The Al-Fahd is an

armoured fighting vehicle An armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by armour, generally combining operational mobility with offensive and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked. Examples of AFVs are tanks, armoured car ...

used by the

Armed Forces of Saudi Arabia The Saudi Arabian Armed Forces (SAAF) ( ar, القُوَّات المُسَلَّحَة العَرَبِيَّة السُّعُودِيَّة, Al-Quwwat al-Musallahah al-Malakiyah as-Su’ūdiyah), also known as the Royal Saudi Armed Forces, ar ...

. It was the first

armored fighting vehicle An armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by armour, generally combining operational mobility with offensive and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked. Examples of AFVs are tanks, armoured cars, ...

developed and built-in

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

. The vehicle is produced by the

Abdallah Al Faris Company for Heavy Industries Abdallah Al Faris Company for Heavy Industries is one of the main suppliers of arms to the Saudi Arabian Army. It has created the Al-Fahd and the Al-Faris 8-400 The Al-Faris 8-400 Armored Personnel Carrier, produced by the Abdullah Al-Faris Heavy ...

, which is based in

Dammam Dammam ( ar, الدمّام ') is the fifth-most populous city in Saudi Arabia after Riyadh, Jeddah, Mecca, and Medina. It is the capital of the Eastern Province. With a total population of 1,252,523 as of 2020. The judicial and administrative ...

. The Al Fahd is available in three configurations: The AF-40-8-1; an

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 ...

(APC) or

infantry fighting vehicle An infantry fighting vehicle (IFV), also known as a mechanized infantry combat vehicle (MICV), is a type of armoured fighting vehicle used to carry infantry into battle and provide direct-fire support. The 1990 Treaty on Conventional Armed Forc ...

(IFV) variant, and the AF-40-8-2; an armoured fighting/

reconnaissance vehicle A reconnaissance vehicle, also known as a scout vehicle, is a military vehicle used for forward reconnaissance. Both tracked and wheeled reconnaissance vehicles are in service. In some nations, light tanks such as the M551 Sheridan and AMX-13 have ...

(AFRV).

Design

Mobility

The AF-40-8-1 and AF-40-8-2 are similar in terms of 8-wheeled hull configuration, suspension, and transmission. Internally, however, the vehicles differ in both engine type and engine placement. The AF-40-8-2's larger, 12-cylinder engine is mounted at the rear of the hull, where the AF-40-8-1's 10-cylinder engine is mounted at the front to allow for the troop compartment and rear troop ramp which is not present on or required for the AFRV version. The Al Fahd uses a variable

hydropneumatic suspension Hydropneumatic suspension is a type of motor vehicle suspension system, designed by Paul Magès, invented by Citroën, and fitted to Citroën cars, as well as being used under licence by other car manufacturers, notably Rolls-Royce ( Silver Shado ...

which allows the vehicle to adjust its ground clearance by a total of - between and - depending on need. The vehicle is designed to be able to negotiate slopes of up to 80% (forward) and 55% (side), and cross trenches between and . There is also an

amphibious Amphibious means able to use either land or water. In particular it may refer to: Animals * Amphibian, a vertebrate animal of the class Amphibia (many of which live on land and breed in water) * Amphibious caterpillar * Amphibious fish, a fish ...

version of the Al Fahd available depending on customer requirements. The hydraulic propellers are optional, so not all Al Fahd's are capable of an

amphibious operation Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conducted u ...

Protection

The Al Fahd uses a high-hardness steel alloy to offer protection against 14 mm ammunition on the frontal arc at ranges of and greater, and

7.62 The 7.62 mm caliber is a nominal caliber used for a number of different cartridge (weaponry), cartridges. Historically, this class of cartridge was commonly known as .30 caliber, the imperial unit and United States customary unit, customary ...

mm ammunition at ranges of and greater on the sides and rear of the vehicle. The vehicle also incorporates multiple layers of

Kevlar Kevlar (para-aramid) is a strong, heat-resistant synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed by Stephanie Kwolek at DuPont in 1965, the high-strength material was first used commercially in the early 1970s a ...

internally to protect the crew and passengers against

spall Spall are fragments of a material that are broken off a larger solid body. It can be produced by a variety of mechanisms, including as a result of projectile impact, corrosion, weathering, cavitation, or excessive rolling pressure (as in a ball ...

Armament

The

armament A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, s ...

for both the AF-40-8-1 and AF-40-8-2 varies according to customer specifications. The AF-40-8-1 is capable of mounting anything up to and including a 40 mm cannon, and the AF-40-8-2 anything up to and including a low-recoil 105 mm cannon.

Operators

*The Militarization of the Persian Gulf: An Economic Analysis by Hossein Askari, Amin Mohseni, Shahrzad Daneshvar, p.90. * * * :

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

References

{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 Wheeled armoured fighting vehicles Military equipment of Saudi Arabia Military vehicles of Pakistan Eight-wheeled vehicles Military vehicles introduced in the 1990s