[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] Two-Way Battle Over First Indigenous River Crossing Equipment Order

M3 Self-Propelled Bridging Equipment developed by Hanwha Defense

Self-Propelled River Crossing Equipment 'AAAB' Developed by Hyundai Rotem

[Asia Economy Reporter Yang Nak-gyu] Ahead of the domestic first self-propelled bridging equipment procurement battle, a two-way competition has begun between Hanwha Defense and Hyundai Rotem, the leading players in the domestic ground defense industry. The self-propelled bridging equipment project is valued at around 500 billion KRW, and the final contractor is expected to be decided by the end of this year. Self-propelled bridging equipment is a combat support vehicle being introduced for the first time in Korea. It is an essential support vehicle for armored units such as tanks and armored personnel carriers to cross rivers.

The industry regards this project as a matter of pride for ground defense companies due to its large scale.

On the 21st, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) held a briefing session on the self-propelled bridging equipment project, explaining the schedule and listening to opinions from interested companies. DAPA plans to announce the bidding on March 2, receive proposals until April, and conduct evaluations. The final contractor will be selected through testing and evaluation starting in May.

The companies hoping to participate in the self-propelled bridging equipment project are Hanwha Defense and Hyundai Rotem.

Hanwha Defense plans to develop the 'Korean-type M3 self-propelled bridging equipment (photo above)' through technical cooperation with General Dynamics (GD), which holds the original technology for self-propelled bridging equipment. The M3 has been deployed in Germany, the UK, Taiwan, Singapore, and Indonesia. It was used in the Iraq War in 2003 and participated in NATO's largest joint exercise, Exercise Anaconda, in 2016. It is equipment whose performance has been verified in joint exercises involving 11 countries. The advantages of the M3 are its weight and water stability. The M3 weighs 28 tons and has a 4x4 wheel configuration. Having fewer wheels reduces resistance in water, ensuring water stability.

Hyundai Rotem, which has declared an emergency management system amid deficit management, is also actively participating.

For the domestic first self-propelled bridging equipment procurement project, Hyundai Rotem plans to modify and domestically produce the 'AAAB (Armored Amphibious Assault Bridge, photo below),' jointly developed by the UK’s BAE Systems and Turkey’s FNSS. Technical negotiations with the Turkish company have been completed.

The AAAB offered by Hyundai Rotem is an 8x8 wheeled vehicle with eight wheels.

The self-propelled bridging equipment developed this time has twice the number of wheels compared to the 4x4 foreign product 'M3,' making it optimized for Korea’s mountainous terrain. Additionally, the shorter wheelbase makes it easier to cross enemy defensive trenches. The wheels are equipped with run-flat tires that can operate even if punctured, and an automatic tire pressure control system (CTIS) has been added. Furthermore, special specifications and technologies suitable for military operations, such as bulletproof glass, automatic fire extinguishing systems, and night vision equipment, have been applied.

Some express concerns that as Turkey conducts military operations in the Kurdish autonomous region in northeastern Syria, European Union (EU) member states are showing signs of suspending arms exports to Turkey. However, Hyundai Rotem states that there is no problem since they plan to produce the AAAB directly.

A Hyundai Rotem official said, "We plan to optimize production schedules by utilizing the mass production infrastructure and know-how established through the production of wheeled armored vehicles and bridge tanks, which have similar technology to self-propelled bridging equipment."