LONDON, Ont. (CP) - The U.S. army's transformation is underway with the arrival of its first Canadian-built Stryker armoured vehicle. General Motors Defense of London - which is making the Stryker in a $6-billion deal along with General Dynamic Land Systems of Michigan - officially handed over the vehicle Friday after a ceremony at city's convention centre.
The eight-wheeled Stryker is the first new military vehicle accepted by the U.S. army since the Abrams tank in the 1980s, said Col. David Ogg.
"Welcome to London, the world's No.1 maker of armoured vehicles," Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco told the crowd of about 400, made up of U.S. and Canadian military, business people and suppliers to GM Defense, which she called "a flagship industry that defines this community."
In an elaborate affair complete with smoke effects, bright lights and a military band, U.S. army officials talked about how war has become a harsh reality in a changed world. How U.S. soldiers are fighting and dying in Afghanistan, placing renewed importance on the Stryker as a combat vehicle.
"We live in exciting times, in dangerous times," said Lt.-Gen. John Caldwell. "If you didn't know that before the attacks on the free world, then Sept. 11 punctuated that.
"The people who make such attacks grossly underestimate the power in the free world. This program is the hallmark of what can be done when we put our minds to it."
The Stryker looks like the LAV III, another armoured vehicle GM Defense has made for Canada, Australia and New Zealand, but 50 per cent of the Stryker is different.
That's made its design and manufacturing in a short 10-month span remarkable, army and GM Defense officials said.
Gen. Eric Shinseki, the U.S. army's chief of staff, has sought a lighter, more mobile military for the post-Cold War era, with vehicles that can be deployed faster and move in rougher, inhospitable terrain.
The vehicles must also be cheaper to operate. With the army's 60-tonne Abrams tank, fuel demands now account for 70 per cent of the supplies needed for a battle region.
The Stryker addresses those mobility challenges and still delivers a powerful punch - with missile, cannon, artillery and machine-gun systems.
"We could use these in the valley now," said Caldwell, referring to the battle in the rocky regions of Afghanistan.
After testing and training, the Stryker will be deployed to possible combat missions in about one year. In total, 2,131 of the vehicles will be built and delivered to the U.S. in the next six years.
"This is a great day for the army, a great day for Canada and a great day for the partnership," said Ogg, referring to the joint venture of GM Defense and General Dynamics.
"Today we are ending one thing and beginning another. We are ending an idea from our leadership" and beginning the army transformation.
Bill Pettipas, executive director GM Defense, praised the about 1,500 workers at the London plant for delivering the vehicle under "very tight time lines."
He dubbed the vehicle the NEV, or no excuse vehicle, since there was little margin for error.
GM Defense has 500 suppliers worldwide, including about 25 in London. In Canada, there are about 200 suppliers that get about $400 million in business from GM Defense.
"This is something we should be very proud of," said DeCicco. "GM Defense has always been a good corporate citizen in London, they create a great number of jobs and when you get a contract like this, it just builds the reputation of the community.
"Our reputation is now global because of GM Defense."