Armoured Wheeled Vehicles...
This page will contain details of various Armoured (including “lite” bolt-on kits, like for the Land-Rover) vehicles and non-armoured related vehicles (such as the Humber truck from which the Armoured Pig came) as well as Reconnoissance and Patrol vehicles.
Many of these are used when the British Army need to take up Police or anti-riot roles and found the normal vehicles designed for “normal war” unsuitable...
Makes me ask the question why do soft-skinned vehicles used in N. Ireland suddenly need armour, when the Government was willing to send soft-skinned vehicles into war against East German and Russian Tanks for nearly 40 years?
Austin Champ
LAND ROVERS
Why “Rock and Roll”?, When the road “Rocks” you “Roll” (in theory) hence the roll bars and full harness seat belts and head-pads, etc. The Rock and roll has blast deflectors on the front windows and next to the seats, and a heavy squared off anti-mine plate under it which tends to get stuck in sand and make life difficult. The Pink Panther (2nd from Top Land Rover) mine-proofing was sloped and even helped to stop the fuel tanks getting stuck in the sand and giving resistance to recovery when a dig-out is needed. Earlier Pink Panthers (the 1st Land Rover drawing) did not have any armour at all.
Tangi Armoured Land Rover as used in Northern Ireland and Yorkshire...
It is intended to replace these Landrovers with the new Future C&L Vehicles.
IVECO LMV (UK name FCLV “Panther”)
See this off-page site for a Mk 3 “Piglet” with loads of Pictures (CLICK HERE)
It takes a while to draw these, below a view of the main stages of how these drawings develop... Other vehicles such as Humber Pigs, Saxons, Saracens, etc., will follow shortly.
There was no Mk III made, The Mk IV and Mk V have a swim skirt that can be raised for river crossing. Since the Mk IV and V are virtually Identical, I have clambered onto the Mk IV and raised the Skirt (Officially called Screen) to show you the naughty bits.... Blushing! The spare wheel and side storage bins are replaced with buoyancy tanks. There is no Spare wheel, as the tyres are now “Run on Flat” type. Better than trying to change a tyre under fire...
Slightly smaller than the Ferret is the WW2 Daimler Dingo....
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...and about the same size as the ferret is the Humber Mk1 Scout Car
On the Otherhand, slightly larger than the Ferret are the Alvis Saladin and Saracen, which share the same 6x6 basics as the Stalwart.
The Stalwart (below) shares, as said, the same basics as the Saladin and Saracen above, and some videos of it in action can be found on the “other Vehicles pages” Click HERE or on the Stalwart Drawing below to go to that page...
The development of the Saracen took longer than expected and the Army found itself desperately in need of a temporary Armoured vehicle to fill the gap. So they had a contingent of the new Humber Truck 4x4 CT 1 Ton’s made into an armoured vehicle. Since Humber had never given their vehicles a name, the new vehicle was promptly named “Pig” by the soldiers, either because of its pig-like snout, or because as some suggest it was a pig to drive.
Size Comparison
Humber “Pig” in both Canvas topped late 1950s versions, and Hard Topped APC, Ambulance and NI Patrol version
In the UK the Humber Pigs were at first Dark Admiralty Grey, then in keeping with their Germany based counterparts later all Deep Bronze Green and later NATO green.
The Humber Pig originates from the Humber Truck 1 Ton CT and was a temporary construction due to delays in the design and deployment of the Alvis Saracen. The above (FV 1609) version is the 1950s to 1967 version the FV 1611 below it, is the Northern Ireland used version from the early 1970s.
M3A1 or M5 Armoured Car
Several manufacturers made identical copies of the M2 Halftrack, the M3A and the M5 in both Halftrack and Wheeled versions, The lower drawing shows a modified US star on the bonnet and a triangle inside the driver’s door when the armour plate is up. This was a special paint that changed colour when the vehicle entered a Gas cloud. It was used on many D-day vehicles, such as on this ambulance. Many were fitted with anti-ditch rollers on the front bumper, others with extended bumper and a powerful motor-winch.
Here some more drawings of the current Army vehicles (from the V-1994-2009 Pages)....
Alvis Tactica (Replacement for the Humber Armd Pig)
Pinzgauer
Latest model, the “Vector.” A 6x6 Pinzgauer with more protection.
Bullet proof glass, modular armour plates, screens and an IR Thermal Dress
MOWAG DURO (Switzerland)
Of the 66 larger DURO III (12 ton) vehicles:
48 will also be applied as communications vehicles 18 will be equipped for bomb disposal. A number of these DUROs are already in operation with the British Army in Iraq for bomb disposal missions.
Although they look cheap and flimsy, they are in fact an off spin of the Swiss Banks need for lots of Armoured Money transporters and better at protecting the people inside than any of the UKs efforts so far.
Bucher (Mowag) Heavy Armoured (Bomb proof) Command Vehicle.
The term Bomb Proof is a bit misleading, then if it drives over a mine the vehicle (but not its occupants) is destroyed. A “V” shaped floor pan deflects most of the under-vehicle blast to the side, usually removing the wheels and side tanks in the process. The front cab may tip forward as a result of the blast, but the two passengers and driver can better survive that than the motor being thrown up through the floor where the cab to be less flexible.
Bucher was the predecessor name of Mowag, and is also used by the German federal army in Afghanistan where such vehicles have saved the lives of many German soldiers.
The Springer
The Springer is an All Terrain Buggy based on the Californian Beach and Dune Buggies. It is a “Tomcat “ made by the UK company EPS who recently got an order from the MOD for the Desert version to be used as a “Light Role Load Carriage Platform” ...
The Springer (The current UK used version)
The Springer is an All Terrain Buggy based on the Californian Beach and Dune Buggies. I have drawn it with “balloon” aircraft tyres for the desert, then it spends most of its time in the air, and needs ex-Navy personnel to crew it due to the severe sea sickness you get in these things... (Personal Experience)
It is a “Tomcat“ made under licence by the UK company EPS who recently got an order from the MOD for the Desert version to be used as a “Light Role Load Carriage Platform” The Israeli version of the Tomcat is called the Guardium and is Armoured (See next drawing below) and they also make a remote control (Unmanned vehicle) version to patrol camp and airfield boundaries and maybe later also do desert patrols.
Remote Unmanned Vehicles
The Israeli “RUV” version of the Tomcat “the Guardium” left for human or Remote, and right just for remote Use... Even when remote, they spare no cost and so it is Armoured (See UK’s version below). It is currently used to patrol camp and airfield boundaries and maybe later also do remote killing and desert patrols.
And the MOD’s Answer
The UK government seeing a need for bolt on armour upgrade kits for their open bodied Springer’s, have placed an order with the long defunct all-british company “Tri-Ang Meccano” (renamed “MoD-Cano”) to make low cost Bolt-on metal plates as can be seen in this “top secret experimental version” below... Also the boffins are working on a new Clockwork motor to save fuel in the desert. It comes complete with a 2BA spanner, Screwdriver and clockwork key... Gordon Brown said “The additional Ventilation will make this a hit with our troops out in Afghanistan, and also do not let the bullet holes show up so much!”
