debkafile Reports: Israel’s Rafael wins contract to supply 60 new Golan multipurpose armored vehicles to US Marine Corps in Iraq
The Golan, developed in partnership with US PVI and the Israeli Merkava tank program, can withstand armor-piercing machine gun and rocket fire as well as mines and medium IED bomb blasts.
Designed for asymmetric (terrorist, guerrilla) warfare, the Golan was first tested in Sep. 2006, shortly after the Lebanon War.
The versatile wheeled vehicle carries up to 10 troops in a highly protected environment and can be adapted as a fighting vehicle, mobile command post or ambulance. Fifty percent of the carrier’s 15-ton weight is dedicated to protection. The V shaped hull has a “floating floor” panel to cushion the blast effects of mines. The basic design can come with extra “plug-ins” such as counter sniper systems and reactive armor or a remotely controlled weapon station.
The $37m deal is part of the US program to purchase 40,000 armored vehicles.