AM General lands $562M contract for M997A3 ambulance vehicles production.

The US-based vehicle manufacturer AM General LLC has been awarded a US$562 million contract for the procurement of High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles ambulance, the US Department of Defense said on September 14, 2018.

An AM General M997A3 ambulance vehicle
(Picture source: AM General LLC)

"One bid was solicited with one bid received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of March 13, 2024. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Warren, Michigan, is the contracting activity," the Pentagon added. 

Rugged and resilient, the M997A3 is an ambulance configuration of the HMMWV family. Equipped with advanced armor protection, these combat ambulances were built to reliably transport causalities from the battlefield to medical aid stations.

Capable of transporting up to four litter patients, eight ambulatory patients—or a combination of both—as well as medical personnel, equipment and a driver, the M997A3 is dependable in the face of danger.

The ambulance can be heated, ventilated or air conditioned, depending on environmental conditions. For operation in a nuclear, biological or chemical (NBC) environment, the M977A3 can be equipped with a Gas-Particulate Filter Unit (GPFU) with heaters capable of supporting up to seven personnel equipped with either M25 series protective masks or M13 series patient-protective masks. The GPFU sends temperature-controlled, filtered air to individual face masks, increasing protection, making breathing easier and reducing stress and heat fatigue during extended periods of NBC operation.