A SWAT vehicle, also known as an armoured rescue vehicle, a vehicle used by

police tactical unit A police tactical unit (PTU) is a specialized police unit trained to handle situations that are beyond the capabilities of ordinary law enforcement units because of the level of violence (or risk of violence) involved. A police tactical unit's tas ...

s to respond to incidents. These are often non-military armored vehicles which offer protection to the passengers and can additionally be used to transport specialized equipment such as weapons and breaching tools.

Production

SWAT In the United States, a SWAT team (special weapons and tactics, originally special weapons assault team) is a police tactical unit that uses specialized or military equipment and tactics. Although they were first created in the 1960s to ...

vehicle may simply be an unarmored van, SUV or truck used to transport equipment or officers or used as a command post. Other more specialized vehicles may be

armoured personnel carrier An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. Acc ...

s to allow them to be in situations where armed confrontation is likely. Early versions of the SWAT vehicles were based on production vans such as the

International Harvester Metro Van The International Metro Van, made by International Harvester, is a step van, also known as walk-in or multi-stop delivery truck. This vehicle type was one of the earlier, mass-produced forward control vehicles, once commonly used for milk or b ...

s. Specialized heavy-duty commercial vehicles can be up-fitted and built solely as SWAT Vehicles, such as the Ballistic Armored Tactical Transport from The Armored Group, LLC;

Mesa, Arizona Mesa ( ) is a city in Maricopa County, in the U.S. state of Arizona. It is the most populous city in the East Valley section of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. It is bordered by Tempe on the west, the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Communit ...

currently operates one of these vehicles. The

Lenco BearCat The Lenco BearCat is a wheeled SWAT vehicle designed for military and law enforcement use. It is in use by several military forces and law enforcement agencies around the world. History Since 1981 the Massachusetts-based Lenco Industries, known ...

is another of these such vehicles built upon a commercial Ford F550 chassis.

s are currently used by various agencies such as the LAPD, NYPD and Australian police tactical groups. Ambulances and armored trucks can also be converted into SWAT vans or trucks. De-militarized

armored personnel carriers An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. Ac ...

can be used for this purpose, as is the case with the police department of

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

which uses an M113 APC as part of its inventory or the

Florida Highway Patrol The Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) is a division of the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. It is Florida's highway patrol and is the primary law enforcement agency charged with investigating traffic crashes and criminal laws ...

, which has three Cadillac-Gage V-150s.

Around the world

France

Among other armoured vehicles, the SWAT units of the French National Police

RAID Raid, RAID or Raids may refer to: Attack * Raid (military), a sudden attack behind the enemy's lines without the intention of holding ground * Corporate raid, a type of hostile takeover in business * Panty raid, a prankish raid by male college ...

and Research and Intervention Brigade (BRI) are equipped with different armoured vans.

Germany

Armoured police vehicles were first introduced after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

police forces The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

, who had more than hundred armoured vehicles called german: Sonderwagen (German for special automobile). Nowadays the

Federal Police A law enforcement agency (LEA) is any government agency responsible for the enforcement of the laws. Jurisdiction LEAs which have their ability to apply their powers restricted in some way are said to operate within a jurisdiction. LEAs ...

and the state police forces still maintain armoured vans, like ''Sonderwagen 4'' and ''Sonderwagen 5''. The federal police recently also ordered the LAPV Enok in addition to its

Mowag Eagle The MOWAG Eagle is a wheeled armored vehicle designed by the Swiss MOWAG corporation. It has gone through several generations of development. The current vehicle, introduced in November 2003, is the Eagle IV, which is based on the Duro IIIP chass ...

and

ATF Dingo The ATF Dingo is a German heavily armored military MRAP infantry mobility vehicle based on a Unimog chassis with a V-hull design, produced by the company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW). The first prototype of the Dingo 1 was completed in 1995 a ...

. The SEK special state police units use armored vehicles like the LAPV Enok and the Survivor R.

Japan

Riot Police Unit are the rapid reaction forces of Japanese prefectural police. These units are not only riot police, but a type of emergency service unit to maintain public order against large civil disorder, disaster response, or other emergency situations ...

s have been operating some series of , mainly used as mobile shelters and barriers. More heavily-armored vehicles called were introduced in the 1960s. The first deployed model was called Type F-3, based on

Mitsubishi The is a group of autonomous Japanese multinational companies in a variety of industries. Founded by Yatarō Iwasaki in 1870, the Mitsubishi Group historically descended from the Mitsubishi zaibatsu, a unified company which existed from 1870 ...

's cab-after-engine

truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructi ...

s. They were initially treated as idlers because there are only few reports of

gun violence Gun-related violence is violence committed with the use of a firearm. Gun-related violence may or may not be considered criminal. Criminal violence includes homicide (except when and where ruled justifiable), assault with a deadly weapon, and ...

in Japan, but they were highly appreciated during the

Asama-Sansō incident The was a hostage crisis and police siege at a mountain lodge near Karuizawa in Nagano Prefecture, Japan, which lasted from February 19 to February 28, 1972. The police rescue operation on the final day of the standoff was the first marathon ...

in 1972 and their significance were widely recognized. After several model changes, Type PV-2 based on the

Mitsubishi Fuso Canter The is a line of light-duty commercial vehicles manufactured by Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation, part of Daimler Truck, subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz Group. The Canter is manufactured since 1963, now in its eighth generation. The Can ...

is now deployed nationwide, mainly for Anti-firearms squads. There are also simplified version called , and much larger ; the latter is dedicated to the

Special Assault Team The is a police tactical unit in major Japanese prefectural police departments, supervised by the National Police Agency. The SAT is a national-level counter-terrorism unit that cooperates with territorial-level Anti-Firearms Squads and Cou ...

United Kingdom

Police in the United Kingdom, particularly the

Police Service of Northern Ireland The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI; ga, Seirbhís Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster-Scots: ') is the police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) after it was reform ...

(PSNI), has a great number of police role armoured vehicles based upon a range of base platforms including the

Land Rover Defender The Land Rover Defender (initially introduced as the Land Rover 110 / One Ten, and in 1984 joined by the Land Rover 90 / Ninety, plus the new, extra-length Land Rover 127 in 1985) is a series of British off-road cars and pick-up truck, pickup ...

and the OVIK Crossway. The internal security situation in Northern Ireland demands that the police operate up to 450 armoured vehicles which are optimised for public order duties. The PSNI uses OVIK Pangolin armoured public order vehicles.

United States

SWAT units may also employ ARVs (Armored Rescue Vehicle) for insertion, maneuvering, or during tactical operations such as the rescue of civilians, officers, firefighters, and/or military personnel pinned down by gunfire. To avoid detection by suspects during insertion in urban environments, SWAT units may also use modified buses, vans, trucks, or other seemingly normal vehicles. During the 1997 North Hollywood shootout,

LAPD SWAT Metropolitan Division, also known as METRO, is an elite division with in the Los Angeles Police Department under Special Operations Bureau which is responsible for managing the department's specialized units, including the Line Platoons(B Team, ...

commandeered an armored cash-delivery truck, which they used to extract wounded civilians and officers from the raging firefight with the heavily armed bank robbers.

References

{{Commons category, Police armored fighting vehicles Police vehicles Paramilitary vehicles Vans