First Unipower M-Series bound for Oman
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• The first new M-Series combat support vehicles have emerged from Unipower's Watford factory.
They are part of a batch of nine 6x6 rapid deployment tank/heavy equipment transporters required by the Omani army and further orders are expected.
The vehicles, which will be used to support Challenger 2 battle tanks being supplied by Vickers, have 600hp (447kW) diesels (believed to be Cummins 19-litre KTA700s), matching automatic transmission and Unipower axles.
Rear bogie suspension is the proven arrangement of leaf springs on centre trunnion pivots with multi-link Panhard and radius rods. On its rear twin wheels the vehicles pull 120 tonnes at speeds up to 50mph (80km/h) and 41km/h on a 25% gradient. The Oman vehicles have four-man airconditioned crew cabs with the engine and side-mounted cooling system set behind it.
Matching four-axled trailers have a slightly longer loadbed than the Fruehauf units used in the Gulf war to enable Warrior-type AFVs to
be double loaded. a