Post by Marah "Tonobi" Law on Dec 9, 2009 11:19:36 GMT 8
* Technical Data *
Length:
Width:
Height:
Mass:
Max Sub-Light Speed:
Max Hyperdrive Speed:
Crew:
Powerplant:
Secondary Power Plant:
* Weaponary and Defensive Systems *
* Onboard Technologies *
Performance
The DPV was built by Chenowth Racing Products, Inc. in El Cajon, California. The DPV, powered by a 200 hp VW engine for a payload of 1500 lb / 680 kg, is capable of accelerating from 0 to 30 mph / 0 –50 km/h in only four seconds. The DPV can travel at speeds up to 80 mph /130 km/h. With its standard 21 gallon / 79.5 litre fuel tank, the DPV has a range of about 210 miles / 338 km. An optional fuel bladder can extend the range to over 1,000 miles / 1610 km.
History
The DPV is a variant of the Fast Attack Vehicle which was developed during the 1980s as part of the United States' Army's High Technology Light Division (9th Infantry Division). The HTLD was given carte blanche to develop doctrine, decide force structure, and design equipment by then Army Chief of Staff Edward C. Meyer. One of the pieces of equipment created was the Fast Attack Vehicle. Chenowth delivered 120 FAVs to the Army in 1981. Along with light off-road motorbikes, the FAV was intended to provide a highly mobile component to the mostly foot infantry unit.
Eventually, the FAVs were replaced by High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWVs) in general military use which did not provide nearly the speed nor extreme off-road capabilities of the FAVs. Eventually, the FAVs were transferred to special forces use where it has been largely replaced by the LSV.
The United States Marines Corps also fielded a Fast Attack Vehicle. This was a completely separate piece of equipment based on the venerable M151 MUTT. This FAV stayed in use long after the fielding of the HMMWV because it could fit on Marine Corps helicopters while the wider HMMWV could not. In 1999, this FAV began to be replaced with the Interim Fast Attack Vehicle (IFAV) a version of the Mercedes-Benz MB 290 GD 1.5 ton truck.
Armament
The original tests used commercial dune buggies modified to carry weapons such as TOW missiles and recoilless rifles. The recoilless rifles still had enough recoil that they were abandoned (they tended to flip the light dune buggies). The TOW missiles had much greater success, but they violated existing Army TOW doctrine. The Army had determined that a TOW needed a 3 man team to operate it. The DPVs could only carry a two man crew and they seemed perfectly capable of operating the TOW, but this would have meant revisiting Army doctrine and possibly changing TOW deployment throughout the Army. Fort Benning decided to offer a "superior" DPV design that allowed a third crewman. This design was rejected by the HTLD team and was never produced.
The basic weapons on a DPV consist of a heavy .50 caliber M2 Browning machine gun, two lighter 7.62x51 mm M60 machine guns, and two M136 AT4 anti-armor weapons. In some cases, the driver's M60 or the gunner's M2 is replaced with a 40 mm Mk 19 grenade launcher. Other light machine guns such as the M240 machine gun or 5.56x45 mm M249 SAW can also be mounted.
Length:
Width:
Height:
Mass:
Max Sub-Light Speed:
Max Hyperdrive Speed:
Crew:
Powerplant:
Secondary Power Plant:
* Weaponary and Defensive Systems *
* Onboard Technologies *
Performance
The DPV was built by Chenowth Racing Products, Inc. in El Cajon, California. The DPV, powered by a 200 hp VW engine for a payload of 1500 lb / 680 kg, is capable of accelerating from 0 to 30 mph / 0 –50 km/h in only four seconds. The DPV can travel at speeds up to 80 mph /130 km/h. With its standard 21 gallon / 79.5 litre fuel tank, the DPV has a range of about 210 miles / 338 km. An optional fuel bladder can extend the range to over 1,000 miles / 1610 km.
History
The DPV is a variant of the Fast Attack Vehicle which was developed during the 1980s as part of the United States' Army's High Technology Light Division (9th Infantry Division). The HTLD was given carte blanche to develop doctrine, decide force structure, and design equipment by then Army Chief of Staff Edward C. Meyer. One of the pieces of equipment created was the Fast Attack Vehicle. Chenowth delivered 120 FAVs to the Army in 1981. Along with light off-road motorbikes, the FAV was intended to provide a highly mobile component to the mostly foot infantry unit.
Eventually, the FAVs were replaced by High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWVs) in general military use which did not provide nearly the speed nor extreme off-road capabilities of the FAVs. Eventually, the FAVs were transferred to special forces use where it has been largely replaced by the LSV.
The United States Marines Corps also fielded a Fast Attack Vehicle. This was a completely separate piece of equipment based on the venerable M151 MUTT. This FAV stayed in use long after the fielding of the HMMWV because it could fit on Marine Corps helicopters while the wider HMMWV could not. In 1999, this FAV began to be replaced with the Interim Fast Attack Vehicle (IFAV) a version of the Mercedes-Benz MB 290 GD 1.5 ton truck.
Armament
The original tests used commercial dune buggies modified to carry weapons such as TOW missiles and recoilless rifles. The recoilless rifles still had enough recoil that they were abandoned (they tended to flip the light dune buggies). The TOW missiles had much greater success, but they violated existing Army TOW doctrine. The Army had determined that a TOW needed a 3 man team to operate it. The DPVs could only carry a two man crew and they seemed perfectly capable of operating the TOW, but this would have meant revisiting Army doctrine and possibly changing TOW deployment throughout the Army. Fort Benning decided to offer a "superior" DPV design that allowed a third crewman. This design was rejected by the HTLD team and was never produced.
The basic weapons on a DPV consist of a heavy .50 caliber M2 Browning machine gun, two lighter 7.62x51 mm M60 machine guns, and two M136 AT4 anti-armor weapons. In some cases, the driver's M60 or the gunner's M2 is replaced with a 40 mm Mk 19 grenade launcher. Other light machine guns such as the M240 machine gun or 5.56x45 mm M249 SAW can also be mounted.