The U.S. Marine corps is restructuring a program to develop a new amphibious vehicle for troops to use, a decision that could hurt business for a Falls Church-based government contractor.
The Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle program is a $12 billion effort to design and build a vehicle able to travel at speeds of 20 knots while in the water and capable of moving directly onto land. General Dynamics has led the design phase, but GD prototypes have endured criticism for their frequent breakdowns. Though the Marine Corps. does not plan to cancel General Dynamics’ contract, it began seeking input from other companies on how to solve some of the vehicle’s design problems about a month ago, program spokesman David Branham said.
Now, even if its current contract is not in danger, General Dynamics will potentially have to compete with other companies submitting new prototypes during the next phase of the contract.
“It would be inappropriate to comment on what the future impact [of the restructuring] might be,” General Dynamics spokesman Rob Dolittle said. “There are not enough details to speculate.”
The problems with the EFV mostly reside in its subsystems, Branham said, and include issues with hydraulics and electronic components.
Production was originally slated to start in January of this year but the restructuring will delay production for at least three years, Branham said. A new plan for the program likely willbe finished in late spring or early summer, he said.
Dolittle said that General Dynamics has been given recommendations from the Marine Corps on improving reliability, and has incorporated the information into its design.
The EFV scope will likely be significantly smaller than originally envisioned. The program calls for 1,013 vehicles, but the Department of Defense looked at the distribution of Marine Corps last summer and recommended that just 573 EFV vehicles be built. The change could lower the value of the contract by around $2 billion, Branham said.
