The Casspir is undoubtedly the vehicle that determines the standards of modern mine-resistant
ambush-protected, a.k.a MRAP, class vehicles. Although it is now older than 40 years, it is
still among the best. Today, we are investigating the Casspir, an undying South African legend.
The Casspir was designed not for the South African Defence Force but for the South African Police,
shortly SAP. So, it takes its name from an anagram of the abbreviations of the customer,
the SAP, and the design authority, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, shortly CSIR.
However, this vehicle was so successful that the South African Defence Force,
or SADF, also took it to its service.
Before continuing, we would like to thank Dr Dewald Venter, who allowed us to use the
information from his book, "South African Armoured Fighting Vehicles: A History of
Innovation and Excellence, 1960-2020", and his article on the "Tank Encyclopedia" website.
A senior officer of the SAP's Security Branch, Hans Dreyer, who had served in the Rhodesian
Bush War, had found the chance to observe the highly effective tactics of the Selous Scouts
unit of the Rhodesian Security Forces. When the South West Africa Police formed
a counter-insurgency branch referred to as Koevoet in 1979,
he was appointed to lead it. Dreyer directly patterned the Koevoet after the Selous Scouts.
The primary task was to perform long patrols in the key regions to prevent a possible infiltration
and destroy the forward camps. Secondly, the Koevoet units would follow the insurgent groups,
who managed to infiltrate and destroy them, no matter how long it took.
But, the vehicles used by the SAP at that time, like the Hippo, were unsuitable for such missions.
Luckily, the Defence Research Unit of the CSIR had been working on a new type of mine-protected
vehicle concept with a monocoque hull since 1977. Initially, it integrated
a monocoque hull on a Hippo body. This new variant, called Crocodile, was unsuccessful,
and the project was terminated shortly after. The base vehicle, the Hippo, had a low off-road
capability. Besides, it had been made from Bedford truck parts, which were unreliable
and insufficient. The attempt to install a Unimog 352 engine had been unsuccessful.
Even though these projects failed, the monocoque hull design was promising.
The second prototype, called Flossie, was produced in 1978 with Mercedes Benz commercial truck
components, which led to the development of the Rinkhals Mk I armoured ambulance,
the first monocoque mine-protected vehicle to be taken into service with the SADF.
These experiences helped the creation of the Casspir, which would perfectly fulfil
the requirements of the newly formed Koevoet. It was a vehicle based on the Mercedes Benz
LA1113/42, not a Bedford truck. The prototype of the Casspir was
completed in 1979. After the vehicle completed its trials successfully,
the SAP ordered 140 Casspirs in 1980. The first vehicles were designated as Mk I,
which was produced by the CSIR, today Mechem. Based on the user feedback, the Casspir
was constantly improved. In 1981, TFM took over the
production of the vehicle. The TFM-made Casspirs were redesignated as Mk II.
The most apparent change in the Mk II was that the escape hatch located on the left side was removed.
In 1982, the South West African Territorial Force decided to reorganize its 101st Battalion
to perform similar missions as the Koevoet did. Initially, the 901st and 903rd companies of the
Battalion were converted to reaction forces, commonly known as the Reaksie Mag. Later,
the 902nd and 904th companies were also recognized for this mission. As a natural consequence of
this transformation, the SADF decided to take the Casspir Mk IIs into the service.
Still, the army's requirements were higher than the SAP had.
So, the Mk III variant was introduced soon. This version had a thicker V-shaped hull,
larger tyres and a different engine. The Mk III standard also included structural alterations for
improved mobility, with more robust axles. The production of the Casspir ceased in
1994. But the story does not end. The modernization and modification
of the existing vehicle have continued. For example, the Casspir Mk2C(I) variant
was fitted with an upgraded Tata driveline system and the 157-horsepower Tata 697 TC diesel engine.
Also, in 2010, Mechem relaunched production and introduced the Casspir IV variant.
One year later, the company unveiled the 6x6 Casspir Mk 6 version,
based on the Russian Ural 4320 truck with the 230-horsepower YAMZ 236NE2 turbocharged engine.
The Casspir NG2000 variant is still one of the leading competitors in the MRAP market.
It has three sub-variants; the Mercedes Benz-based Casspir NG2000A,
the Powerstar – North Benz-based Casspir 2000B, and SINO Truck Military-based Casspir 2000C.
The Casspir was developed to intercept insurgent groups from Angola or track
and destroy them inside Angola. But surprisingly, this country became
one of the recent customers of the vehicle. In 2013, Angola ordered 45 Casspir 2000Bs.
Besides these baseline models, the Casspir has many mission-specialized variants.
The Koevoet, which conducted long-range patrols, chases, and raids, required the
logistic support version of the vehicle. So, TFM developed and produced the Blesbok
freighter with 5 tons cargo carrying capacity, the Duiker tanker with 5,000 litres diesel
fuel tank, and the Gemsbok recovery vehicle. But, the SADF, which had already had its own
logistic support vehicles, did not prefer them. The Plofadder is the Casspir variant with
the containerized Plofadder 160AT rocket-propelled mine-clearing system.
Also, some vehicles are equipped with several different mine detection systems.
Casspir's mine protection capacity is so high that Mechem uses vehicles fitted with
steel wheels to clear anti-personnel mines in international humanitarian missions.
The Casspir also has a weapon carrier with the 106mm M40 recoilless gun, a mortar
carrier with 81mm mortar, an ambulance, internal security, artillery fire control and the Ground
Shout psychological warfare variants. The unique subvariants of the latest
Angolan Casspir 2000Bs are the 6x6 Eland recovery vehicle and water tanker. Also,
Mechem delivered a weapon carrier model with the 23mm ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun to this country.
The non-serial Sesspir was a 6x4 variant of the vehicle with a forward sacrificial
axle and extended nose. The main idea in this model was to keep the vehicle
mobile even when the front wheels detonated a landmine. But the result was not satisfactory.
The Casspir has a modular layout, which makes maintenance easier.
Also, thanks to this design, many automotive parts and subsystems have easily been changed
for better performance and sustainability. Since they have easy-to-reach positions,
maintenance and repair of the Casspir can be performed in the field condition effortlessly.
It is an essential capability for an MRAP, which has a high risk of being
damaged during an operation. The troops and crew enter and
leave via two power-assisted doors in the rear, controlled by the driver.
There are also six hatches on the roof. The early models of the Casspir
had two impeller fans to ventilate the crew compartment and keep onboard equipment cool.
But, since they were insufficient for the job, especially during summer,
roof hatches were generally kept open. The later versions of the vehicle are
often fitted with air-conditioning systems. Because of designed for long-range operation,
which can last five to seven days, the Casspir has a 200-litre drinking water tank.
The internal security variant of the Casspir features larger bullet-proof side windows
with fixed grills against rocks. The grill on the windscreen can be pneumatically raised to
increase visibility. The front buffer can be lowered by the driver to bulldoze barricades
and other obstructions. A wire cutter can also be mounted on the roof if demanded.
For a high 4x4 wheeled vehicle, the Casspir is considerably stable and has superior off-road
mobility. Its semi-elliptic leaf springs on the front and rear axles allow for a great
degree of deflecting. There are check straps to counter the axle rebound and improve stability.
The strengthened front design gives the vehicle bush-breaking capability.
The V-shaped monocoque hull of the Casspir is of all-welded steel and can withstand 7.62mm
rounds and shell splinters. The monocoque hull design reduces production costs,
increases durability against the blast effect and provides space efficiency.
Unlike the previous Buffel, the fuel tank and engine are inside the armoured hull,
which protects them from landmine blasts, thereby reducing the risk of a secondary explosion.
The Casspir can protect its occupants against the explosion of 21 kilograms of TNT equivalent
explosives under any wheel and 14 kilograms of TNT equivalent explosives under the hull.
Its repair times in field condition after a single anti-tank mine explosion are between
1 and 2 hours. But multiple detonations of mines require 8 to 12 hours of repair work.
The 52-millimetre-thick bullet-proof windows have the same protection level as the hull.
Still, the Casspir is highly vulnerable against RPG-type anti-tank weapons.
So, during the South African Bush War, 18-millimetre-thick wooden
layers were installed inside the crew compartment as spall liners.
The Casspir has no standard weapon. But, it can be fitted with 5.56, 7.62,
12.7 or 14.5mm machine guns, grenade launchers, or 20mm cannons over the commander position.
There are 14 firing ports on the vehicle, six on each side and one on each rear door.
Also, the Casspir has a single 7.62mm machine gun mounting on the front left window.
According to the 2002-03 Edition of Jane's Armour and Artillery, the Casspir Mk III variant has a
two-person crew consisting of a commander/gunner and driver and can carry ten infantry.
The vehicle has a length of 6.87 metres, a width of 2.5 metres, and a height of 2.85 metres.
Its combat weight is 12,580 kilograms. The 170-horsepower ADE-352T diesel engine provides
a road speed of 90 kilometres per hour. Its range is 850 kilometres. The Casspir Mk III can
negotiate 0.5-metre vertical steps and 1.6-metre trenches. Its fording capability is 1 metre.
During the South African Bush War, the Casspirs were involved in more than 350
anti-tank mine detonation incidents. Hitting the anti-personnel mines was regular. Initially,
they performed well in protecting their occupants. However, this success caused SWAPO to start
preparing more powerful traps containing more explosives. In a 4.5-year period, the Casspir fell
into these traps 229 times, in which 252 South Africans were injured, and 12 lost their lives.
Considering that the 101st Battalion alone engaged with the enemy 200 times annually,
this casualty rate was actually low. The Casspir has also proved itself in India since
the first day. One of two vehicles, supplied for extensive trials, was tested with four different
mines and blast detonations, and it could still be driven back the 1,657 kilometres to Bombay.
Impressed by this achievement, the Indian Army has deployed the Casspirs into Kashmir, and they
have successfully been used in anti-terror and internal security operations since then.
Today more than 20 countries trust their Casspirs to protect their soldiers from
landmines and IED attacks. After 40 years, this vehicle is still one of the bests.
It seems the Casspir will add new pages to its saga for a long time with its new variants.
This vehicle will continue to protect its comrades and put fear in its enemies' hearts. The Casspir,
the undying hero, is indisputably a true legend. Thanks for watching our video. And please don't
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