Procurement

NTRO Buys 15-Seater Autonomous Bus From TIER IV for Australian Trials

NTRO Buys 15-Seater Autonomous Bus From TIER IV for Australian Trials

TOKYO – October 29, 2026 -- Australia's National Transport Research Organisation (NTRO) has bought a 15-seater electric autonomous bus from Japan's TIER IV, opening demonstrations and in-service trials to transport agencies and operators across Australia and New Zealand.

NTRO and TIER IV build on a 2024 collaboration

The two organizations formalized a strategic collaboration in 2024. It combines NTRO's experience running autonomous vehicle trials in the region with TIER IV's record of autonomous bus deployments in Japan. The vehicle runs on an autonomous driving system developed by TIER IV.

NTRO named the bus Rita after Rita Excell. As executive director of the Australian Driverless Vehicle Initiative, she partnered with the Australian Road Research Board (ARRB), a precursor of NTRO, on the country's first autonomous vehicle trial with Volvo XC90s in November 2015.

US Army Buys HAVIK Fires Trainer Kits for Soldier Virtual Trainer

US Army Buys HAVIK Fires Trainer Kits for Soldier Virtual Trainer

ORLANDO – October 29, 2026 -- The U.S. Army Capability Program Executive Simulation, Training, Test and Threat (CPE ST3) has purchased HAVIK ATLAS and SCOUT kits to inform future Joint Fires Training (JFT) requirements, with government acceptance and payment completed. The release did not disclose the purchase value or the number of kits.

Purchase feeds the Soldier Virtual Trainer program of record

The buy supports the Army's Soldier Virtual Trainer (SVT) modernization effort, which aims to ultimately replace the current Call for Fire Trainer 3. HAVIK kits will support CPE ST3's exploration of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) capabilities.

CPE ST3 spokesperson Donnie Ryan said "market research helps us understand available COTS capabilities and refine requirements." He said the kits will go to Army training locations around the country to collect instructor and Soldier feedback on JFT and other core SVT capabilities.