Today, Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner handed over five “light” and “medium” recovery vehicles to the troops at the Maria Theresa barracks in Vienna. The trucks with telescopic low-loader trailers are produced by Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles GmbH (RMMV) in Vienna. The new vehicles were specially developed for military use.
“The areas of responsibility of the Austrian Armed Forces are very wide-ranging. The new vehicles are not only necessary for recovering military equipment, we also use them to support the Austrian population in assistance missions. Following the severe storms in parts of Austria, our soldiers are once again demonstrating their tireless commitment to our country. It is important for the work of our soldiers that we have adequate and safe equipment at our disposal. We need to strengthen our army in terms of personnel and bring our equipment up to date in order to be able to master challenges in the best possible way in the future,” says Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner. For the recovery and transport of wheeled and tracked vehicles, the Austrian Armed Forces previously had off-road Steyr trucks, ÖAF crane trucks and the heavy ÖAF towing vehicles with 25-ton low-loader trailers at their disposal. However, most of these vehicles have already been taken out of service due to their long service life. Internal army recovery operations and the transportation of military equipment were therefore only possible to a limited extent. For this reason, appropriate replacements had to be procured.
The five vehicles handed over today will be used by the Reconnaissance and Artillery Battalion 4 in Allentsteig, the Staff Battalion 3 in Mautern, the Engineer Battalion 3 in Melk, the Supply Regiment 1 in Gratkorn and the Armored Staff Battalion 4 in Hörsching. The investment for the modernization measures amounted to a total of 71 million euros. This involves a total of 71 light and 24 medium recovery vehicles and 35 low-loader trailers. Light recovery vehicles cost around 490,000 euros each, while medium-sized vehicles cost around 1 million euros. A deep-loading trailer costs around 270,000 euros. The light recovery vehicle is equipped with a 12-ton frame winch for recovering vehicles and has a platform body for transporting loads. The medium recovery vehicle is equipped with two 12-ton winches, a loading crane for recovery and a telescopic towing arm. The 30-ton low-loader trailer is manufactured by the Austrian company Empl Fahrzeugwerk GesmbH and the German company Doll Fahrzeugbau GmbH in Oppenau. https://militaeraktuell.at/ein-bundesheer-kraftpaket-mit-namen-bison/
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