Canada to deliver ACSV 8x8 armored personnel carriers to Ukraine: Details
Minister of Defense of Canada, Bill Blair (Photo: facebook.com/williamsterlingblair)
The Minister of Defense of Canada, Bill Blair, announced that Ukraine will receive the first batch of 10 out of 50 ACSV 8×8 armored personnel carriers from Canada at the beginning of summer. The funds for these APCs were allocated back in September 2023.
According to Blair, the armored personnel carriers will be sent to Germany at the beginning of summer, where Ukrainian military personnel will familiarize themselves with them. Subsequently, the soldiers will undergo training on these APCs.
“Ukrainians will be trained on the vehicles in the summer, and the vehicles will move to Ukraine in the fall. These vehicles are built by Canadian workers at General Dynamics Land Systems – Canada in London, Ontario,” said the Minister of Defense of Canada.
Despite the transport being in Germany by early summer, it will not reach Ukraine until the fall of this year. These will be the first 10 APCs out of 50, for which Canada allocated $650 million in September 2023. The final batch of these APCs is scheduled to be delivered to Ukraine in 2027.
Photo: APC LAV 6.0 ACSV (canada.ca_en.html)
Ukraine will soon receive Canada’s first batch of ACSV 8×8 armored personnel carriers.
What is known about the LAV 6.0 ACSV armored personnel carriers
The LAV 6.0 ACSV is a modern 8×8 wheeled armored vehicle. It was developed and subsequently upgraded based on the LAV 3 BMP platform.
The APC is designed to transport troops/cargo, ambulance vehicles, command posts, engineers, electronic warfare, technical recovery, and mobile repair teams.
After modernization, the vehicle received enhanced protection and is now capable of withstanding 14.5mm machine gun bullets from all sides.
The APC features
new observation systems; a remotely operated Protector RWS weapon station; a new 450 hp engine, allowing the vehicle to reach speeds of up to 100 km/h on roads and up to 40 km/h off-road.
It is interesting to note that Canada has ordered the same APCs for its army in 360 units. They are intended to replace the M113 armored personnel carrier fleet partially.
Canada’s assistance
Since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine began, Canada has been providing military support to the Ukrainian armed forces. In particular, the Canadian government recently allocated $1.6 billion for a five-year military aid package to Ukraine.
Additionally, during the latest Ramstein format meeting, Canadian Minister of Defense Bill Blair announced that his country had allocated additional funds to finance the supply of drones and artillery shells to Ukraine.