Green berets go green

Us military may soon get some new wheels – a vehicle with a hybrid electric and diesel drive. Fast, quiet, and with excellent off-road performance. Mark Fletcher takes a look The Reconnaissance, Surveillance, and Targeting Vehicle (RST-V) – less formally called the Shadow has successfully completed a 1,000 mile test of its performance and reliability. It successfully sustained elevated speeds over its extended drive through mountain passes, rain, snow, and rough construction zones. The Office of Naval Research (ONR), in partnership with the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), sponsored development of the Shadow by General Dynamics Land Systems. In a three-day test, the Shadow drove from Fort Benning, Georgia to General Dynamics’ test facility in Muskegon, Michigan. The vehicle program is designing, developing, testing and demonstrating four advanced hybrid electric drive vehicles. They feature an in-hub hybrid-electric drive that lets them run for twice the range or length of time as other current systems. This in-hub drive uses powerful, affordable permanent magnets developed over the last twenty years by Naval materials scientists. Its hybrid drive lets the Shadow run silently – on batteries alone – for 20 miles. The vehicle can also generate up to 60kW of auxiliary electric power, reducing the need for Marines to tow bulky, noisy generators. It is designed to be easily carried inside the Marines’ new V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft. Its integrated survivability technologies and advanced suspension give it considerable battlefield capability. The Marines can use it for fire support co-ordination, forward air control, reconnaissance, light strike, anti-armour, or air defence. It can also serve as a battlefield ambulance, cargo or personnel carrier, mortar carrier, command post carrier and even a mobile 60 kW generator. MF