Australia signed a contract worth $25 million with Thales Australia to deliver nine vehicle training simulators for crews operating the Australian Light Armored Vehicle.

The Crew Procedural Trainer simulator provides troops who operate the ASLAV with realistic training across a range of environments. It refines procedures before troops deploy on operations, Minister for Defense Materiel Jason Clare said.

"Simulation is an increasingly important method of training for defense personnel as combat systems become more complex. It also increases the safety of our troops and reduces fuel usage."

The simulators will be assembled at the Thales facility in Rydalmere, New South Wales, before being delivered to army units in 2013.

The army previously ordered nine simulators for the ASLAV, an Australian version of the LAV-25, designed and manufactured by General Dynamics Land Systems Canada for the U.S. Marines.

The initial LAV design was the Mowag Piranha 8x8, designed by Swiss Mowag -- since April last year called General Dynamics European Land Systems -- Mowag Corp. But the vehicle was re-designed to meet North American requirements and U.S. military standards. It is a highly mobile, eight-wheeled amphibious armored vehicle used for reconnaissance and surveillance operations.

All wheels are equipped with a solid-core secondary tire next to the hub, allowing the vehicle to be driven even with eight flat tires, the manufacturer says.

Earlier this year, General Dynamics Land Systems Australia won a five-year contract to provide through-life support service to the Australian army's fleet of combat vehicles. The $48 million contract is for maintenance of the army's more than 300 wheeled armored fighting vehicles, M1A1 Abrams tanks and M88A2 Hercules heavy recovery vehicles.

The contract, which includes a one-year phase-in period, is for spare parts, repairs, maintenance and engineering work when needed, GDLS Australia, a business unit of General Dynamics Land Systems Canada in London, Ontario, said in a statement.

In May 2010, GDLS Australia was named the preferred bidder for the contract -- then said to be worth around $107 million.

Clare also announced this week that defense has taken delivery of three main gun mounts as part of the navy's $8 billion Air Warfare Destroyer project.

The mounts, manufactured by BAE Systems in the United States, are valued at $80 million and will be placed in a controlled storage facility in Adelaide until they are installed on the navy's Hobart, Brisbane and Sydney ships.

"The guns will be able to hit targets on land, air and at sea," Clare said. "They are capable of firing both (Australian navy) standard munitions and future extended-range munitions."

Similar gun mounts are installed on the navy's ANZAC Class frigates, the U.S. Navy's Arleigh Burke Class destroyers, the Spanish F-100 frigates and on ships within the South Korean, Japanese and Danish navies.

More than 1,000 people are working on the construction of the ships across three shipyards in Australia -- at ASC in South Australia, Forgacs in New South Wales and BAE Systems in Victoria.

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