The Snatch Land Rover is a protected patrol vehicle based on the
Land Rover Defender 110 chassis. Intended for general patrolling in low-threat areas, the vehicle was developed in 1992 for use in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
. It provides a limited degree of small arms protection for occupants and a limited level of protection from
Improvised Explosive Devices
An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached to a detonating mechan ...
and off-route mines.
The vehicle has been criticized as occupant deaths have resulted from
kinetic attacks which exceeded the level of protection available.
Overview
The Snatch is based on the
Land Rover
Land Rover is a British brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR currently builds Land Rovers ...
Heavy Duty Chassis, a militarised version of the
Defender 110 (also used for the
Land Rover Wolf
The Land Rover Wolf is a light military vehicle based on the Land Rover Defender introduced in 1994. The MoD designates the Wolf 90 as Truck Utility Light (TUL) HS and the Wolf 110 as Truck Utility Medium (TUM) HS. Where HS stands for High Sp ...
). It was originally procured for use in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
by the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
and was first introduced in 1992.
Officially designated Truck Utility Medium (TUM) with Vehicle Protection Kit (VPK), the vehicle is more widely known by its informal title, the "Snatch", even in official documentation. It is believed to have acquired the name from its use in
the Troubles
The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "i ...
, when it was the preferred vehicle for
snatch squad The term "snatch squad" refers to two tactics used by police in riot control and crowd control.
In riot control
The snatch squad in riot control involves several police officers, usually wearing protective riot gear, rushing forwards—occasionally ...
s: soldiers trained to deal with demonstrations by picking out and arresting suspected ringleaders.
The "Snatch" was the first factory modified Land Rover to be used in Northern Ireland, replacing a series of ''ad hoc'' conversions including protected Airportable Land Rover (
Land Rover 1/2 ton Lightweight) and 109" (known as the "piglet", being a smaller version of the
Humber Pig
The Humber Pig is a lightly armoured truck used by the British Army from the 1950s until the early 1990s. The Pig saw service with the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) chiefly as an armoured personnel carrier from late 1958 until early 1970. Th ...
armoured personnel carrier) then widely used by British Forces in Northern Ireland.
Manufactured as the CAMAC CAV 100 by NP Aerospace, the "Snatch" conversion was developed with the aid of
Ricardo
Ricardo is the Spanish and Portuguese cognate of the name Richard. It derived from Proto-Germanic ''*rīks'' 'king, ruler' + ''*harduz'' 'hard, brave'. It may be a given name, or a surname.
People Given name
*Ricardo de Araújo Pereira, Portugu ...
, and is fitted with CAMAC
composite armour
Composite armour is a type of vehicle armour consisting of layers of different material such as metals, plastics, ceramics or air. Most composite armours are lighter than their all-metal equivalent, but instead occupy a larger volume for the sam ...
to offer the crew protection against kinetic energy projectiles and, to a very limited degree, against explosive devices. Its rated "combat weight" (without crew and weapons) is 3,050 kg.
Six versions have been produced, the first being the original Snatch-1, equipped with a V8 petrol engine. Nearly 1,000 were produced, with 278 being "desertised" and reclassified as the Snatch-1.5. Most were upgraded to a second variant standard, either
* the Snatch-2 12v, LHD, the basic training variant;
* the Snatch-2A 24v, RHD, "Rest of World variant"; or
* the Snatch-2B 24v, RHD – the N. Ireland variant.
These later versions were retro-fitted with "300 Tdi" diesel engines and the 2A is also fitted with air conditioning.
Some Snatch 2 are being further upgraded to the Snatch Vixen standard with chassis and drivetrain enhancements for a higher
gross vehicle weight
Vehicle weight is a measurement of wheeled motor vehicles; either an actual measured weight of the vehicle under defined conditions or a gross weight rating for its weight carrying capacity.
Curb or kerb weight
Curb weight (U.S. English) or kerb ...
.
When deployed, the vehicles are often fitted with
electronic countermeasure
An electronic countermeasure (ECM) is an electrical or electronic device designed to trick or deceive radar, sonar, or other detection systems, like infrared (IR) or lasers. It may be used both offensively and defensively to deny targeting info ...
suites, which are designed to prevent certain types of
improvised explosive device
An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached to a detonating mechan ...
s (IEDs) being triggered, and
Bowman radios.
Criticism of vehicle use
Use of the vehicle has been the subject of criticism by the media, politicians and the families of some casualties in both the Afghan and Iraqi areas of British operations. This criticism became public knowledge in 2005 when the media published claims from civil servants in the
Foreign & Commonwealth Office
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' ministries of foreign affairs, it was created on 2 September 2020 through the merger of the Foreign ...
and
Department for International Development
, type = Department
, logo = DfID.svg
, logo_width = 180px
, logo_caption =
, picture = File:Admiralty Screen (411824276).jpg
, picture_width = 180px
, picture_caption = Department for International Development (London office) (far right ...
advising against the use of the vehicles.
Later concerns were raised in Parliament, presenting comparison with the
U.S. Marine Corps deployment of the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP)
Cougar
The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mamm ...
, which appeared to have provided more protection. The conservative peer
Lord Astor of Hever raising the comparison and inviting comment. In response the Minister for Defence Procurement,
Lord Drayson
Paul Rudd Drayson, Baron Drayson (born 5 March 1960), is a British businessman, amateur racing driver and Labour politician. He was Minister of Science in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills until May 2010, where he replaced I ...
, acknowledged that the Snatch was inappropriate but identified that trade-offs around protection and mobility were required, as well as highlighting previous maintainability issues with an earlier version of the Cougar. Similar issues were then reported in a
Sunday Telegraph
''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961 and published by the Telegraph Media Group, a division of Press Holdings.
It is the sister paper of ''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', kn ...
opinion piece and other news outlets. These also recognised the need for trade-off decisions to be made around posture and mobility.
Media reporting continued to escalate the topic whilst parliamentary dialogue continued.
Four families of servicemen killed in Snatch Land Rovers in Iraq and Afghanistan are to sue the Ministry of Defence, as reported by the BBC on 19 June 2009. Since 2003, some 37 UK personnel have been killed while using the vehicles.
The use of the Snatch in Afghanistan and Iraq has caused troops to name it a "Mobile Coffin".
Procurement of additional vehicles
In 2010 the MoD was in the process of procuring a number of vehicles with increased levels of protection, although of reduced mobility, to supplement the vehicle fleets in Afghanistan and Iraq. Existing orders for the
Pinzgauer Vector and the Bulldog, based on the
FV432
The FV432 is the armoured personnel carrier variant in the British Army's FV430 series of armoured fighting vehicles. Since its introduction in the 1960s, it has been the most common variant, being used for transporting infantry on the battlefie ...
, were increased. New vehicles, the Mastiff (6×6) and Ridgback (4×4), based on the Cougar, which is produced by the US firm
Force Protection Inc
Force Protection, Inc. was a manufacturer of ballistic- and blast-protected vehicles from the United States which have been used in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo and other hot spots around the world. The company was acquired by General Dynamics in 201 ...
, are under procurement. Some of these vehicles have been delivered and deployed to theatre. The UK MoD is also procuring 420
Panther CLV 4×4 vehicles in the Command and Liaison role. Mine and IED protection are prime features on this vehicle. In September 2010, Force Protection Europe, developer of the Ocelot light armoured vehicle, has been selected as the preferred bidder in U.K. Ministry of Defense (MoD) Light Protected Patrol Vehicle (LPPV) program. According to FPE, the first Ocelot vehicles are expected to be available for the training of UK forces in 2011. The initial phase will require up to 400 new vehicles to be delivered by 2010–2011. FPE won this competition against the all-British Supacat group, offering the Supacat Protected Vehicle (SPV) SPV-400. The Ocelot has an approximate gross vehicle weight of only 16,500 pounds. Its cabin is made of a protective pod, made of advanced composite materials incorporating Formula One racing technology. Critical components such as the engine, fuel tank and transmission are contained in the V-shaped armoured 'spine' that deflects potential blast away from the pod, thus protecting the occupants and critical key components.
Replacement
Former British Prime Minister,
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...
, announced on 6 March 2010, during his surprise visit to troops in Afghanistan, that the Snatch Land Rover would be replaced by a new "light patrol vehicle". This new vehicle was revealed by the Ministry of Defence as the
Ocelot
The ocelot (''Leopardus pardalis'') is a medium-sized spotted wild cat that reaches at the shoulders and weighs between on average. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized. It is native to the southwes ...
on 22 September 2010.
In 2011 it was confirmed that an
unmanned variant of the vehicle is a component of the Talisman route clearing system intended to counter IED attack. The vehicle is known as the
Panama remote controlled vehicle and is used to forward mount a sensor suite to avoid the need for EOD operators to dismount.
Snatch Public Order Upgrade Programme Ovik 'Phoenix'
In the wake of the 2011 riots in the UK and the success of the Pangolin Armoured Public Order Vehicles used in Northern Ireland, some British police forces approached the OVIK Group
to recycle former Snatch Land Rovers into cost effective Public Order Vehicles. This led to the creation of the Phoenix – B6+ Armoured Vehicle.
Refit
The refit takes up to 340 work hours to complete. This includes full engine and transmission refurbishment, significant upgrades to all brakes, addition of full 'public order kit' which included hardening of all doors, wings and bonnet, external fire protection system and finally protected emergency lighting, siren and radio system installed. This vehicle is currently in service with Avon and Somerset police.
Some of the options available to customers included:
* Impact resistant bonnet and wings.
* Armoured front radiator grille.
* Steel headlight and tail light protection.
* Front side and rear drop-down under-skirt.
* Heavy duty windscreen protection grille.
* Heavy duty side screen protection.
* Fire and explosive protection for fuel lines and tank.
* Choice of left or right hand drive
References
{{ModernUKNonAFVNav, style= wide
Armoured cars of the United Kingdom
SNATCH Land Rover
The Snatch Land Rover is a protected patrol vehicle based on the Land Rover Defender 110 chassis. Intended for general patrolling in low-threat areas, the vehicle was developed in 1992 for use in Northern Ireland. It provides a limited degree of ...
History of Northern Ireland
Cars of England
Military light utility vehicles
Military vehicles introduced in the 1990s