THE HON. GREG COMBET AM MP
Minister for Defence Personnel, Materiel and Science
Friday, 30 October 2009
090/2009
FIRST G –WAGON HANDED OVER TO DEFENCE
Greg Combet, Minister for Defence Personnel, Materiel and Science,
announced today that the first prototype Mercedes Benz G-Wagon vehicles
have been handed over to staff from the Defence Materiel Organisation’s
project Land 121 (Overlander) at a ceremony conducted in Graz Austria.
“The new G - Wagon is a very capable vehicle that will include detachable
unit-specific modules designed for specific tasks, for example, munitions
transfer, field ambulances or troop carriers,” Mr Combet said.
“The ADF’s 1200 Mercedes Benz G-Wagons and 315 specialist modules will
require minimal modification for local conditions and will be delivered ready for
operations. The modules will be manufactured by Varley in the Hunter Valley,
work valued at around $50 million.”
Mr Combet said the prototype G-Wagons vehicles will now be subjected to a
quality assurance and verification and validation testing regime.
“Testing is scheduled to be completed by late August 2010. The first delivery
of operational G-Wagon vehicles to the Commonwealth is scheduled for
2011,” Mr Combet said.
“This program is capitalising on the crossover benefits of utilising commercial
engine and transmission technology in military vehicles. This has lead to
greater reliability for the vehicle, which in turn is providing the Commonwealth
with greater value-for-money.”
Project Land 121 (Overlander) is the largest land project in the current
Defence Capability Plan representing a $4.6 billion investment and will deliver
a fleet of 7,000 vehicles, modules and trailers to significantly improve the
capability, logistics and mobility for the Australian Defence Force (ADF).
Media contacts:
Rod Hilton (Greg Combet):
02 6277 7620 or 0458 276 619
Defence Media Liaison:
02 6127 1999 or 0408 498 664
NEWS 
