GDELS-SteyrManaging Director Martin Reischer in an interview about modernization and
export opportunities for the Pandur Evolution wheeled armored vehicle and the Ulan infantry fighting vehicle.
Mr. Reischer, General Dynamics European Land Systems-Steyr stands for the Pandur armoured infantry fighting vehicle and the Ulan infantry fighting vehicle, the Austrian version of the Ascod. Both vehicles have recently been completely overhauled. What specifically has been done to the Pandur?
With the Pandur Evo, we have paid particular attention to the further development of survivability, mobility and capacity and the integration of state-of-the-art technology, without forgetting flexibility and modularity. The latter points are important with regard to the integration of future technologies and the vehicle family concept, which means that variants for different roles can be derived from the same basic platform. https://militaeraktuell.at/die-naechste-pandur-generation/
And what was done at Ulan?
By definition, this is a “service life extension”. This means that great attention is paid to obsolete components and their replacement. Especially when it comes to the electronics in the tower, there is a lot to do. Systems that are no longer available are being replaced with the latest technology. The bottom line is that the tower and hull are completely dismantled, parts and systems are replaced, everything is reassembled, tested and handed over to the user.
“With the Pandur Evo, we are pleased to have achieved our first export success with the US Army, and we are of course working on acquiring further international customers.”
Do you also see increased export opportunities for both products?
With the Pandur Evo, we are pleased to have achieved our first export success with the US Army, and we are of course working on acquiring further international customers. We have also already achieved success abroad with the Ascod in collaboration with a strategic partner.
What does a potential buyer get with the Ulan or the Pandur Evolution that they don’t get with other vehicles?
The Pandur Evo is definitely a highly mobile, protected, compact and quickly air-transportable wheeled vehicle. You won’t find this combination with many other manufacturers. If it is well protected, for example, it can usually no longer be transported in a C-130 Hercules because it is too high or too heavy. The Ulan, on the other hand, is still a top infantry fighting vehicle and the later Ascod versions also combine an excellent level of protection with low weight and need not shy away from comparison with other suppliers. https://militaeraktuell.at/eine-neue-fahne-fuer-das-akademikerbataillon/
Your company is also currently planning further variants of the two vehicles. Against this background, what can we expect in the near future?
In particular, the Austrian Armed Forces are considering a Pandur Evo vehicle family. We have already given this some thought and presented a version with an anti-tank guided missile at Eurosatory in Paris, for example, and showed a Pandur Evo with an air defense system and the associated radar at Airpower in Zeltweg. This clearly demonstrates that the basic vehicle can be used to cover many operational scenarios.
Here for more news about General Dynamics European Land Systems-Steyr, here to further news from General Dynamics European Land Systems based in Madrid and here to the other articles in our “5 questions to” series.
