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| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Defense |
| Founded | March 7, 1982; 43 years ago (1982-03-07) |
| Headquarters | Sterling Heights, Michigan, U.S. |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | Defense |
| Parent | General Dynamics |
| Website | www |
General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) is an American manufacturer of military vehicles, includingtanks and lightArmoured fighting vehicles. The company is based inSterling Heights, Michigan, and is a subsidiary ofGeneral Dynamics.
It was originally established in 1982 following the acquisition ofChrysler Defense.[1]
GDLS is known for developing and manufacturing vehicles such as theM1 Abrams tank,Stryker, andLAV 6.
In February 1982,Chrysler announced the sale of Chrysler Defense, its profitable defense subsidiary, toGeneral Dynamics for US$348.5 million. The sale was completed in March 1982 for the revised figure of US$336.1 million and renamed General Dynamics Land Systems.[2][3] Under this newly formed division, General Dynamics would take over production of theM60 andM1 tanks for the United States Army.
In 1985, 3 years after the sale from Chrysler, General Dynamics production plants in Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania went on strike. Members of these plants were part of theUnited Automobile Workers union. The strike was primarily around wage increases.[4]
On April 11, 2024, theChinese Foreign Ministry announcedsanctions on the company due to its arms sales to Taiwan.[5] On March 4, 2025, theChinese Ministry of Commerce placed 15 U.S. entities (including General Dynamics Land Systems) on its export control list, barring the export of dual-use commodities to that business.[6][7]
General Dynamics Land Systems–Australia (GDLS-Australia orGDLS-A) was established in 2000 as a subsidiary to support the production ofASLAV.[8] GDLS-A now provides engineering, manufacturing, systems integration, upgrade and fleet management services for GDLS Armoured Fighting Vehicles in the Asia Pacific region. In Australia this includes the ADF'sASLAV Light Armoured Vehicles andM1A1 Main Battle Tanks, supported under a Through Life Support Contract awarded in June 2011.
GDLS-A reports operationally to General Dynamics Land Systems–Canada (GDLS-C).
GDLS-A was established in October 2000 as General Motors Defence Australia. General Motors Defense operations worldwide were sold to General Dynamics Land Systems in March 2003. GDLS-A was established as a result of GDLS-C being awarded the Phase III contract to provide 144 Australian Light Armoured Vehicles (ASLAV) to the Commonwealth of Australia. The contract provided for the manufacture of the LAV-25 turret system in Adelaide and the establishment of a significant Australian supplier base to support manufacturing for GDLS' global supply chain for LAV-25 turrets.
GDLS-A’s primary customer is theDefence Materiel Organisation, Commonwealth of Australia, located inMelbourne, Victoria. Its National Manufacturing and Support Centre is located north ofAdelaide inPooraka. GDLS-A also has Field Service Groups inDarwin andBrisbane, and a Fleet Management Services office in Southbank, Melbourne.
In 2003, GDLS acquired Steyr-Daimler-Puch Spezialfahrzeug GmbH (SSF), the land defense vehicles unit ofSteyr-Daimler-Puch, and General Dynamics Land Systems – Canada (GDLS-C), a subsidiary of General Dynamics based inLondon, Ontario, purchasedGeneral Motors Diesel,GM Defense unit fromGeneral Motors. At the time, it produced vehicles such as theLAV-25 andStryker. The London operation continued in the GM Diesel plant location.[9] SSF merged into theGeneral Dynamics European Land Systems (GDELS) unit.
In 2015, GDLS Canada secured a fourteen-year, $15-billion deal to supply light armoured vehicles toSaudi Arabia.[10] Representatives fromUnifor, the plant union, expressed concern that the London facility would suffer financially due to negative publicity surrounding the deal due tohuman rights concerns within Saudi Arabia.[11] BothBloc Québécois leaderGilles Duceppe andNew DemocratThomas Mulcair challenged Prime MinisterStephen Harper on the secrecy surrounding military sales to Saudi Arabia. David Perry, senior analyst with theCanadian Defence and Foreign Affairs Institute, argued that secrecy in trade details is part of a pragmatic foreigntrade policy necessary for a domestic industry in a global market.[10]
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The division operates theLima Army Tank Plant and General Dynamics Anniston Operations inAnniston, Alabama, along with smaller operations inTallahassee, Florida, andScranton, Pennsylvania. Headquarters are located inSterling Heights, Michigan. As of 2016, General Dynamics Land Systems employed 6,800 people.[12]
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