Indra Land Vehicles and Iveco Defence Vehicles (IDV), a Leonardo company, have signed a strategic agreement to support delivery of a new amphibious combat vehicle for the Spanish Marine Infantry.
The agreement forms part of Spain’s Special Modernisation Programme (PEM) and will see IDV supply 34 SUPERAV 8×8 platforms, which will be integrated by Indra into the Marine Infantry Amphibious Combat Vehicle (VACIM). The programme is intended to enhance Spain’s amphibious capabilities and support operations in coastal environments.
Indra will be responsible for delivering four variants of the vehicle to the Spanish Ministry of Defence: troop transport, command and control, recovery, and ambulance. Integration work will be carried out at Indra’s facilities in Spain, including the installation of mission systems, functional adaptation, validation, and final delivery.
The SUPERAV platform is already in service with other operators. “The SUPERAV 8×8 has already been selected by the United States Marine Corps and by the Italian Armed Forces. In the USA IDV’s amphibious platform serves as base of the Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV), supplied in partnership with BAE Systems; while in Italy the SUPERAV, equipped with Leonardo’s weapon systems, is the base of the Veicolo Blindato Anfibio (VBA),” said Nazario Bianchini, Head of Sales at IDV.
He added that, “Thanks to the contract signed with Indra, IDV will deliver the state-of-the-art amphibious armoured platform, enabling Spain to renew and expand its National Defence vehicle fleet and effectively address current and future operational challenges.”
For Indra, the programme expands its role as a domestic systems integrator in the land domain, particularly in amphibious vehicle capability. The company stated the agreement would strengthen its industrial base and broaden its portfolio of combat platform solutions.
Frank Torres, CPO and Managing Director of Indra Land Vehicles, said: “The collaboration with IDV will constitute a decisive step within the project to equip the Spanish Marine Infantry with the capabilities required by today’s demanding scenarios, and the beginning of a stable, long-term industrial relationship.”
He continued: “The contract, together with Indra’s delivery of new specialized variants, will enhance the amphibious capabilities of our Armed Forces and enable Indra to continue establishing a robust, innovative, and forward-thinking industrial base.”
The Spanish what? I’m tickled by the very notion of Spain employing anything offensive other than the occasional encroachment on Gibraltar’s waters.
Against an ignorant question, a strong answer: Spain, on the contrary to what a lot of people believe, has a strong army and marine tradition and forces. We have had amphibious capabilities for years and are really good at it, from both dedicated ships and LHD platforms. We’ve suffered from underfunding for a lot of years, something hopefully to change in the near future, but my advice is to not underestimate the capabilities of an ally. In the end, we had a state of the art ship ready the same week in Cyprus while it took you 3 weeks to get there. Currently, all 11 of our frigates and destroyers are active and in fact, at sea, something the RN can’t say (less than half of it), which reflects that, sadly and with respect, the things are not that good there and not that bad here. Have a great day.