Dutch Army confirms Thales Bushmaster armored vehicle Mid-Life Update.

The Netherlands is to undertake a major upgrade of its Bushmaster protected mobility vehicle fleet. Defence Minister Henk Kamp told parliament in mid-December last year that all 102 Dutch Army Bushmasters will undergo a mid-life update (MLU) to extend service life into the mid-2030s.
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The Netherlands took delivery of a further six Bushmasters in mid-2021, with these vehicles incorporating various improvements. (Picture source: Thales)

Following its introduction into Dutch service in 2006, the Netherlands has deployed the Bushmaster extensively to Afghanistan and Mali, where the vehicle excelled in its key capability areas of mobility and blast protection.

The MLU will modernise the vehicles and make them future-proof, the Dutch Ministry of Defence said; “not a superfluous luxury in view of the international security situation in which threats are not only increasing in number, but also in type and complexity. It is important that the vehicles are operationally up to it”.

Specifically, this will involve work to standardise the roof-mounted remote weapon station, improve armour protection, situational awareness, command and control, communications and increase payload. Vehicles will also receive a reversing camera and an auxiliary generator to provide external power Dutch confirm Bushmaster MLU for static tasks. The latter will also lower heat and noise signatures and reduce fuel consumption.

Thales Netherlands will lead the MLU, the project expected to run through to 2027. The first upgraded Bushmasters are scheduled to re-enter Dutch service in early 2024.

In July 2021, Thales Australia delivered six new Bushmasters to the Netherlands, with five of those a medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) variant developed to meet Dutch requirements. The Dutch MEDEVAC variant retains the proven Bushmaster powertrain combination of the 300hp Caterpillar engine and ZF 6-speed automatic transmission, SOTAS intercom system, wider rear ambulance door and the Royal Netherlands Army-specified add-on armour system, but introduces several new improvements to the Bushmaster product line, including:
• Addition of front half-height crew doors for improved ingress/egress and so the crew can avoid passing through the casualty compartment during medical treatment;
• Removal of the spare tyre assembly and the associated hull recess in the right rear corner to increase internal volume for improved casualty accommodation;
• Larger ring mount hatch to aid emergency egress;
• Updated heating, ventilation and air conditioning system with improved layout and airflow;
• Replacement of the two-way winch with a new large external stowage locker;
• Addition of mounting points for spine boards and stretcher on the outer hull; and
• A newly designed casualty evacuation treatment layout to meet specific Dutch requirements that includes a sliding stretcher loading system on the left-hand side with the medic seated at the head, and on the righthand side twin 19-inch radio racks and three seats for sitting casualties.

Deletion of the spare tyre assembly and winch is understood to realise a weight saving of approximately 650kg, thereby creating additional payload capacity.