ARGO’s tremendous success and exceptional growth in its amphibious XTR (Xtreme Terrain Robotics) vehicle sales continues with this latest opportunity working in conjunction with General Dynamic Land Systems (GD Land Systems).
SMET (Small Multipurpose Equipment Transport) is a U.S. Army program developed to lighten the load for its ground soldiers and has been in development since 2016. The vehicle’s capabilities needed to include:
- Unmanned/optionally manned operation
- 1,000 lb load capacity
- 60 mile range within 72 hour period
- Silent running with on board generation of up to 3 kilowatts of power
An exhaustive evaluation process included delivery of initial platforms in September of 2017 to Fort Benning, Georgia. An additional 20 prototype units were then delivered in 2019 for evaluation by the 10th Mountain and the 101st Airborne Divisions. The current program calls for GD Land Systems to begin delivering units in the second quarter of 2021 with a potential 600+ vehicle Army program over a five-year period with work to begin on the first increment.
“On behalf of myself and all of ARGO, I want to congratulate GD Land Systems on winning this latest contract. We are excited and honored to be working with the GD Land Systems team on this project” said Brad Darling, ARGO President and CEO. “I also would like to congratulate and thank everyone that has been involved and extended a special thanks to the engineering team for an outstanding job to meet the new requirements of GD Land Systems to again prevail on this program.”
Link: ARGO
