Italian Army’s A2CS Program Kicks off - First four New Infantry Fighting Vehicles Delivered by LRMV Joint Venture

On January 27, at the Italian Army Multifunctional Experimentation Center in Montelibretti, the Leonardo Rheinmetall Military Vehicles (LRMV) Joint Venture delivered to the Armed Forces the first four Lynx KF-41 infantry fighting vehicles. This first delivery marks the official launch of the “A2CS” (Army Armored Combat Systems) program, for which an initial contract for the acquisition of 21 new “A2CS Combat” vehicles was signed at the end of last    year.

The ceremony was held in the presence of the Minister of Defence, Guido Crosetto, the Chief of Staff of the Italian Army, General Carmine Masiello, the Chief Executive Officer of Leonardo, Roberto Cingolani, and Dr. Björn Bernhard, Head of Rheinmetall’s Vehicle System Division Europe. Also present were the CEO, Laurent Sissmann and the Executive Chairman of the Joint Venture, David Hoeder.

The Lynx platform is capable of fulfilling multiple roles, including infantry fighting vehicle, troop transport, mobile command post and ambulance. The 4 vehicles delivered today complement Rheinmetall's Lance 30mm turret, which will later be replaced by Leonardo's Hitfist 30mm turret. The latter will equip all the other 16 armored vehicles of this contract.

The A2CS program (Army Armored Combat System, originally named AICS) Armored Infantry Combat System together with the new Main Battle Tank program will renew the Italian Army’s heavy vehicle fleet, providing cutting edge technology, characterized by high levels of digitalization and connectivity, and capable of operating within the most complex multidomain contexts. This will also provide an opportunity for the renewal of the armored fleets of international partners.