Army awards deal for Navistar trucks

WARRENVILLE, Ill., Jan. 15 (UPI) -- The U.S. Army has contracted Navistar Defense for the company to deliver support trucks for use in the Iraqi military theater.

Illinois-based Navistar Defense says it was awarded the contract from the Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command, Life Cycle Management Command. Under the approximately $79 million deal, Navistar will deliver 605 of its support trucks to the Army for deployment to Iraq.

The contract, which includes 328 fuel trucks and 277 water tankers based on Navistar's WorkStar platform, follows a Jan. 9 order for 1,300 military vehicles from Canadian Defense officials.

"Navistar's core strength is its ability to leverage its engineering, manufacturing and sustainment expertise across a large portfolio of products," Archie Massicotte, Navistar Defense president, said in a statement.

"Our existing commercial platforms allow us to rapidly modify vehicles for the military, as well as customize them for specific mission types."