Hon Phil Goff
Minister of Defence

08 march 2007

Repair to minor fault on LAVs

A minor fault has been found in the Army's fleet of Light Armoured Vehicles (NZLAV) says Defence Minister Phil Goff.

However he says that it had not caused any disruption to routine Army activities.

"A weld crack on a bracket that connects the steering and suspension to the vehicle's hull, was discovered during maintenance", said Mr Goff.

"The weld repair process is relatively simple but takes around 15 hours per vehicle due to the requirement to disconnect the vehicle's extensive and sensitive electronics components.

"Vehicles with the weld crack were suspended from service until they were repaired. At present of the 105 NZLAVs, there are 6 vehicles undergoing repair and 20 vehicles awaiting repair.

"The repair programme is running to timetable and should be completed by the end of the month.

"At all times during the repair process an adequate number of vehicles has been available for training or operational use.

"A similar vehicle, the Stryker LAV currently in use with the US Army has experienced problems with weld failure. The US vehicles have all returned to service after undergoing a repair programme.

"Because the repair results from a flaw in the vehicle as delivered, all costs associated with the work will be claimed under latent defect of the prime contract", said Mr Goff.

ENDS

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