AM General cites inherited issues for JLTV A2 delays as Congress cuts funding and Marines seek second supplier

AM General said Friday that production of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle A2 variant has been slowed by the condition of the technical baseline it inherited from the previous manufacturer, along with engineering work and supplier changes required to reach production maturity.

President and CEO John Chadbourne stated that transitions between major defense contractors are inherently complex and that the JLTV A2 handover proved especially difficult. He said the company took substantial corrective action and now plans to reach full-rate production by 2027.

Chadbourne added that the A2 variant improves capability and dependability while lowering lifecycle costs, and that Army acquisition officials selected AM General after determining it offered the best overall value. House appropriators on the defense subcommittee proposed reducing the A2 budget from $245 million to $112 million and reallocating the difference to non-developmental JLTVs and trailers.

They cited production that is more than 20 months behind schedule and roughly 2,000 vehicles in arrears, which they said has delayed fielding to Marine Expeditionary Units and Marine Littoral Regiments.

The Marine Corps issued a request for information last month seeking a second supplier capable of delivering rapidly fieldable commercial off-the-shelf or non-developmental JLTVs and trailers. An Army spokesperson said the program had already reached full-rate production under the prior contractor, so a second full-rate production decision was unnecessary.

As of June 12, the Army had accepted 82 A2 trucks and 303 trailers.