The Sand Cat Protected Patrol Vehicle “Plasan Sand Cat”
The Sand Cat Protected Patrol Vehicle entered the market in 2005. Originally it was built by Israeli Firm Plasan on a commercial Ford F-Series chassis. Plasan have a much respected reputation as a manufacturer of armour materials and their products are used extensively in the US MRAP program.
The Sand Cat Protected Patrol Vehicle – “Oshkosh Sand Cat”
Oshkosh are a prolific manufacturer of military wheeled vehicles in the US and since 2008 have branded the vehicle as their own with a new remodelled front as the vehicle uses a 9-ton F550 chassis.
The Oshkosh Sand Cat includes lessons learned from MRAP and features impact-absorbing suspended seats and a V-hull to add underbelly armour protection. In 2010 the SandCat was upgraded with twice the under body blast protection of previous versions.
The vehicle is much viewed as a modern alternative to the more susceptible HMMWV and as a stop gap whilst the HMMWV replacement is being developed, which of course is a big pair of shoes to fit in.
So far the vehicle is operated by Bulgaria, Canada, Israel and Sweden. Oshkosh also market the vehicle as the TPV SWAT TRUCK.