World’s largest manufacturers of construction machinery, Liebherr with Rheinmetall, the leading European supplier of military equipment have announced on 1 April that delivered the first batch of armoured mobile and rescue cranes to Germany Army.

According to a news release put out by Liebherr and Rheinmetall, Liebherr-Werk Ehingen GmbH delivered the first of 71 protected mobile and recovery cranes to the Bundeswehr under a major procurement contract.

On 27 June 2017, Liebherr-Werk Ehingen GmbH received an order from the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw) to deliver a total of 71 armoured mobile and recovery cranes worth around $168 million.

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The order comprises the delivery of 33 armoured recovery cranes with model name G-BKF and 38 G-LTM 1090-4.2 mobile cranes. These are 90-tonne class telescopic cranes which also feature armoured driver’s cabins and armoured crane cabins. The deliveries are due to start in the second half of next year and be completed by 2021.

The G-BKF from Liebherr is an armoured recovery crane on a four-axle mobile crane chassis. It has excellent off-road capability and great manoeuvrability. The G-BKF can be used flexibly and economically since it is equipped both to hoist loads and also to recover vehicles. Its 20.9 meter telescopic boom enables the G-BKF to handle loads up to 20 tonnes in weight quickly and precisely. Its two recovery winches and towing device at the rear enable it to recover and tow a wide range of different vehicles.

The G-LTM 1090-4.2 ordered by the German Army is a four-axle mobile crane derived from the standard LTM 1090-4.2 version with an armoured driver’s cabin and an armoured crane cabin. It has a 35.7 metre telescopic boom and a recovery winch at the rear. The order from the German Army involves 17 G-LTM 1090-4.2 cranes with 8.4 tonnes of counterweight known as “Heavy duty mobile cranes” and 21 units of the same model with 22.5 tonnes of counterweight with the designation “Very heavy duty mobile cranes”. The order also includes container systems for transporting crane equipment.

The focus when the order was placed was on the protection of passengers. To meet the high requirements in this respect, Liebherr-Werk Ehingen GmbH worked with Rheinmetall, the leading European supplier of military equipment, on the armoured driver’s cabins and armoured crane cabins. The driver’s cabins protect the crew from ballistic, mine and IED threats and also feature an NBC ventilation system. The superstructure cabins protect the crane driver from ballistic threats during crane operations. The two cabins are identical for the G-LTM and G-BKF vehicles.