Through agreements reached by the Directorate of Land Armaments of the Ministry of Defense (Segredifesa), The Iveco – Oto Melara Consortium (CIO) confirmed that the Italian Army will advance the purchase of 28 new VCBR 8×8 Centauro IIWith this recent order, the force will thus complete its plans to incorporate a total of 150 units of these wheeled armoured combat vehicles.
The Centauro II arises as a joint development between the Italian companies Consorcio Iveco – Oto Melara (CIO) and LeonardoThe 8×8 armoured vehicle has become one of the world’s benchmarks in this segment. Emerging as the successor to the Centauro B1, it weighs approximately 30 tonnes. It is equipped with a third-generation Leonardo HITFACT MkII turret, armed with a 120mm cannon and is in operation in the Italian Army and soon with the Brazilian Army.
Regarding the incorporation into the ArmyThe process of incorporating the Centauro II began in 2018 with the signing of the first contract for a batch of ten units, which were received in 2021. Since then, the force has been incorporating successive batches of units until completing the aforementioned 150 units produced by CIO, recording the establishment of the production lines, as well as the courses for the VCBR crews.
One of the most important innovations regarding the Centaur II It was confirmation of its choice by the Brazilian Army to replace its EE-09 Cascavel. In total, the South American country will acquire 98 units, awaiting receipt of the first copy to be tested in the field. From the results obtained, it is expected to refine the requirements and design of the units that will soon be manufactured.
For the Italian Army, in addition to the 28 new VCBRs, the new contract announced on June 27 establishes integrated logistics support service for the next ten years.
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