Australian Government Orders More Bushmaster Armoured Vehicles

Thales Australia has welcomed the Albanese Government’s commitment to invest $100m to build an additional 44 Bushmaster PMVs at Thales’ Protected Vehicle Centre of Excellence in Bendigo, marking a total investment over $300 million.

The new Bushmasters announced today will be used by the Australian Army’s second long-range fires regiment, to be based at the Edinburgh Defence Precinct in South Australia as part of the 10th Fires Brigade.

More than 1300 Bushmasters have been manufactured at Thales’ Bendigo facility, with the vehicle being exported to eight nations including the UK, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Japan. The in-demand platform includes troop-carrier, command, patrol and ambulance variants.

The continuity and certainty provided by the latest Commonwealth Government investment will enable Thales Australia to undertake not only future upgrades of existing Bushmaster variants, but also to develop new roles and capabilities for the versatile platform.

Quotes attributable to Jeff Connolly, CEO, Thales Australia and New Zealand:

“This is an important investment by the Government in Australia's industrial base that will deliver the capabilities our army needs - a battle-proven and locally-made platform that will get the job done for decades to come.

“What makes the Bushmaster so special is our nationally critical manufacturing facility at Bendigo and its unique blend of the engineering expertise, technical skills, and dedicated workforce who do such a great job for the nation.

“The Bushmaster is an excellent example of what we do at Thales Australia as a trusted partner of the Australian government, utilising local skills, design, engineering and technology to protect the interests of Australia, our allies and partners.

“This vote of confidence in the Bushmaster platform means Thales Australia and its workforce will have the confidence to design and deliver future upgrades as well as next-generation capabilities for the vehicle.

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