BAE Systems' Beowulf recently won the U.S. Army’s competition for its Cold Weather All-Terrain Vehicle (CATV) program and the company received a $278 million contract for production units, spare parts and contractor logistics support.
Beowulf is an unarmored, tracked and highly versatile vehicle for carrying personnel and a variety of payloads in either of its two compartments. Beowulf can traverse snow, ice, rock, sand, mud and swamp conditions, and can operate in steep mountain environments. Its amphibious feature also allows it to swim in flooded areas or coastal waters. This marks the first sale of Beowulf, which is based on its sister BvS10 armored variant in service with several European nations.
As the focus on Arctic Mobility operations grows, we see increasing opportunities in other markets for the BvS10 and Beowulf with an emerging demand to replace legacy BV206s.
Beowulf’s articulated mobility system is key to its effectiveness, providing maneuverability across varying surfaces. Its modular design can be reconfigured for multiple missions, such as logistical support, disaster and humanitarian relief, search and rescue, and other missions as required.
Its windows and cabin make Beowulf suitable to the tasks for the CATV program, including search and rescue, defense support to civilian authorities, and homeland defense. Its modern, commercial design ensures soldiers’ operational effectiveness in executing a wide variety of difficult missions.
Beowulf successfully completed the prototype evaluation phase of the CATV program earlier this year in Alaska. It performed in multiple tasks while remaining fully mission capable. The testing included amphibious operations, navigating terrain with varying levels of complexity, starting and operating in extreme cold weather and user assessment by soldiers.
Beowulf is built by BAE Systems Hägglunds in northern Sweden, adding experience in operating in an arctic environment. The platform includes several key components from U.S. suppliers, such as its engine, transmission, and hydraulic system.
The CATV program will replace the legacy fleet of Small Unit Support Vehicles (SUSVs), also built by BAE Systems Hägglunds, and known internationally as the BV206. The BV206 has been in service globally, including with the U.S. Armed Forces, since the early 1980s.