Canada awards deal for LAV III support

LONDON, Ontario, July 9 (UPI) -- The Canadian Department of National Defense has selected General Dynamics as the prime contractor for a light armored vehicle upgrade program.

General Dynamics says its Land Systems-Canada unit was selected by the Canadian Department of National Defense to support the upgrades for the Canadian military's LAV III family of vehicles.

The LAV III work, expected to take place at General Dynamics' Ontario facility, includes driveline and suspension upgrades in a move to increase vehicle payload capabilities among other requirements.

"We are proud of the LAV III's performance in theaters such as Afghanistan and have continually worked with the Department of National Defense in making the vehicle better," Sridhar Sridharan, General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada senior vice-president, said in a statement.

"With this upgrade program, we can now incorporate the latest lessons learned in-theater and evolve the vehicle to a significantly higher standard of performance. We are grateful for this opportunity to keep the LAV III at the forefront and our soldiers safe."