Armoured patrol vehicle

The Otokar armoured patrol vehicle is a light 4x4, similar in stvle to the Shorland SS5, intended for military and security roles. Badged as a ‘Land Rover’, the manufacturers claim that the vehicle shares around 80% of mechanical components with the Defender 110, which, of course, brings considerable practical and logistical advantages.

Power is provided by the Land Rover 300 Tdi four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine, driving all four wheels through a five-speed manual gearbox and Land Rover power train. The heavy-duty live axles are suspended on long-travel, dual-rate coil springs. Axle location is by radius arms and Panhard rod at the front with tubular trailing links at the rear, in combination with a centrally-mounted A’ frame. Run-flat tyres are a standard fitment.

The welded steel hull provides protection from 7.62mm NATO ball ammunition fired at point-blank range, and machine-pressed glass-fibre composite armour plates under the floor area help to deflect blast from anti-personnel mines, grenades and improvised explosive

Above: Otokar Defender 90 equipped with the venerable M40 106mm recoiless rifle. (PW)

Left: Otokar armoured patrol vehicle with a small armoured turret. (PW)

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Top: Crew-cabbed Otokar Defender 130. (PW)

Above: Otokar 110 ambulance. (PW)

Devices. The driver has a two-piece multi-layer laminate windscreen. Small windows are set into the door tops and all windows are protected to the same ballistic standards as the hull and include anti-spall polycarbonate liners. Access to the rear compartment is obtained by two side-hung doors, whilst armoured doors allow easy access to the

Interconnected cab. The hull also includes small side and rear vision/ firing ports.

Air-conditioning and internal ventilation are provided as standard equipment.

The standard APC can accommodate six fully-equipped personnel on inward-facing bench seats, together with a crew of two in the cab. The vehicle can be fitted with a roof hatch or a simple open turret, typically mounting a 7.62mm or.50 calibre machine gun. Other variants include ambulance, workshop, command, airfield security and internal security vehicles.

Optional equipment includes a barricade remover, public address system, searchlights and electrically-operated winch the vehicle remains in production at the time of writing.