On Monday 3 June 2024, Italy announced its intention to replace its fleet of Dardo infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) with a new tracked armored vehicle in a program estimated to cost 5 billion euros. Italian companies Leonardo and Iveco Defence Vehicles (united in the CIO joint venture) are tasked with finding European partners who can offer expertise and platforms to accelerate the program, without having to start from scratch.
According to information gathered by the US magazine Defense News, the plan is to have a finalised design by the end of this year. The specific objective of this programme, known as A2CS, is to manufacture 1,050 tracked armoured vehicles to replace the Dardo fleet, introduced at the end of the 20th century to replace the old M113s of American origin.
This is the largest land-based military programme currently underway in Europe and, given the sought-after involvement of companies from other European countries, it could help to strengthen the European defence sector, notes the North American publication. Potential candidates for involvement include KNDS (formed by the merger of Germany’s KMW and France’s Nexter), which has the Boxer vehicle as the basis for the new design; Germany’s Rheinmetall, manufacturer of the Lynx; and BAE Systems’ Swedish subsidiary, BAE Systems Hägglunds, producer of the CV90.
The planned timetable is for the new Italian vehicles to be delivered between 2029 and 2041, with around 20 prototypes of a platform to be produced between 2027 and 2028, from which 16 different configurations should be acquired.