£37 million upgrade to Viking fleet completed

A £37 million upgrade to the amphibious all-terrain Viking fleet has been completed after 3.5 years, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed.

The regeneration of the vehicles was first announced in September 2012, with BAE Systems singing a £37 million contract to complete the upgrades.

99 of the vehicles have now been fitted with new mine blast protection Hulls, as well as Protected Weapon Mounts, which can by used with either a 12.7mm Browning heavy machine gun or 7.62 general purpose machine gun. Nine Vikings have also been upgraded to allow the firing of an 81mm mortar from the vehicle.

Defence Minister Philip Dunne said: “The regeneration of these 99 Viking vehicles, which sit at the heart of the Royal Marines’ amphibious capability, is incredibly welcome.

“The £37 million upgrades include improvements to the braking and suspension systems, as well as new mine blast protection to help keep our troops safe.

“These advances have been made possible by the government’s growing defence budget and our £178 billion investment in procuring and maintaining the best possible kit for our Armed Forces.”