Czech Ministry of Defence has approved the purchase of 20 additional Pandur II 8x8 armoured APC 12208151

Defence & Security News - Czech Republic
 
Czech Ministry of Defence has approved the purchase of 20 additional Pandur II 8x8 armoured APC
The Czech Ministry of Defence has approved the purchase of 20 additional wheeled armored vehicles PANDUR II. The contract estimated 1.274 billion CZK ($5.3 million) will be implementing from 2018 to 2020. This new contract will expand the Pandur II fleet operated by the Czech Army.
     
     
This is one of the key priorities in the supplement arsenal of combat core of our army, namely headquarters and battalions 4th Rapid Deployment Brigade. Compared to earlier expectations, the contract will be more convenient for command-staff vehicles, we expect savings in one vehicle 20 million crowns for connecting vehicles, 14 million crowns, “Defense Minister Martin Stropnický said.

The Czech military is equipped with six versions of the Pandur II, armoured personnel carrier, -command post , reconnaissance (in two modifications - with and without a radar), engineer and ambulance versions.

In 2006, General Dynamics announced that the Czech Republic has selected its European Land Combat Systems subsidiary Steyr-Daimler-Puch Spezialfahrzeug GmbH of Austria to supply its army with 199 new eight-wheeled Pandur II armored personnel carriers (APCs) between 2007-2012. The APCs were designed to replace the Czech military's outdated OT-64 armored vehicles, which were jointly developed by then-communist Poland and Czechoslovakia in the 1960s.

In March 2009, Czech Republic government approved the purchase of only 107 Pandur II vehicles for 14.4 billion crowns (US $609 million).

The Pandur II is an 8x8 armouredpersonnel carrier vehicle developed by the Austrian company Steyr-Daimler-Puch Spezialfahrzeuge, which is now a subdivision of General Dynamics European Land Systems.

In the Czech Army, the version of the Pnadur is called Pandur II CZ M1. The infanfty fighting vehicle varinat is fitted with an unmanned turret armed a 30mm ATK Bushmaster Mk.44 cannon, a 7.62mm coaxial machine gun, and two launcher Spike-LR multi-purpose missiles.

The Portuguese Army is also equipped with 166 Pandur II wheeled armoured vehicles. The vehicles are used mainly by the brigade’s Command in Coimbra, two Infantry Battalions based in Vila Real and Viseu, sub-units of the Cavalry Regiment of Braga and the Maintenance Regiment located in Entroncamento.