Shorland armoured patrol car

Development of the Shorland armoured patrol car began in the early 1960s when the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was searching for a replacement for the armoured personnel carriers in use at the time. The RUC believed that the Land Rover would provide a suitable basis for a well-protected law-enforcement vehicle which was not overtly militaristic in appearance.

The first prototype appeared in 1961 having been sketched by Ernie Lustie and constructed around a standard 109in (2.77m) Series II in the Belfast workshops of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Photographs show a slab-sided, boxy vehicle. Although the front wings remained more-or-less standard, the headlamps were moved to a low-down position in the wing fronts to allow the use of an armoured shutter to protect the radiator. The bonnet was also armoured. The doors were replaced by full-length armoured types with small hatches in place of the windows. At the rear, there was a slab-sided, bob-tailed armoured body mounting a small turret which carried a.30 calibre machine gun. A hatch in the rear provided an emergency escape point.

The resulting vehicle was considerably heavier than the standard Land Rover and there was some doubt as to whether the chassis would

Above: This field expedient armoured rail car was developed by the REME workshops in Kenya to provide a guard for trains which were at risk of attack during the emergency there in the early 1950s. (TM)

Have sufficient strength. In 1963, the prototype was sent to Solihull where Rover’s engineers suggested that the chassis, wheels and tyres should be reinforced. By August 1964 the prototype was back in Northern Ireland being demonstrated to the British Army but without success.

Undeterred, the RUC pressed on but, before finalising the design for production, proposed reducing the apparent bulk of the body and, at the same time, improving ballistic performance by increasing the angle of the sloped sides. Following further modifications, a production contract was placed with Short Brothers & Harland Limited and production began at the companys’ Newtonards factory in Co Down.

The first examples, based on the 109in (2.77m) Series II, came off the production line in luly 1965. Known as the ‘Mk 1’, these early Shorlands were powered by the 2,286cc four-cylinder engine, and had.30in (7.25mm) thick armoured bodies. The standard chassis was strengthened to support the armoured body, and Aeon hollow-rubber spring assisters were included in the suspension system. The four-wheel-drive system was permanently engaged and the drive-line was upgraded by the use of the heavy-duty ENV axles. The transmission and transfer gearbox from the civilian forward-control model was fitted.

There was a manually-operated turret which was rotatable through 360°. The standard weapon was a.30 calibre Browning with an optical periscope sight, or a 7.62mm general-purpose machine gun (GPMG); smoke dischargers could be fitted to the turret sides. Other weapons could also be mounted and, at the 1966 Farnborough Display, a Shorland was exhibited with turret-mounted Vickers Vigilant anti-tank missiles.

Short Brothers described the vehicle as being ‘an armoured body fitted to a slightly-modified long-wheelbase Land Rover chassis’, claiming that it had been ‘designed to meet a worldwide

Above and right:

This mock-up of the Shorland armoured car appeared in 1961 and was constructed by the Royal Ulster Constabulary on a long-wheelbase Series II. The turret was almost certainly taken from a Ferret or Saracen armoured vehicle. (TM)

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Above: Production Mk 4 Shorland armoured car on a 109in Series III chassis: there was also an armoured personnel carrier variant on the same chassis. (TM)

Requirement for an economical vehicle especially suited to certain types of tasks performed, according to local circumstances, by military, para-military and police forces... including reconnaissance, border patrol, convoy escort, internal security and mobile police duties’. The vehicle’s main advantage lay in the fact that it drove, and was maintained, like a standard Land Rover - there was no need to re-train crews or maintenance personnel, and some 80-85% of parts were interchangeable with the standard machine.

The accommodation for a driver, commander and turret gunner in the armoured body was necessarily somewhat cramped. The driver and commander were located in front seats, whilst the gunner was seated centrally behind, and slightly above them with his head in the turret... but, of course, he could also sit on the opened turret door.

Plastic-faced polyurethane foam was applied to the interior of the hull. The floor was of glass-fibre composite material providing some protection against the IRA’s favoured nail and pipe bombs. A hinged armoured screen was provided to protect the laminated-glass windscreen and drop-down visors for the driver and commander. Bullet-proof hatches were installed in the doors. Others for observation and escape were provided in the turret and at the rear; all were seamed and channelled to prevent the ingress of bullet ‘splash’. Although the front-end appeared standard, armoured protection was also provided for the engine and radiator. The fuel tank and a spare wheel were contained in a ‘bustle’ at the rear - an armoured compartment, separated from the crew area.

A fresh-air heating system was installed inside the body. ‘High-capacity extraction equipment’ could also be provided for use in hot climates.

All of this carried a weight penalty and the kerb weight had increased to more than 6,000lb (2,722kg) which, inevitably, compromised the power-to-weight ratio. Nevertheless, quoted top speed remained in the order of 50mph (80kph)

Right: Battered Mk 3 Shorland prototype, by now using the Series HA chassis. (TM)

Even if this was at some cost in fuel consumption. Long-range tanks could be specified, doubling the fuel load.

Two demonstrator vehicles were trialled by the General Service Unit of the Kenya Police Force between January and February 1966 and the vehicles were reported as having performed ‘extremely weir over 1,700 miles (2,736km) of arduous on and off-road trials.

Deliveries began in the spring of 1966, with 10 vehicles supplied to the RUC; deliveries were also made to the Bahrain State Police, and a ‘para-military force in the Congo’. By 1971, almost 200 vehicles had been constructed, and production had been moved to Belfast. As launched in 1966, the vehicle was priced at ?4,500 in ‘base’ form. Although this excluded weapons, radio and high-capacity heating/ cooling equipment, it was, nevertheless, a very economical price for an armoured patrol vehicle. Within a decade, more than 1,000 had been produced, with approximately 1,500 vehicles built by the time production came to an end in the mid-1990s.

Initially, the Northern Ireland vehicles were restricted to border patrols but, following the escalation of violence in 1969, Shorlands were used to patrol troubled areas of Belfast. All were withdrawn in late 1969 and subsequently reissued to the Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) in 1971, with a total of approximately 40 vehicles being used; the first examples being operated by the 6th Battalion (UDR).

The Mk 1 was superseded by the Mk 2, which had an increased thickness of armour (up to .33in [8.25mm]), and this, in turn, was replaced in 1971 by the Mk 3, now powered by the six-cylinder 2,625cc engine; an armoured-personnel carrier (APC) variant was also offered using the same chassis and front end, designated the SB-301. The last of the original line, the Mk 4 and the corresponding SB-401 Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC), appeared in 1980 using the Series III chassis and employing the 3.5-litre V8 engine with Salisbury axles fitted with vacuum-operated hydraulic differential locks.

Around 1986, the Series 5 was introduced, based on the llOin (2.79m) coil-sprung

Defender chassis. By this time, Shorts were offering a choice of the original armoured patrol car (now identified as S.51), turreted (S.52), un-turreted personnel carriers (S.55) and an air-defence vehicle (S.53), which mounted two Blowpipe or Javelin surface-to-air missiles. The Series 5 featured power steering, a wider track, improved suspension, a tighter turning circle and improved performance with a top speed of 75mph (121kph). Although the engine compartment and radiator were obviously armoured, Shorts could also supply vehicles with what was described as a Tow-profile Land Rover-type armoured front’ for operation in ‘sensitive areas’. Optional extras included run-flat tyres, a machine-gun hatch in the S.55, armoured glass and a public-address system.

By the time production of the final variant, the Series 5, came to an end, the Shorland was in service with more than 38 countries, including Argentina, Botswana, Brunei, Burundi, Guyana, Kenya, Libya, Malaysia, Portugal, Seychelles, Thailand, United Arab

Emirates... and, of course, in Northern Ireland. Interest was also said to have come from the German Border Police and the Danish Army.