Testing
On 3 April 2013, the Lockheed Havoc successfully completed amphibious testing as part of its evaluation for the MPC program. Trials were conducted at Camp Pendleton with the vehicle loaded to its full combat weight. The Havoc demonstrated its resistance to water penetration and ability to negotiate all surf and wave conditions while accommodating a full complement of Marine Corps battle gear for the crew. It maintained 100 percent operational readiness throughout the test.
Competitors
IVECO Defence Vehicles teamed with BAE Systems Global Combat Systems to offer its SUPERAV 8×8 amphibious armored personnel carrier.
In 2007, Lockheed Martin teamed up with Patria to offer the Patria AMV
In August 2012, the Marines awarded development contracts to four companies for their vehicles: the Lockheed Martin Havoc, the BAE Systems Superav, the SAIC Terrex, and an unspecified General Dynamics vehicle. Winners each received $3.5 million contracts for a demonstration and study vehicle for water performance evaluation, survivability testing, and an analysis of human factors and stowage capacity starting in fall 2012.
Development
The Marine Corps deferred Milestone A (MS A) for the Marine Personnel Carrier (MPC) program by two years to FY10. The two-year investment period allowed for the maturation of Government Furnished Equipment and armoring technologies the Marine Corps plans to integrate onto the vehicles once produced.
In addition, an MPC Technology Demonstrator vehicle effort will be initiated to inform CDD development on achievable capabilities and integration risks at the Nevada Automotive Test Center. This is the location that hosted the Combat Tactical Vehicle (CTV) test bed for the JLTV program. The MPC-Technology Demonstrator (MPC-TD) vehicle will address all major functional areas and specifically the following:
Mobility (Powerpack, drivetrain, suspension system)
Survivability (Weight affects mobility)
Electrical power generation, management and distribution
C4ISR
Vehicle Health Monitoring
The initial Analysis of Alternatives (AoA) included “legacy” Stryker and the MPC AOA identified a medium armored personnel carrier as the solution to the MPC requirement. The MPC Program Office is pursuing jointness with the Army and including Stryker MOD in the revised MPC AoA. It is scheduled to begin Engineering, Manufacturing and Development in 2012, with initial operational capability in 2018. The acquisition objective is approximately 630 vehicles.
Design
The MPC will possess a balance between the performance, protection and payload attributes and shall be designed to accomplish a broad array of missions across the range of military operations in a variety of operating environments in which expeditionary operations take place.
Variants
The MPC family of vehicles will consist of a basic vehicle and two role-specific variants.
MPC-Personnel
The MPC-Personnel will be the basic vehicle, two of which carry and support a reinforced rifle squad of 17 marines. Each vehicle would carry 8-9 combat-equipped marines and a two-man crew. This meets the need to transport more marine infantrymen than the existing Light Armored Vehicle (LAV) or Humvee platforms while providing greater protection.
MPC-Command
The MPC-Command will be equipped to serve as a mobile command-echelon/ fire-support coordination center for the infantry battalion headquarters.
MPC-Recovery
The MPC-Recovery will be the maintenance and recovery variant of the MPC.
The Marine Personnel Carrier (MPC) is a wheeled armored personnel carrier under development for acquisition by the United States Marine Corps.
Role
The United States Marine Corps is preparing to acquire a new fleet of wheeled armored vehicles to meet the attributes and metrics of the Marine Personnel Carrier (MPC) requirement. The MPC will serve as a medium weight personnel carrier and complements the capabilities offered by the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV – light weight personnel carrier category) and the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV – heavy weight personnel carrier category). This triad of capabilities EFV – MPC – JLTV comprises the USMC ground mobility portfolio and the means by which expeditionary, scalable, and networked armored protected seats will be provided to the Marine Air-Ground Task Force in the future.
The Marine Personnel Carrier (MPC) will serve as a medium lift personnel carrier and complements the capabilities offered by the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) for light lift purposes and the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) for heavy lift purposes. The MPC will provide landward lift to infantry battalions. One infantry battalion can be lifted by one MPC company along with the infantry battalion’s organic wheeled assets. Two MPC-Personnel Carriers can lift a reinforced Infantry squad. An Initial Capabilities Document (ICD) has already been approved and the Capability Development Document (CDD) is in development.
The MPC is a new capability that will be a multi-wheeled, armored personnel carrier designed to operate across the range of military operations but focused on an irregular warfare operating environment characterized by operations in constrained and urban terrain. Required to carry 8-9 combat loaded Marines and 2-man crew, the MPC will enable high-speed land maneuver as well as substantial ballistic protection to embarked Marines.