OREANDA-NEWS. December 18, 2012. The Honourable Rona Ambrose, Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minister for Status of Women, and the Honourable Bernard Valcourt, Associate Minister of National Defence, Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency) (La Francophonie), announced today that the Government of Canada has awarded a USD 9.5 million contract to General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada for the definition, analysis and selection of an enhanced surveillance suite for integration onto Canadian LAV III Upgrade vehicles. 

Under the LAV Reconnaissance Surveillance Suite (LRSS) Upgrade Program, General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada and the Government of Canada will jointly lead a competitive procurement process for a new surveillance suite, mast and operator control station. Work on this definition contract is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2014.

Once the Government of Canada has authorized the implementation of the LRSS Upgrade package, the surveillance suite, mast and operator control station will be integrated on to 66 upgraded LAV III vehicles. The 66 upgraded LAV III vehicles were ordered by the Government of Canada on November 9, 2012, through a USD 133 million contract modification to the LAV III Upgrade contract, originally valued at USD 1 billion.