Army of Lithuania takes delivery of 110 Unimog U5000 light trucks.

On September 26, 2019, the Lithuanian Armed Forces accepted 110 Unimog U5000 trucks of 5t payload manufactured by Germany’s Daimler AG as it is updating its truck fleet with vehicles of the same make as there already are in the fleet.

The new Unimog U5000 of Lithuanian army. (Picture source Lithuania MoD)

The trucks are delivered on the basis of a contract signed back in 2015 though continuing successful cooperation of the Ministry of National Defence and the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA). 88 such trucks have already been delivered to the Lithuanian Armed Forces; the contract covers the acquisition of the total of 340 new Unimog trucks.

“The NSPA collects demand applications from all NATO allies and is able to carry out acquisitions in bulk which cuts the price of one unit significantly,” Director of the Defence Materiel Agency under the Ministry of National Defence Sigitas Dzekunskas said.

Head of the Daimler AG truck project Dr Martin R. Maier underscored at the handover ceremony the reliability of the trucks and their exceptionally long service life.

The contract between the Lithuanian Armed Forces and the Daimler AG German manufacturer foresees logistical support in the first 15 years of operation, specialized tools and testing equipment, and other guarantees. The value of the contract in total is EUR 70 million.

The 110 have been delivered to the Lithuanian Armed Forces on the basis of the contract on the Unimog truck acquisition between the Defence Materiel Agency under the MoD and the NATO Support and Procurement Agency updated in 2018. Daimler AG is committed to delivering the remaining 142 trucks in 2020-2021.

The new tactical 5-ton trucks will be assigned to the Lithuanian Land Force and other units to supplement equipment fleets of the same technical characteristics that Lithuanian troops are well familiar with.

A truck is one of the most common vehicles in the military that is in great demand. This type of vehicle is used for completion of soldiers’ tasks, logistical support, personnel transportation.