L3Harris Technologies has been announced as the successful tenderer for a $30 million contract with the Australian Defence Force (ADF) to provide up to 80 robotic explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) systems to safeguard ADF personnel.
L3Harris will begin the delivery of a variety of medium-sized T4 and large-sized T7 robots to commence in late 2023. The robots are a part of the Land 154 program, which aims to enhance EOD unit capabilities in improvised explosive device (IED) neutralisation and exploitation as well as route clearance.
“We’re honoured the Australian Defence Force has put its trust in us to help safeguard its personnel,” said Ed Zoiss, President, Space and Airborne Systems, L3Harris. “The trust in our systems for EOD capabilities is growing around the globe, with units deployed by the UK, US and now Australia.
"Following the ADF contract award, we plan to establish a local service centre in Australia that will act as a repair hub for all robots within the Asia-Pacific region.”
The UK Ministry of Defence also replaced its legacy fleet of robots with 122 T7s for Project STARTER, seeing L3Harris robots deployed in the US, Cyprus and Gibraltar.
Further, since June 2021, the US Air Force has ordered more than 100 T7s to support global EOD missions.
The ADF is the first to adopt both T7s and the T4s.