U.K. Ministry of Defence Selects U.S. Contractors for $11 Billion FRES Program

The U.K. Ministry of Defence and Atkins have chosen U.S. contractors Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, General Dynamics, and Boeing to bid on three demonstration programs for the Future Rapid Effect System (FRES), a family of network-capable armored vehicles. The program aims to provide the United Kingdom with a more agile and flexible force, with a reduced logistics footprint, similar to the U.S. Army's Future Combat System. The new vehicles are expected to replace some existing vehicles, such as the BAE SYSTEMS' Saxon wheeled-armored vehicle, which first entered service in 1983.

Key Takeaways:

The U.K. Ministry of Defence and Atkins have selected Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, General Dynamics, and Boeing to bid on three FRES demonstration programs, valued at $11 billion.
The FRES program aims to provide the U.K. with a family of network-capable armored vehicles, replacing some existing vehicles, such as the BAE SYSTEMS' Saxon wheeled-armored vehicle.
The program is similar to the U.S. Army's Future Combat System, which uses a network of platforms and weapons linked to soldiers.
contractors must provide information on candidate platforms, analysis of capabilities against user requirements, estimated life-cycle cost, and analysis of platform capability and growth against the full operational capability.
Invitations to tender were issued in December 2005 and released on the FRES Web site by the U.K. MoD.
Bids are due on various dates, with the FRES chassis options technology demonstrator program bids due on February 15, and the FRES electronic architecture demonstration program bids due on February 22.
The FRES electric armor technology demonstration program bids are due on February 8.

Statistics:

The FRES program is valued at $11 billion.
The U.K. Ministry of Defence and Atkins have issued invitations to tender for three FRES demonstration programs.
The bids are due on various dates: February 15 for the FRES chassis options technology demonstrator program, February 22 for the FRES electronic architecture demonstration program, and February 8 for the FRES electric armor technology demonstration program.
The U.S. contractors selected for the FRES program are Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, General Dynamics, and Boeing.
The BAE SYSTEMS' Saxon wheeled-armored vehicle first entered service in 1983.

Sources:

Defense Daily, Oct. 5
Defense Daily, Oct. 4