Dardo IFV The Dardo is an infantry fighting vehicle designed for the Italian Army as a replacement for the M113 APC . It is designed and built by the Iveco Fiat Oto Melara Syndicated Company based in Rome . Iveco is responsible for the hull and propulsion systems , while Oto Melara is responsible for the weapons and fire control systems . Description . Armament . The Dardo is primarily armed with the 25mm Oerlikon KBA automatic cannon firing 600 rounds per minute , with 200 rounds of ready to fire ammunition stored in the turret . Two 7 . 62mm NATO machine guns are also installed in the turret , one coaxially mounted with the main gun . Five rifle ports , two on each side of the hull and one in the rear are provided to allow troops inside to use their personal weapons , if needed . Fire control is provided by the Galileo Avionica Hitfist integrated fire control system which is capable of measuring target speed and range . The commander is provided with six episcope sights which provides 360° field of view . The cupola can be further fitted with a panoramic stabilised sight . Additionally , a laser range finder and a thermal imager is provided for the gunner . The commander is equipped with a monitor that displays the view from the gunner night vision system . For dealing with heavy armoured threats , two Spike - LR anti tank missiles can be installed on both sides of the turret with a maximum range of 4 km . Self protection . The Dardo hull is built from welded aluminum alloy with add on steel armour plates for increased protection . Over the frontal arc , the vehicle is protected against 25mm APDS projectiles . The side armour protects against 14 . 5 API projectiles . Four 80mm smoke grenade launchers , are installed on both sides of the turret , for a total of eight . Propulsion . The Dardo is powered by an Iveco V6 turbo - charged after - cooled diesel engine delivering 512 hp ( 382 . 2 kW ) . This drives a ZF - designed automatic transmission system which is manufactured under license by Iveco Fiat . The transmission system has four forward and two reverse gears , and incorporates the steering system and the hydraulic retarder . The running gear consists of six dual rubber lined road wheels , with three return rollers on each side and connector type tracks . The suspension consists of a torsion bar , bumper and a hydraulic shock absorber on each suspension arm . Disc brakes on each of the final drives controlled by a transmission retarder provide the braking . Together , this allows the Dardo to achieve speeds in excess of 70 km / h , maneuver on gradients of more than 60 % and ford waters up to a depth of 1 . 5 m . Future variants . The Dardos currently in service with the Italian Army are fitted with the " Hitfist " IFV turret . The chassis is intended to be the basic model of a family of vehicles , which may include a 120 mm mortar carrier , command ( C3I ) vehicle , ambulance and light tank with a 105mm gun turret . Combat history . Dardos were deployed with the Italian Army as part of the Italian contribution to Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2004 . Currently ten are in Afghanistan , to reinforce the Italian Battlegroups there . Also some are in use with the Italian UNIFIL contingent .