Swiss army grounds fleet of M113 armoured vehicles over steering fault

Swiss Army decommissions M113 armoured personnel carrier again Keystone-SDA

The Swiss army’s fleet of 248 M113 armoured personnel carriers has been banned from being driven after faults in their side‑drive system were detected. 

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A defect could cause the vehicles to lose steering and braking, leading to their full suspension from use as a precaution.

The head of the Armed Forces Logistics Base, Divisional Commander Rolf Siegenthaler, ordered the immediate suspension, the army said on Tuesday. The ban will remain in place until the faults have been fixed.

The issues came to light during routine maintenance, when metal fragments were found in the oil. The army said a faulty cylindrical roller bearing, fitted during the last overhaul, is believed to be the source of the problem.

This is the second time the M113 fleet has been taken out of service. In December 2023, the army issued a similar driving ban after a fault was found in the drive shaft.

Some of the affected vehicles are more than 50 years old. Plans are already in place to replace them as part of several modernisation programmes.

Translated from German by AI/sp

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