The Wessex Saker Light Strike Vehicle was a
British Army
The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
light vehicle similar to a
sandrail.
They were produced in the late 1980s for the British
Special Air Service
The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. It was founded as a regiment in 1941 by David Stirling, and in 1950 it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-terr ...
.
Design was by Wessex and
Devonport Management Limited. The frame was welded tube and power, to the rear wheels only, was from a
Volkswagen
Volkswagen (VW; )English: , . is a German automotive industry, automobile manufacturer based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Established in 1937 by German Labour Front, The German Labour Front, it was revitalized into the global brand it ...
1.6 litre air-cooled petrol engine. It was a two-man vehicle which could be armed with either a
7.62 mm GMPG or a 0.5 inch
M2 machine gun
The M2 machine gun or Browning .50-caliber machine gun (informally, "Ma Deuce") is a heavy machine gun that was designed near the end of World War I by John Browning. While similar to Browning's M1919 Browning machine gun, which was chambered ...
.
The vehicles were used as a mobile platform to mount heavy weapon systems including anti-tank missiles. The vehicle could be carried on the larger helicopters, such as the CH-47 Chinook or the UH-60 Blackhawk.
See also
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Desert Patrol Vehicle
The Desert Patrol Vehicle (DPV), formerly called the Fast Attack Vehicle (FAV), is a Chenowth high-speed, lightly armored sandrail-like vehicle first used in combat during the Gulf War in 1991. Due to their dash speed and off-road mobility, the ...
/
Light Strike Vehicle
The Light Strike Vehicle (LSV) is an improved version of the Desert Patrol Vehicle (DPV), which it was designed to replace. Special operation groups adopted the LSV for its small size and high mobility. It is part of the family of Growler (jeep) ...
*
Light Strike Vehicle (Singapore)
The Light Strike Vehicle (LSV) is a light fast attack vehicle used by the Singapore Army. In 2013, the Singapore-designed and -made Light Strike Vehicle Mark II (LSV MK.II) entered service to replace the ageing Singapore and Australian-made Light ...
Notes and references
Military Vehicle club featured vehicles
Military vehicles of the United Kingdom
Military light utility vehicles
Special Air Service
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