Hawkei Explained

Hawkei
Origin:Australia
Type:Multirole armoured car
Is Vehicle:yes
Designer:Thales Australia
Boeing Australia
Plasan
Design Date:2010
Manufacturer:Thales Australia
Production Date:2016—present
Weight:70000NaN0 (kerb),
100000NaN0 (GVM)
Length:5,780mm
Width:2,396mm
Height:2,300mm
Crew:4-6
Armour:Greater than STANAG 4569 (Level 1). Additional applique armour provided by Plasan composite and V-shaped monocoque hull
Primary Armament:Manned weapon mount up to 12.7mm HMG or 40mm AGL
or remote weapon system up to 12.7mm HMG or 40mm AGL or ATGM[1]
Engine:Steyr M16 six-cylinder turbocharged diesel engine.
Engine Power:2000NaN0 @ 4,000rpm
6100NaN0 @ 2,000rpm
Transmission:ZF 8-speed automatic
Suspension:AxleTech 3000, fully independent suspension, coil and double wishbone
Fuel Capacity:200L
Vehicle Range:6000NaN0
Speed:130km/h (81 mph)
Steering:Power-assisted

The Hawkei is an Australian light four-wheel-drive protected mobility vehicle. Originally designed in 2010 to meet an Australian Defence Force (ADF) requirement for a light armoured patrol vehicle to replace some of its Land Rover Perentie variants. The Hawkei is a highly mobile, highly protected, 7-tonne vehicle, with inbuilt systems to allow it to be used as a fighting platform.[2] It has been developed with Vehicle Electronic Architecture to be mission system ready.[3]

It is intended to undertake a range of mission profiles, including troop movement, command and control, electronic warfare, liaison, surveillance and reconnaissance.[4] Prime contractors include: Thales Australia, Boeing Australia, Plasan (Israel) and PAC Group. In October 2015, the Australian Government announced the purchase of 1,100 Hawkei vehicles from Thales Australia.[5]

History

As part of a wider project to replace the ADF's fleet of operational support vehicles, Project Land 121 Phase 4 – Protected Mobility Vehicle (Light) or PMV-L, is a requirement for up to 1,300 specialised light armoured vehicles to replace some of the in-service Land Rovers. Key criteria for the project included: off-road mobility, integrated vehicle electronic architecture, substantial payloads, high levels of protection against land mines, improvised explosive devices and ballistic weapons, while being light enough to be airlifted by military helicopters. The three options considered as part of the project were:

Competitors for the MSA option included the combat-proven MOWAG Eagle IV from General Dynamics Land Systems; the British military then selected Ocelot from Force Protection; and the Hawkei offering from Thales Australia. The JLTV option included entries from BAE Systems/Navistar,[8] AM General/General Dynamics[9] and Lockheed Martin.[10]

In December 2011 the Department of Defence (DoD) announced Hawkei as the preferred vehicle for further development and testing under the MSA option.[3]

In October 2015, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Minister for Defence Marise Payne announced the purchase of 1,100 Hawkei vehicles and trailers at a cost of $1.3 billion with the Hawkei to be manufactured at Thales's facility in Bendigo.[11] [12] The purchase includes 1058 trailers designed by Schutt Industries and manufactured by Thales at their facility in Eagle Farm.[13] [14] Two variants of the Hawkei will be purchased: a 4-door variant and a 2-door utility variant.[15] The 4-door variant will be able to be configured using a mission-kit for three roles: Command, Liaison and Reconnaissance. 635 4-door variants and 465 2-door variants will be purchased.[13]

In September 2018, the Australian National Audit Office released a report which criticised aspects of the Hawkei project. The report judged that Australia should have remained in the JLTV program to provide competition for the Hawkei procurement and that the Department of Defence had not kept ministers fully informed about the Hawkei program. This included not providing ministers with a study which found that there were few benefits from building the vehicles in Australia. The ANAO was unable to publish some elements of the audit after Attorney General Christian Porter ruled that publishing it would compromise national security. Thales had taken legal action earlier in the year seeking to have material removed from the report.[16] Some of the suppressed elements of the report were released in 2021 following a freedom of information request, and included material stating that the Department of Defence had been unable to demonstrate that the Hawkei represented value for money compared to the JLTV.[17]

In December 2018, the Hawkei faced reliability issues following a demonstration test conducted on 19 November 2018, delaying full-rate production.[18]

In September 2020, Defence Minister Linda Reynolds and Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price announced that the Hawkei would enter full-rate production at Thales's facility in Bendigo at approximately 50 vehicles per month.[19]

In November 2020, the DoD temporarily suspended the use of the Hawkei fleet until an issue with the anti-lock braking system (ABS) was found.[20] In July 2021, Defence Minister Peter Dutton and Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price announced that Thales had developed a fix for the braking issue.[21]

In March 2022, the production of the 1,000th Hawkei was completed by Thales.[22]

In November 2022, Thales advised the DoD that it had identified a new issue with the Hawkei's brakes. As a result the DoD banned the Hawkei from use on civilian roads and imposed a 40km/h maximum speed limit on their use.[23] Thales developed an interim solution with the ABS modulator on every Hawkei changed every ten months on a sample fleet of 125 vehicles.[24] In July 2024, Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy and Brigadier John-Paul Ouvrier announced that Thales had resolved the Hawkei's ABS issues and that there would be a remediation program to install the fixes.[25] [26]

Variants

All variants use the same four wheeled platform.

4 door

Dual cab with a crew of four to six, weapons system options including up to 12.7mm guns or 40 mm grenade systems in various mounts with a remote operated option.[27] [28]

The 4-doors variants include the following sub variants:

2 door

Single-extended cab with a flat-bed cargo area measuring; L: 20000NaN0 x W: 24000NaN0. The vehicle has a crew of 2–3 and has a kerb weight of 68000NaN0 with a rated cargo load of 30000NaN0. The load bed is designed to accommodate four 1000mm × 1200mm (40" x 48") NATO standard military pallets or a single tricon (one-third ISO 20 ft) container.[27] [29]

Proposed variants

Border Protection

Dual cab with a crew of four to six, various equipment options including force protection radar, surveillance and communications systems.[30]

Special Operations Vehicle

Dual cab manned by a crew of four to six with up to three weapon systems:[31] [32]

Options included full doors, half doors, windscreen and scalable racking system for payload.[31]

Etymology

The Hawkei is named after Acanthophis hawkei,[33] a species of death adder. In turn, the snake is named after former Prime Minister of Australia Bob Hawke.[34]

Operators

Potential operators

Canada The Canadian Army is looking for a successor of the Mercedes G-Wagon and Chevrolet Silverado under the Light Utility Vehicle (LUV) project.
  • The project has a budget of $250 to 499 million Canadian dollars, it is expected to be implemented in 2027 or 2028, and the delivery to start in 2028 or 2029, until 2031 or 2032.[36]
  • Several vehicles are being considered.
    Japan On August 5, 2022, it was reported in Japan that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries may manufacture the Hawkei under licence from Thales in case the contract is awarded to them for the JGSDF.[39] It's marketed to replace the Komatsu LAV.[40] The Hawkei and the Mowag Eagle V were ordered in limited quantity for trials in 2023, and were observed on public roads in Japan.[41]
    United Kingdom
  • Thales UK is offering the Bushmaster and the Hawkei for the Land Mobility Programme.[42]
  • The Hawkei would be part of the Light Protected Mobility category, whose role would consist of command and liaison, command and control, patrol tasks, ISTAR, GBAD, CBRN, tactical support and utility.[43] [44] This category will replace the Stormer HVM, FV430 Bulldog, Iveco LMV (Panther) and the Foxhound.

    Failed bids

    France and Belgium
  • THE VBAE programme (Véhicule Blindé d’Aide à Engagement) is a future light armoured vehicle in collaboration between France and Belgium.[45] For the French Army, it will replace the VBL.
  • The Thales Hawkei was one of the competitors.[46]
  • In December 2023 OCCAR signed a cooperation agreement with Arquus, Nexter (KNDS France) and John Cockerill to pre-design a contender for the VBAE programme.[47] In July 2024, the development was approved and therefore, unless major changes, the Scarabee will become the VBAE.[48]
    Poland The Thales Hawkei was one of the four finalists of the Pegaz Programme. This programme was initially planned in two phases. The first phase intended to equip the special operations forces and the military police with 4×4 to participate in missions such as patrol, intervention, counter-terrorism and reconnaissance scenarios.[49] In the longer run, the winner of the competition was intended to become the new multi-purpose 4×4 of the Polish Army.
  • The pre-selected vehicles were the Fortress Mk2 (French), Thales Hawkei (Australia), Patriot II (Polish / Czech) and Tur V.
  • In 2021, the programme was cancelled.[50] This programme could have resulted in an initial purchase of 50 vehicles, and as many as 700 over the long term.[51]

    See also

    External links

    Notes and References

    1. Web site: Hawkei's Genesis: Protection, Mobility and Performance. Thales Group . 14 March 2014 . 1 May 2020.
    2. Web site: Hawkei - Next Generation Protected Mobility Vehicle. Thales Group. 8 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160616225631/https://www.thalesgroup.com/sites/default/files/asset/document/prv_hawkei_a4_200815_web.pdf. 16 June 2016. dead.
    3. Web site: Thales Hawkei Receives Contract for Further Development. Deagel.com. 16 December 2012.
    4. Web site: Hawkei - Next Generation Protected Mobility Vehicle. Thales Group. 8 May 2023 .
    5. News: Tufrey . LS Jayson . Our vehicle of the future . Army: The Soldiers' Newspaper . 1362 . 22 October 2015 . 2–3. Department of Defence . Canberra, Australia . 0729-5685 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170218212114/http://www.defence.gov.au/Publications/NewsPapers/Army/editions/1362/1362.pdf . 18 February 2017 . dead.
    6. Web site: Breaking Defense. Oshkosh Beats Lockheed, AM General For Historic JLTV Win . 26 August 2015. August 26, 2015.
    7. Web site: Defence Materiel Organisation– Defence Capability Plan (Public Version Aug 2011). Department of Defence. 4 April 2012. August 2011.
    8. Web site: BAE Systems – Navistar Defense – ArvinMeritor Team Delivers Australian Joint Light Tactical Vehicle Prototypes. BAE Systems/Navistar Press Release. Business Wire. 15 March 2012. June 21, 2010. BAE Systems, through its U.S. Combat Systems business, along with partners Navistar Defense and ArvinMeritor, delivered three right-hand-drive, operation-configured Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) prototypes in a ceremony today in West Point, Mississippi. Each of these prototypes will be sent to Australia for durability testing that mutually supports both U.S. and Australian interests..
    9. Web site: GTV Delivers Right-Hand Operation JLTV Technology Development Vehicles on Schedule. Press Release. General Tactical Vehicles. 14 March 2012. July 20, 2010. Test and evaluation of the RHO JLTVs includes a five-month reliability and durability test and evaluation process at the Monegeetta Proving Ground in Monegeetta, Victoria, Australia. Test-site management for GTV will be performed by General Dynamics Land Systems–Australia and supported by Australian in-country suppliers..
    10. Web site: Lockheed Martin Delivers Right Hand Operation JLTV Technology Development Vehicles To U.S. Government For Testing. Press Release. Lockheed Martin. 14 March 2012. June 23, 2010. Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] today delivered two right hand operation Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTV), and a companion trailer, to the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps and representatives of the Australian Army for Technology Development (TD) phase assessment and testing. The two variants included a JLTV Category B Command and Control on the Move and a Category C Utility vehicle, which is designed with a focus on payload. All vehicles feature right-hand operation, but are otherwise identical to the U.S. vehicles..
    11. News: Hawkei: Army to spend $1.3 billion on Australian-made replacement for ageing Land Rover fleet. ABC News. 5 October 2015.
    12. Joint media release – Army's Hawkei to be built in Australia. Department of Defence. 5 October 2015. 9 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160827001713/http://www.minister.defence.gov.au/2015/10/05/joint-media-release-armys-hawkei-to-be-built-in-australia/. 27 August 2016. dead.
    13. Web site: Basan . MAJ Thomas . Hawkei is Coming, What can we do with it? . 14 January 2022 . The Cove . Australian Army . 30 October 2020.
    14. Book: The Auditor-General . Army's Protected Mobility Vehicle - Light . 2018 . Australian National Audit Office . Canberra . 9781760333850 . Auditor-General Report No.6 2018–19. 5. 14 January 2022.
    15. Book: The Auditor-General . 2020–21 Major Projects Report . 2021 . Australian National Audit Office . Canberra . 9781760336981 . Auditor-General Report No.13 2021–22. 199. 14 January 2022.
    16. News: Callinan . Rory . Auditor general prevented from tabling full report into $1bn Hawkei military contract . 24 December 2018 . The Australian . 12 September 2018.
    17. News: Greene . Andrew . Australian military's $1.3 billion Hawkei contract criticisms revealed after previously sealed by the Attorney-General . 9 January 2021 . ABC News . 9 January 2021.
    18. Web site: SITREP Australia's Hawkei Protected Mobility Vehicle. www.indrastra.com. 2381-3652. 2018-12-22.
    19. Hawkei ready to enter full rate production. Department of Defence Ministers. 3 September 2020. 14 January 2021.
    20. News: Worthington . Brett . Brake problems delay Defence's billion-dollar Hawkei tactical vehicle project . 21 July 2024 . ABC News . Australian Broadcasting Corporation . 4 March 2022.
    21. Minister for Defence Petter Dutton . Minister for Defence Industry Melissa Price . Hawkei Vehicle Reaches Initial Operational Capability . Department of Defence Ministers . 21 July 2024 . 11 July 2021.
    22. Thales in Australia completes the 1000th Hawkei . Thales . 21 July 2024 . 20 April 2022.
    23. News: Packham . Ben . Speed limit, road ban for Defence's $2bn 4WDs . 21 July 2024 . The Australian . 15 November 2022 . 7 . subscription.
    24. News: O'Callaghan . Tom . Army issues deadline on dodgy brakes . 21 July 2024 . Bendigo Advertiser . 28 October 2023 . 3 . subscription.
    25. Web site: Updated - Press Conference, Bendigo (transcript) . Department of Defence Ministers . 21 July 2024 . 16 July 2024.
    26. News: Schubert . Shannon . Hundreds of Australian Hawkei military vehicles with braking issue now fixed and ready to rollout . 21 July 2024 . ABC News . Australian Broadcasting Corporation . 16 July 2024.
    27. Web site: Hawkei New Generation Protected Vehicle . Thales . 13 January 2022 . August 2019.
    28. Web site: Command brochure . Thales Group . https://web.archive.org/web/20130424062645/http://thalesgroup.com/Countries/Australia/Documents/Hawkei_Command_brochure/ . 24 April 2013 . 13 September 2012. dead.
    29. Web site: Hawkei Ute . Thales Group . https://web.archive.org/web/20130424062736/http://thalesgroup.com/Countries/Australia/Documents/Hawkei_Utility_brochure/ . 24 April 2013 . 13 September 2012. dead.
    30. Web site: Hawkei Border Protection . Thales Group . https://web.archive.org/web/20131013023426/http://www.thalesgroup.com/Countries/Australia/Documents/Hawkei_-_Border_Protection_vehicle_doc . 13 October 2013 . 13 September 2012. dead.
    31. Web site: Hawkei Special Operations Vehicle . Thales Group . https://web.archive.org/web/20130424062659/http://thalesgroup.com/Countries/Australia/Documents/Hawkei_-_Special_Operations_Vehicle_brochure/ . 24 April 2013 . 13 September 2012. dead.
    32. Web site: Thales - Hawkei The next generation in protection. Michael Luzar. https://web.archive.org/web/20160818194657/http://www.michaelluzar.com/103169/956978/gallery/thales-australia-hawkei. 18 August 2016. dead.
    33. Web site: Hawkei's genesis: protection, mobility & performance . 14 March 2014 . 8 September 2015.
    34. Wells . Wellington . 1985 . A classification of the Amphibia and Reptilia of Australia . 43 . 8 September 2015.
    35. Book: The Auditor-General . 2022–23 Major Projects Report: Department of Defence . 2024 . Australian National Audit Office . Canberra . 9781760338800 . Auditor-General Report No.14 2023–24 . 197–198 . 23 March 2023.
    36. Web site: Government of Canada . National Defence . 2018-05-30 . Light Utility Vehicle - Defence Capabilities Blueprint . 2024-07-18 . apps.forces.gc.ca.
    37. Web site: Manuel . Rojoef . 2024-05-23 . Roshel Taps Babcock to Support Canada's Light Utility Vehicle Replacements . 2024-07-18 . The Defense Post . en-us.
    38. News: 21 April 2020 . A cold weather test . 19 September 2023 . Canadian Army Today magazine . Cremona Ink.
    39. Web site: Japan mulls options for several armoured vehicle programmes | Shephard .
    40. Web site: JGSDF lines up next-generation wheeled armoured vehicles | Shephard .
    41. Web site: 2023-06-26 . Japan to procure Hawkei, Eagle light vehicles for trials . 2024-07-18 . Default . en.
    42. Web site: 2024-01-29 . IAV 2024: Thales UK pitches Bushmaster and Hawkei for British Army's Land Mobility Programme . 2024-07-18 . Default . en.
    43. Web site: IAV 2024: British Army outlines procurement plans for Land Mobility Programme . 2024-05-07 . Janes.com . 29 January 2024 . en.
    44. Web site: UK starts to move on Land Mobility Programme Shephard . 2024-05-07 . www.shephardmedia.com . en.
    45. Web site: OCCAR - VBAE . 2024-07-18 . www.occar.int.
    46. Web site: Gain . Nathan . 2018-06-11 . Le Hawkei de Thales, futur VBAE de l'Armée de Terre française ? . 2024-07-18 . FOB - Forces Operations Blog . fr-FR.
    47. Web site: OCCAR - Launching of Pre-Design Phase of Véhicule Blindé d'Aide à l'Engagement (VBAE) Programme with Signature of VBAE contract . 2024-07-18 . www.occar.int.
    48. Web site: Lagneau . Laurent . 2024-07-15 . Futur blindé d'aide à l'engagement : Le ministère des Armées met en avant le SCARABEE d'Arquus . 2024-07-18 . Zone Militaire . fr-FR.
    49. Web site: 2018-09-03 . EAGLE Multi-Role Vehicle Proposed for Polish Army . 2024-02-27 . defence24.com . pl.
    50. Web site: 2021-08-02 . Pegaz Programme: A Fiasco? [COMMENTARY] ]. 2024-02-27 . defence24.com . pl.
    51. News: 1 November 2017 . Pyne spruiks Hawkei, FFGs and defence industry in Poland . 12 January 2018 . Australian Defence Magazine.

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