Ocelot prowls UK MoD

Christopher F Foss

Tuesday, 8 September, 2009

Following the loss of a significant number of British troops killed in Afghanistan and Iraq while travelling in the Land Rover Snatch Light Protected Patrol Vehicle (LPPV), the UK Ministry of Defence is running an international competition to field a replacement vehicle.

One UK contender is the Ocelot LPPV, which has been developed as a private venture in less than six months by the recently formed Force Protection Europe (Stand 2314) and the Ricardo Special Vehicles engineering company (Stand 980).

Force Protection Europe is an offshoot of Force Protection in the US, which has built large numbers of Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles for the US armed forces and many export customers.
In mid-2009, a running Ocelot concept demonstrator was completed, followed by four pre-production vehicles, which are being integrated at the Ricardo facility in southern England.

As shown at DSEi, its first public outing, Ocelot has a gross vehicle weight of between 7.5 and 8.5 tonnes depending on the protection level, but with a growth potential up to 10 tonnes. Standard protection is claimed to be above STANAG 4569 level 2.

Ocelot features a V-shaped armoured spline that runs the full length of the vehicle, and contains the key subassemblies, including fuel tank and drive line. On this is mounted the composite survivability pod, which can be hinged either way to allow access to subsystems. This pod has a V-shaped lower half and flat sides that allow appliqué armour to be rapidly fitted.

At the front is the protected engine compartment, the upper part of which hinges forward for ease of access and allows rapid removal of the power pack. Standard equipment includes powered steering and run-flat tyres. If required, a central tyre inflation system can be fitted.

Ocelot has a crew of six consisting of commander and driver at the front and four troops at the rear on individual seats facing inwards that are attached to the sides of the vehicle.

Power pack currently consists of a Steyr-Daimler-Puch 3.2-litre diesel coupled to a ZF fully automatic transmission. Independent suspension is fitted for good cross-country mobility and alternative engine/powerpack options will be offered.

Ocelot has been developed to meet a number of emerging European requirements including the UK LPPV