LONDON — Finland’s Patria introduced a light tracked armored personnel carrier dubbed Trackx which it says could be a successor to the M113, one of the most successful armored vehicles in history, with the aim for the new APC to be ready for serial production in 2027.
The all-terrain troop carrier was unveiled at the DSEI UK defense show in London on Tuesday, and fills a hole in the market between lighter and heavier vehicles, according to Patria.
Trackx is designed to carry 12 soldiers with equipment, including a driver, commander and ten dismounts.
Patria is pitching Trackx as a modern alternative in the 13-18 metric-ton class of tracked armor, a segment still dominated by the M113, a 65-year old design that has recently seen extensive use in Ukraine. With most recent armor designs trending heavier, the new APC could provide European forces with a lighter, more affordable option for all-terrain troop transport.
“There is nothing similar on the market, there is currently no comparable product segment from any other manufacturer,” Jussi Järvinen, Patria’s executive vice president for protected mobility, told Defense News in a written reply to questions. “Competitors mostly manufacture lighter or significantly heavier and more expensive vehicles.”
Trackx is the first production-ready vehicle to come out of the European Union-funded FAMOUS program to develop future high-mobility armor, for which Finland is the lead nation and Patria the coordinating company. Patria presented a FAMOUS concept vehicle at the Eurosatory defense show in Paris last year.
The new APC could be “a very suitable solution” for countries that operate the M113 or MT-LB type light tracked armor and are looking for a replacement, according to Patria. The M113, with more than 40 variants, is one of the most widely used combat vehicles in the world, with more than 80,000 vehicles produced.
The maximum combat weight of Patria’s new APC is 15.5 tons, with ballistic protection against small-arms fire that can be upgraded to protect against armor-piercing rifle rounds.
Patria says it has extensively tested Trackx on roads, in forests, bogs and snow. The vehicle is equipped with rubber tracks, and designed to have low ground pressure, a low center of gravity and adjustable hydro-pneumatic suspension for each track wheel.
Trackx has drawn “considerable attention” from potential customers, as the APC addresses gaps in land mobility, according to Järvinen. He said most of the interest is from countries in the EU, but there are also inquiries from outside Europe.
With regards to potential markets, the executive said “it’s important to note” that the FAMOUS program member countries contributed to development efforts and helped set the requirements. In addition to Finland, eight EU countries participate in the program, including France, Germany and Spain.
The total budget of the FAMOUS program is around €132 million ($155 million), including around €9 million in funding from the European Commission and €95 million from the European Defence Fund, with the remainder funded by the member countries and the participating companies.
For Finland, the program is part of a project to replace its existing fleet of all-terrain vehicles, with a requirement to operate in harsh northern weather and terrain conditions.
Patria’s partners in the FAMOUS consortium include France’s Arquus, French-German KNDS and Spain’s Indra. The Finnish company said the manufacturing role of its partners will depend on potential customer nations.
Patria said its operating model is based on the strong role of local production, and it has experience in setting up wheeled-armor programs in other countries. The company is the lead designer of the Common Armoured Vehicle System based on the Patria 6x6 wheeled platform, which is manufactured in Finland but also in Latvia, with plans for local production in Germany.
Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.