Japan has chosen the Finnish Patria AMVXP 8×8 armored personnel carrier to equip the Japan Ground Self-Defense Forces.

The Patria company reported about this.

The Japanese Ministry of Defense has announced that the Patria AMV XP will be the next 8×8 wheeled armored personnel carrier under the WAPC program.

The selection includes manufacturing licence of the vehicles in Japan with a solid contribution to the local economy and technology development, securing supply and service in Japan.

The Patria AMVXP 8×8 vehicles will be replacing the Type-96 8×8 Armored Personnel Carrier vehicles which are currently in service with the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force.

Japan will be the ninth user country of Patria’s AMV vehicle family.

Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Forces will receive the state-of-the-art and highly effective Japanese manufactured AMV XP armored personnel carriers.

According to Patria’s press release, the company has worked for the WAPC program since 2018 and has also established a local subsidiary, Patria Japan Ltd., to support its activity in Japan.

The Patria AMV XP is the latest version of the Patria AMV family of armored vehicles. The spacious internal volume of the hull and the high ability to transport a payload allow simultaneous integration of weapon systems, protection and other equipment on the vehicle, as well as transportation of infantry.

Patria AMV XP has a length of 8.4 m, a width of 2.8 m and a height of 2.4 m. The combat weight of the vehicle is 32,000 kg, the carrying capacity is 15,000 kg. Suspension, transmission and engine power are optimized for a large combat weight.

Various weapons can be integrated on the chassis, including light and heavy combat modules, which can be equipped with both large-caliber machine guns and automatic guns, anti-tank systems and other weapons.

The AMV XP provides a road speed of over 100 km/h and is able to travel on water at a maximum speed of 10 km/h.