Land Rover Tangi - History of Armoured Land Rovers in Northern Ireland

History of Armoured Land Rovers in Northern Ireland

Due to the unique threat of terrorism faced by police officers in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, the RUC had long used armoured vehicles to provide protection to its officers. The first to be based on the Land Rover appeared in 1957, based on a Series 1 109" wheelbase pick-up body. This incorporated only a basic level of protection, designed to defend against bricks and bottles in a public order situation. An expanded metal cage was fitted over the rear cargo bed and lined with hardboard to prevent sharp objects being thrust through the cage. Similar expanded metal grilles protected the windows and headlights on the vehicle to prevent them being broken by thrown projectiles.

However, it was not long before the police came under attack with firearms; against which the cages and hardboard of the early Land Rovers provided no protection. Plates of ballistic steel were added to each side of the rear cargo bed and an armoured steel door was fitted to the rear. Whilst this provided a greater degree of protection from low velocity weapons, there were many areas of the vehicle which were still unprotected. The RUC realised that a fresh design was required to protect their officers.

The result was the Hotspur Land Rover, named after the brand of armour plate made in Wales used in its construction. The chassis of a civilian Land Rover 109 station wagon was used. Underneath the standard aluminium roof a second roof, fabricated from armoured steel, was installed. This provided overhead protection from gunfire, petrol bombs and IEDs. Large plates of ballistic steel were bolted to the sides of the vehicle, which wrapped around the rear pillar and met with an armoured double door. Both of these doors and the side plates were fitted with sliding pistol ports, allowing the officers inside to return fire in the event of an ambush. The rear doors, sides and roof constituted an armoured box providing all round protection to the crew in the rear of the vehicle. For the protection of the driver and the front seat passenger, the windscreen and side windows were replaced with thick sheets of bulletproof glass, along with armour-plated doors. Finally, an expanded metal grille could be pulled up over the windscreen to prevent the windscreen being broken by thrown objects during civil disorder, and the side windows covered with a sheet of transparent polycarbonate for the same purpose.

The Hotspur was immediately put into action and worked admirably. Myriad modifications were carried out over the years, including lining the vehicles' lower panels with sheets of polycarbonate to prevent the body panels from being dented during civil disorder. Metal grilles and rubber skirts were fitted around the lower perimeter of the vehicle to prevent projectiles being thrown under the body at officers who were sheltering behind, and also to prevent beer kegs being rolled under the vehicle in an attempt to immobilise it.

By the end of 1983, 151 Hotspurs had also been fitted with a fire extinguishing system operated by the front seat passenger. In the event of the vehicle being hit by a petrol bomb, as was not uncommon during civil disorder, a dashboard button was pressed. This caused the heater blower and engine fan to switch off, and a fire extinguisher was automatically discharged through a series of pipes into the engine bay and over the windscreen and bonnet.

The Hotspur was complemented by a more advanced armoured Land Rover called the Simba. This, rather than being a civilian Land Rover with armour bolted on, was a chassis which was fitted with a purpose built armoured steel body providing 360 degree protection against high velocity rifle fire, bricks, bottles, petrol bombs and small improvised explosive devices.

However, due to the Simba's advanced and purpose built nature it was very slow to produce and the Hotspur Land Rovers were beginning to wear out, so a solution was needed to quickly get more armoured police vehicles on the streets. The answer was the Land Rover Tangi.