Mack Defense presents at AUSA 2022 production version of its M917A3 Heavy Dump Truck for US Army.

The American company Mack Defense presents the production version of its M917A3 Heavy Dump Truck at AUSA 2022, the Association of United States Army defense exhibition that takes place in Washington D.C. from 10 to 12 October 2022. The M917A3 is now in service with the U.S. Army. Visit Mack Defense at AUSA 2022 Hall D/E Booth 8033.
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New Mack Defense M917A3 Heavy Dump Truck at AUSA 2022 defense exhibition in Washington D.C.(Picture source: Army Recognition)

On May 2018, the United States Department of Defense announced that Mack Defense was awarded a $296,403,688 firm-fixed-price contract for the delivery of 99 Heavy Dump Truck M917A3. Production work on five M917A3 HDTs started in February 2019, marking the start of the production vehicle testing (PVT) phase of the program.

On August 16, 2022, Mack Defense announced that the U.S. Army and the U.S. Army Reserve have ordered an additional 144 Mack Defense M917A3 Heavy Dump Trucks (HDTs).

The new M917A3 dump trucks are replacing older M930A1 and A2 models currently serving in engineer units. Developed by the U.S. Army Program Executive Office for Combat Support & Combat Service Support, at Detroit Arsenal, and built by Mack Defense, the M917A3 has several improvements over the older models.

The Mack Defense M917A3 represents a new generation of Dump Truck offering more mobility, protection, and payload capacity that the previous version in service with the U.S. Army. Strong and versatile the Mack Defense M917A3 Heavy Dump Truck is a commercial-based Mack Granite dump truck, engineered to be the best-in-class tactical and logistical vehicle solution from the only company that can deliver these unparalleled capabilities to the United States Army.

The Mack Granite HDT model is a modern truck equipped with modern technology, such as ABS and other active safety systems. The Granite model is user-friendly, comfortable and safer to operate compared with other past models used by the Army, which is a key to the U.S. Army’s investment in the new HDTs,

The Mack Defense M917A3 is designed to be deployed at the front line of the battlefield and can be equipped with an armored cab to offer a high level of protection against the firing of small arms. The crew cabin floor is based on a V-shaped design to offer protection against the blast effect of mines or IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) explosions. The armored cab is also fitted with mine blast-resistant seats.

The M917A3 is based on 8x8 truck chassis with one axle at the front and three axles at the rear. It has a crew of two and the gross vehicle weight is 42.9 tons with a payload capacity of up to 27 tons which is far superior to the old dump trucks used by the U.S. Army offering only 22 tons payload. The crew cab is fitted with a Crysteel engineer developed and integrated touchscreen control module which provides the soldier key safety and functionality information at their fingertips. From the integrated hub, the driver is able to control the lift cylinder, tailgate, tarp, thermostatic body heather system, and material control system. The inclinometer and the onboard weigh scale are also displayed.

The M917A3 is motorized with a Mack MP8® engine developing 440 hp coupled to an Allison 4500 Generation 5 six-speed automatic transmission system. It can reach a maximum road speed of 100 km/h with a maximum cruising range of 1,000 km.