandorten können wir die Produktion schnell hochfahren und gleichzeitig einen Beitrag zur nachhaltigen Wertschöpfung in unserem Partnerland Niederlande leisten“, wird Dr. Björn Bernhard, Geschäftsführer der Rheinmetall Landsysteme GmbH, in der Konzernpressemitteilung zitiert.
The Caracal airborne vehicle family is based on the new G-Class chassis of the 464 series. The Caracal is equipped with a six-cylinder 183 kW (249 hp) Euro 3 diesel engine, which can accelerate the vehicle to up to 140 km/h and developed a torque of 600 Nm. With a length of 4.35 m, a width of 1.81 m and a height of 1.85 m, the vehicle is one of the most compact platforms in its class. In conjunction with the 4×4 all-wheel drive, the "Wüstenluchs" has a high degree of off-road mobility, which allows the vehicle to climb inclines of up to 60 percent. The climbing ability is 33 centimeters, the trench crossing ability is 50 centimeters.
According to the company, the basic protection of the Caracal can be modularly increased to Level 1 according to STANAG 4569 (ballistic protection and mine protection). For this purpose, modular protective elements are scaffolded in the doors and under the vehicle floor.
According to a press release from the Bundeswehr procurement authority BAAINBw, the vehicle weight is “optimized at almost five tons for tactical air transport as part of airmobile operations for national and alliance defense and for military evacuations. One vehicle at a time can be transported in a heavy transport helicopter as an internal load to the respective location. Transport as an external load is also possible”.
Waldemar Geiger
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