An Cosantóir

www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE | 17 the tailgate and the Bergans positions at the rear would not have allowed the tailgate to open. Car Commanders and crews could tailor the vehicles to their teams' mission needs. There are another four smoke pots located on the driver's rear corner, and they guard the most important piece of kit on the vehicle. The removable Boiling Vessel or BV is a 24v kettle come slow cooker that can make tea or you can drop in your main meal from a ration pack and have a hot al fresco dining experience rather than cold morale-sapping gruel. Everything about the SRV is pretty much good old American automotive technology in the form of heavy box section members and old-school heavy-duty leaf springs. The turning circle would not be great on these big Fords, and the Irish found their range to be sufficient, especially considering their weight when fully loaded. Americans also complained about the loud engine noise of these trucks when first introduced. In my humble opinion, they have a throaty and distinctive V8 diesel burble that exudes power. Prices in 2004 for an off-the-forecourt civilian model ranged in the US from $6,495 to $23,999. I paid €21,000 for a bog-standard VW Golf for my mother back then. Every light comes with a PVC light cover that seems to have survived its full-service life. Also amazingly tough are the fabric mesh with padded outer edges that allow operators to ride with their battle vests or webbing fitted. The vehicle also has a standard NATO battery jump socket facing towards the Commander's left ankle. Both front occupants also have large baskets on the outside allow them to stow "quick grab" items. These baskets are mounted to stiffeners that provide the vehicle with additional strength now that the doors are permanently removed. The SRVs were only ever deployed to Chad in a first for Ireland, as it was an EU-led peace mission rather than UN-mandated. The Fords were delivered by Antonov air freighter and were used to patrol the Chad/Sudan border and provided overwatch to allow Irish Engineers to set up a camp from scratch. The cars were kitted out with large round EUFOR stickers on the rear bodies and bonnets and an EU circle of stars on the front right bumper. The only sticker that lasted was the bumper one, as the others all fell off in the tough conditions. They used dayglo orange signal tarps to show their position to friendly aircraft. The roll cage allowed the front two passengers to drape camo nets over it to keep the relentless African sun off their heads. The cars performed flawlessly in the tough conditions and were even used in a daring and successful civilian hostage rescue. The main issue was with tyres that were destroyed by the thorns and local conditions. In the post-deployment debrief the Rangers asked for a logistics mothership that would allow them greater range and ability to operate deep from base while on deployment. They received Acmat trucks and they have proven to work complementary of each other. The cars are now coming to the end of their lives, and I think the tough Rangers will actually miss them, they might even shed a tear when they are retired. We will not have long to wait until we find out what their replacement might be as trials of certain replacements have already been spotted. Colin Stone served as a reservist for 26 years and writes for magazines and books across the world. "Míle Buíochas to the CO, RSM, CS and the Transport NCOs for their assistance in the preparation of this article." The Ranger car commander has placed the GPMG spare parts wallet next to the weapon, hung from the pintle mount. Note the "cosy" flak jacket over the side basket. Ford F-350 S.F. Vehicle on patrol Chad 2008

• Cover