The government of Poland has agreed to purchase light reconnaissance vehicles, heavy infantry combat vehicles, and wheeled armored personnel carriers for its armed forces.
The country’s defense ministry and the Polish Armaments Group signed the trio of new contracts on Monday as part of Warsaw’s new defense spending drive.
The first agreement, valued at 1.2-billion Polish zloty ($290 million), covers the manufacture and delivery of nearly 400 Lekki Pojazd Rozpoznawczy (LPR) light reconnaissance vehicles in a 4×4 chassis.
They will reportedly feature a new, modernized body with level-one ballistic armor to meet the requirements of the Polish military.
Umowy zatwierdzone. Kolejne wozy bojowe wzmocnią potencjał Wojsk Lądowych
–
Dziś minister @mblaszczak zatwierdził umowy na dostawy nowego sprzętu dla Wojska Polskiego:
–
✅Nowy Kołowy Transporter Opancerzony
✅Ciężki Bojowy Wóz Piechoty
✅Lekki Pojazd Rozpoznawczy
-… pic.twitter.com/9moAXYVw58— Ministerstwo Obrony Narodowej 🇵🇱 (@MON_GOV_PL) August 14, 2023
The LPR will have a turntable on the roof to install 7.62-millimeter machine guns or 40-millimeter grenade launchers.
“We are already going down in history with the era of the [Polish multi-purpose off-road vehicle] Honkers and various such vehicles,” defense minister Mariusz Błaszczak said. “We intend to introduce this vehicle to the Polish Army as soon as possible.”
The light reconnaissance vehicles will be delivered between 2024 and 2030.
Heavy Fighting Vehicle
The second contract covers producing “several hundred” modern heavy infantry fighting vehicles to support combat missions.
The vehicles will reportedly come in various configurations, with one leveraging Poland’s ZSSW-30 remotely controlled turret system.
Their chassis will use elements of the Krab self-propelled gun-howitzer to transport a crew of three and eight soldiers.
The heavy vehicles will be utilized to engage armored and unarmored targets, destroy field fortifications, and conduct direct strikes on enemy personnel.
The total value of the second framework agreement was not disclosed.
Podpisano dziś również dwie umowy ramowe. Pierwsza z nich dotyczy zakupu z dostosowaniem kilkuset Ciężkich Bojowych Wozów Piechoty #CBWP. Pierwszy pojazd w #WojskoPolskie już w 2025 roku.https://t.co/kD9eMHRywX pic.twitter.com/1DAaEGhHNH
— Agencja Uzbrojenia (@AgencjaUzbr) August 14, 2023
Personnel Carriers
Poland has also agreed to procure “nearly a thousand” Nowy Kołowy Transporter Opancerzony (NKTO) armored personnel carriers for its military.
Although the details are still limited, it was disclosed that the personnel carriers would be equipped with a Remotely Controlled Armament Module.
Of the three types of vehicles under order, the NKTO has the longest delivery date since it will be designed from scratch and produced to Polish defense industry specifications.
The armored carriers are expected to be delivered by 2035.
“We took up the challenge of developing a new version of this vehicle. I am convinced that it will be a hit, it will be an export hit. First of all, the needs of the Polish Army, but we also try to ensure that these products can be exported,” Błaszczak said.
