Ford in Talks to Provide U.S., European Militaries with Trucks
FordMotor Company is in talks to provide U.S. and European militaries withconverted versions of itspickup trucks (, subscription).
Whats going on:Negotiations, which began last year, are productive, though they havent yet yielded a contract, the automaker said [recently] in a blog post. Chief Executive OfficerJim Farleytoldanalystslast month the automaker is in early discussions with the U.S. government on some defense-related needs.
- By using commercial-off-the-shelf solutions manufactured byFord, governments can access highly capable vehicles and world-class technology at a fraction of the time and cost.
- The news aligns with the administrations strategy, announced last year, of diversifying its prime and subcontractor sourcing to better manage cost and schedule growth ().
- Fordwas named specifically by Army Secretary Dan Driscoll this year as amanufacturerwith which the Defense Department was seeking to do business.
The trucks:Fordis offering converted versions of its top-selling F-Series pickups, including its largest Super Duty trucks, to the defense departments.But no specific projects have been finalized yet, the company said.
Back to its roots: Detroits automakers played a critical role in building aircraft, vehicles and engines during World War II in what became known as the Arsenal of Democracy. More recently,Fordswitched to manufacturing ventilators and personal protective equipment during the pandemic in 2020.
