Rosenbauer Panther is a model of

airport crash tender An airport crash tender (known in some countries as an airport fire appliance) is a specialised Fire apparatus, fire engine designed for use in aircraft firefighting at aerodromes, airports, and military air bases. Description Airport crash ...

produced by Austrian manufacturer

Rosenbauer The Rosenbauer Group is the world’s third largest manufacturers of Fire apparatus, fire-service vehicles and firefighting equipment, based in Leonding, Austria. Rosenbauer supplies the fire fighting sector in over 100 countries with a wide ran ...

. It exists in 4x4,

6x6 Six-wheel drive (6WD or 6×6) is an all-wheel drive drivetrain configuration of three axles with at least two wheels on each axle capable of being driven simultaneously by the vehicle's engine. Unlike four-wheel drive drivetrains, the config ...

and 8x8 versions, with a 6x6 electric version in development. The 8x8 version accommodates 14,500 litres (3,830 gallons) of fire extinguishing agents and a maximum speed of 140 km/h (87 mph), with an operating weight of 40 tons.

History

The Panther was released in 1991 and was the second airport crash tender vehicle from the manufacturer as a successor of the Rosenbauer Simba, which was discontinued in 1996. Panther was showcased at the

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

show. The new vehicle was designed by Kristian Fenzl based on a

MAN A man is an adult male human. Before adulthood, a male child or adolescent is referred to as a boy. Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromosome from the f ...

36.1000 VFAEG chassis, powered by a MAN 22 litre V12 charge-cooled diesel engine producing 735kW (990hp) at 2,300rpm. Weighing at 36 tons, the vehicle was capable of accelerating from 0-80 km/h in 25 seconds with a top speed of 140 km/h, also having an

automatic gearbox An automatic transmission (AT) or automatic gearbox is a multi-speed transmission used in motor vehicles that does not require any input from the driver to change forward gears under normal driving conditions. The 1904 Sturtevant "horseless ca ...

and a gradability of 60%. The Panther can carry 10,000-14,000 litres of water, 1,000-2,000 litres of

foaming agent A foaming agent is a material such as a surfactant or a blowing agent that facilitates the formation of foam. A surfactant, when present in small amounts, reduces surface tension of a liquid (reduces the work needed to create the foam) or increas ...

and up to 500 kg of

powder A powder is a dry solid composed of many very fine particles that may flow freely when shaken or tilted. Powders are a special sub-class of granular materials, although the terms ''powder'' and ''granular'' are sometimes used to distinguish se ...

. The vehicle usually has an 8x8 drivetrain, but smaller vehicles with 4x4 and

drivetrain were also manufactured. These became available in May 1992.

Models

* Panther 4x4 * Panther 6x6s * Panther 6x6 * Panther 6x6 electric * Panther 8x8

Capacity

References

Notes

External links