- American Rheinmetall said it delivered the first of eight Lynx XM30 combat vehicle prototypes to the U.S. Army.
- The prototype has entered government-led testing under a Phase 3/4 engineering and manufacturing development contract valued at about $764 million, the company said.
- The remaining seven prototypes are due later this year for operational unit training, American Rheinmetall said.
AUBURN HILLS, United States — American Rheinmetall has delivered the first of eight Lynx XM30 combat vehicle prototypes to the U.S. Army, the company said, in a competitive program to replace the M2 Bradley fighting vehicle.
Rheinmetall said in an emailed press release today that the initial prototype has entered government-led developmental and performance testing.
The testing is part of the program’s Phase 3/4 Engineering and Manufacturing Development contract, valued at about $764 million, covering digital design, physical prototyping, and full-system validation, the company said.
“Delivering our first prototype to the Army is an important step as the XM30 Combat Vehicle program enters a more visible phase,” said Matt Warnick, chief executive of American Rheinmetall. “Team Lynx now has the opportunity to show the Army that we can deliver on the promise of a modern replacement for the Bradley.”
Further Prototypes and Testing
American Rheinmetall said it will deliver the remaining seven prototypes later this year for operational unit training. That rollout is intended to run in parallel with technical evaluations under the Army’s Transformation in Contact 2.0 initiative, the company said.
Once the vehicles clear initial military safety checks, soldiers are expected to begin field maneuvers that culminate in large-scale combat simulations, according to the company. Those steps have not yet been reported as completed.
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U.S. Production and Team Lynx
American Rheinmetall said turret fabrication takes place in Plymouth, Michigan, with hull and chassis integration in Slidell, Louisiana. Vehicles then undergo automotive trials before returning to Louisiana for paint and detailing, followed by a joint inspection with the Defense Contract Management Agency before government acceptance.
The company said the Lynx XM30 is designed for environments that include drones, precision weapons, and electronic warfare, with a modular design and open architecture. It said the prototype introduces a hybrid-electric powertrain. Those performance claims were not independently detailed in the release.
American Rheinmetall is the prime contractor for Team Lynx, which the company said also includes Textron Systems, Raytheon, L3Harris Technologies, Allison Transmission, and Anduril Industries.
American Rheinmetall, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan, is the U.S. business of German defense group Rheinmetall AG, which is headquartered in Düsseldorf.