Germany suspends Puma procurement, Marder to continue serving with VJTF

Germany suspended procurement of the Puma IFV on 19 December after 18 of the vehicles broke down in an exercise preparing for their first assignment to the NATO VJTF in January 2023. (Rheinmetall)

Germany suspended procurement of the Puma infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) on 19 December after 18 of the vehicles broke down in an exercise preparing for their first assignment to the NATO Response Force Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF) in January, when Germany takes over command of the force.

German Navy Captain David Helmhold, a spokesperson in the Ministry of Defence (MoD), told a government press conference in Berlin on 19 December that the cause of the breakdowns was being investigated and that 42 Pumas upgraded to the VJTF standard could be affected. He added that a total of 350 Pumas had so far been delivered. Capt Helmhold said that Marder IFVs would be assigned to the VJTF instead of Pumas.

A joint statement published late on 21 December by the MoD, Krauss Maffei-Wegmann (KMW), and Rheinmetall said that experts from the two companies were examining some of the faulty Pumas to form a picture of the damage so that the IFVs can be repaired in the next two or maximum three weeks.

The joint statement described the damage as “very distinctive” and said that industry has been analysing it since it occurred, in close co-operation with the MoD and Bundeswehr.

KMW and Rheinmetall personnel have been sent to Bundeswehr locations where defective Pumas are located, including Rheinmetall's Unterlüß site, which is close to the Munster training area where the IFVs broke down.