The ASCOD family includes the LT 105 light tank equipped with a 105 mm gun, a surface-to-air missile launcher, an anti-tank guided missile launcher, mortar carrier, R&R vehicle, command-and-control vehicle, ambulance, artillery observer, and the AIFV model.

The ASCOD was designed to replace the older light armoured fighting vehicles of the Austrian and Spanish armies, such as the M113 armored personnel carrier and the Saurer APC.

The Ulan would allow the Austrian army to deploy rapidly and effectively over longer distances, especially for foreseeable future operations—such as trouble-spots for UN operations.

This was followed by initial talks with the militaries of Greece, Norway and Switzerland to find the desired requirements for a new IFV.

In 1985, the decision to develop a new IFV was made following the Bundesheer announcement of the military requirement for the Kampfschützenpanzer 90 (combat infantry fighting vehicle 90).

The contract, activated in 1988, required Steyr-Daimler-Puch AG to follow Hellenic instructions, and to include parts already produced in Greece, such as the wheels, tracks, and smoke-grenade launchers based on those of the Leopard 1 tank.

[citation needed] Following the numerous changed requirements during the ASCOD's conception and development phases, the weight increased from the original 18.8 t to 25.2 t and finally 29.0 tonnes.

[3] Following these trials, a slightly updated third prototype was built, essentially equalling the version offered as ASCOD to Austria, Spain and other countries.

[6] In 2004, the Spanish Ministry of Defence ordered another 212 Pizarros (170 IFV, 5 C2V, 28 artillery observation, 8 recovery, 1 engineering vehicle) for €707.5 million Euros,[7] with up to 356 units total planned.

Around 300 British engineers at General Dynamics UK's Oakdale facility began developing the Ajax from the ASCOD 2 after being awarded the contract in 2010.

[15] The ASCOD mounts a 30 mm Mauser MK 30 [de]] autocannon in a fully traversable electro-mechanical turret.

The dual belt-fed 30 mm cannon, electrically stabilized on two planes, is able to fire at a rate of up to 770 rounds per minute and accurately engage targets on the move.

[3] The Pizarro is additionally fitted with limited amounts of SABBLIR explosive reactive armour along the frontal arc and might be upgraded with more later.

Both versions use a Renk HSWL 106C hydro-mechanical transmission, and suspension — based on torsion bars[8] and rotary dampers — designed and manufactured by "Piedrafita".

[3] The ASCOD chassis has been used for a number of vehicles in Spanish service and numerous private ventures developed for the export market.

The ASCOD 2 uses the more powerful MTU 8V 199T21 engine, which provides a 600 kilowatts (800 hp) output, together with a Renk HSWL 256 B transmission and Diehl 1028 tracks.

[25][26] In March 2010, the UK MoD announced that ASCOD 2 will be used as the base for the Scout Specialist Vehicle of the FRES program,[27] which was later renamed to "Ajax".

The ASCOD medium main battle tank (MMBT), with a gross vehicle weight of 42 tonnes, is fitted with the Italian Leonardo Defence Systems HITFACT 120 mm turret.

The 120 mm smoothbore gun is coupled to a computerised fire control system, with the commander and gunner having stabilised day/thermal sights incorporating a laser rangefinder.

[28] The ASCOD vehicle was chosen by the UK MoD as the common base platform on which the Ajax would be developed.

Around 300 British engineers at General Dynamics UK's Oakdale facility began developing the Scout from the ASCOD after being awarded the contract in 2010.

[4] The VAC [es] is the successor of the M113 TOA in the Spanish Army: It is based on the VCZ Castor chassis, it takes over the electronic architecture of the he VCR Dragón 8×8 [es], and exists in the following variants:[32] The Sabrah light tank's tracked version is a new variant developed and offered by Elbit Systems for the Philippine Army's Light Tank Acquisition Project.

[33] It uses the ASCOD 2 platform with a new turret, armed with 105 mm gun developed by Elbit in partnership with Denel Land Systems.

[34] The Notice of Award (NOA) for the project was issued to Elbit Systems Land by the Department of National Defense in September 2020.