A staff car is a vehicle used by a senior

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distin ...

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," ...

, and is part of their country's white fleet. The term is most often used in relation to the United Kingdom where they were first used in quantity during World War I, examples being the Vauxhall D-type and Crossley 20/25. Staff cars are often painted in

camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the b ...

colours, or plain black. In the U.S., Brazil and other American countries the frequent colour is flat olive-drab as used on the 1941 Buick Century Series 60, used during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. It was generally painted in

khaki The color khaki (, ) is a light shade of tan with a slight yellowish tinge. Khaki has been used by many armies around the world for uniforms and equipment, particularly in arid or desert regions, where it provides camouflage relative to sandy ...

, with a white star on the front doors. Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, commander in chief of the Allied Forces on the Western Front during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, used a Packard Clipper 1942 staff car. The Plymouth P11 1941 was also used frequently. During the Second World War the German

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previou ...

(armed forces) also used staff cars for various purposes. These included military models with machine gun mounts like the Horch 108 and converted civilian versions for high-ranking officers like the Horch 853. Mercedes-Benz also produced vehicles that the Wehrmacht converted for use as staff cars.

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered a ...

Bernard Montgomery Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, (; 17 November 1887 – 24 March 1976), nicknamed "Monty", was a senior British Army officer who served in the First World War, the Irish War of Independence and ...

used a 1939 Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith during the war and continued to use it while serving as Commander of the British Army of the Rhine and as Chief of the Imperial General Staff. It was used by successive Chiefs of the Imperial General Staff until its retirement in 1964. Currently it is on display at the

Royal Logistic Corps Museum The Royal Logistic Corps Museum is based at Worthy Down near Winchester. It tells story of logistic support to the British Army from Agincourt to the modern day. The museum holds the collection of the Royal Logistic Corps RLC and the collec ...

In popular culture

The '' Dad's Army'' episodes “The Captain's Car” and “The Making of Private Pike” deal with staff cars; in the former case, the car was donated by a local aristocrat. Staff cars were also used in the American television sitcom '' Hogan's Heroes'', in which Colonel Wilhelm Klink ( Werner Klemperer) and General Albert Burkhalter ( Leon Askin) both had staff cars that they frequently used throughout the series.

External links

The Buick Century Series 60General Patton's Staff CarFord Fordor 1942 Staff Car

References

Military vehicles by type {{mil-vehicle-stub