Oshkosh Defense wins Pentagon contract to replace Humvees with new light tactical vehicles

The Pentagon has awarded Oshkosh Defense a major contract worth $6.7 billion to build the military’s next Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV).

The Army will be replacing its large fleet of Humvees with a new generation of vehicles. The Pentagon wants a tougher, yet nimble vehicle than the iconic Humvee -- a vehicle light enough that a helicopter can airlift it, but resilient enough to withstand bomb blasts.

A release from Oshkosh said the new JLTV is set to fill a critical mission capability gap for the U.S. Army and Marine Corps by providing a light tactical vehicle with far superior protection and off-road mobility than the Humvee.

Oshkosh expects to build more than 17,000 JLTVs for the U.S. military, which retired Army Major General and Oshkosh Defense President John M. Urias said gives the company a major responsibility to the soldiers that will be using them.

“At Oshkosh, we have been building tactical vehicles right here in Wisconsin for the Department of Defense for 90 years,” Urias said. “Our employees know that our warfighters’ lives may one day depend on Oshkosh vehicles to get them to the fight, complete the mission and get them home safely.”