The ATF Dingo is a German heavily armored military MRAP[3] infantry mobility vehicle based on a Unimog chassis with a V-hull design, produced by the company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW). The first prototype of the Dingo 1 was completed in 1995 and the first production Dingo 1 entered service in 2000 with the German Army.[4] It is designed to withstand land mines, rifle fire, artillery fragments and NBC-threats. ATF stands for Allschutz-Transport-Fahrzeug, meaning all-protected transport vehicle in German. It is named after the Australian native dog, the dingo. The Dingo 2 entered service in late 2004 after undergoing trials from November 2003-May 2004.[5] Currently[when?] KMW is developing the Dingo 2 GFF for the German Army with increased internal volume.

Dingo 2
ATF Dingo 2 with a mounted machine gun
TypeInfantry mobility vehicle
Place of originGermany
Service history
In service2000 - Present
Used byOperators
WarsWar in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
Russian invasion of Ukraine
Production history
ManufacturerKrauss-Maffei Wegmann
Unit cost~$500,000 (2006)[1]
Specifications
Mass8.8 - 11.9 t
Length5.45 m (short)
6.08 m (long)[2]
Width2.3 m
Height2.5 m
Crew2 crew

(Driver and remote weapons system Officer)

8 passengers

ArmorMEXAS
Main
armament
1 × MG 3 light machine gun

M2 Browning Machine Gun

1 × HK GMG
EngineDiesel
160 kW
Suspension4x4
Operational
range
1,000 km
Maximum speed 90+ km/h

Textron signed an exclusive deal to produce and market KMW's Dingo in the United States.[6][7] However, Textron chose its own more expensive and heavier M1117 Armored Security Vehicle for the MRAP competition, which did not receive a contract.[8]

Design

edit

The ATF Dingo has a modular design with five elements: chassis, protection cell, storage space, engine compartment, and bottom mine blast deflector. Its design is lighter and includes an armored chassis with a blast pan instead of the more common monocoque hull found in modern blast resistant vehicles. IBD's layered MEXAS is used and the windows are angled to deflect blasts and bullets. A tarpaulin is used over the back storage area instead of metal to save weight.

The Dingo's standard armament is a Rheinmetall MG3 7.62 mm machine gun in a remote-controlled turret on the top of the vehicle, borrowed from KMW's Fennek. The operator sits safely inside the cabin, controlling the weapon with an electro-optical sight with night vision capability.

In 2008 the Bundeswehr ordered several hundred fully remote-controlled weapons stations from KMW, for its Dingos and other armored vehicles: the light FLW 100 (for the MG3 or the Heckler & Koch MG4), and the heavy FLW 200 (for the M3M .50 BMG or the HK GMG automatic grenade launcher). The weapons station is controlled by an operator viewing a monitor inside the vehicle.

The ATF Dingo 2 is an advanced version of the Dingo, based on the upgraded Unimog U 5000 chassis with improved protection and more payload. It is offered in two versions, a 3,250 mm wheelbase version (3.5 tonnes payload) and a 3,850 mm wheelbase version (4 tonnes payload) . The Dingo 2 can seat eight personnel.

Operational use

edit

In September 2022, Germany announced that it would provide 50 ATF Dingos to Ukraine to use in the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine.[9] During the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as of 3 September 2024: 7 units were destroyed and 1 was damaged.[10]

Operators

edit
 
Map of ATF Dingo operators

Current operators

edit
country version ordered options delivered[11] notes
  Germany - Bundeswehr (Army) Dingo 1 147 0 147
Dingo 2 A1/A2/A2.3 287 0 287
Dingo 2 BÜR (ground surveillance radar) 78 0 2
Dingo 2 A3 system repair 25 0 4
Dingo 2 C1 GSI battle damage repair 48 0 48 deliv. by end 2010
Dingo 2 A3.2 troop transport 45 0 45 deliv. by end 2010
Dingo 2 A3.2 operational intelligence 20 0 20 ordered 17.11.2010
Dingo 2 A3.3 troop transport 39 0 39 ordered 17.11.2010
Dingo 2 A4.1 50 173 o Ordered in November 2023 [12]
  Germany - Federal Police Dingo 2 Polizei 2 0 2
  Belgium - Belgian Land Component Dingo 2 MPPV Fus (patrol) 158 0 158
Dingo 2 MPPV PC (mobile command post) 52 0 52
Dingo 2 MPPV ambulance 10 0 10
Dingo 2 (new variants) 0 66 0
  Luxembourg - Luxembourg Army Dingo 2 Protected Reconnaissance Vehicle 48 0 48
  Austria - Austrian Armed Forces Dingo 2 ATF 60 0 60
Dingo 2 AC NBC reconnaissance 12 0 12
Dingo 2 AC ambulance 3 0 3
  Czech Republic - Czech Army Dingo 2 A2 21 0 21
  Norway - Norwegian Army Dingo 2 A3 20 yes 20
  Iraqi Kurdistan

-Peshmerga

Dingo 1 20 0 20 [13]
  Qatar - Qatari Army Dingo 2 A3.3 troop transport 125 0 125 [14][15]
  Serbia - Serbian Army Dingo 2 Ambulance 2 - - Donated in 2024[16]
  Ukraine- Ukrainian Ground Forces Unknown 0 0 50 Donated during the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine[17]
edit

References

edit
  1. ^ "Dingo - All Protected Vehicle (APV)". Defense Update. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
  2. ^ Krauss-Maffei Wegmann – DINGO 2 – Ihr Partner rund um Wehrtechnik Archived September 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ "Dingo 2 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicle". Military-Today.com. Retrieved 2022-08-20.
  4. ^ "Dingo 1". Military Today. Military Today. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
  5. ^ "Dingo 2 All-Protected Carrier Vehicle". Army Technology. Verdict Media. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
  6. ^ "Textron". Archived from the original on 2020-03-10.
  7. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). www.textronsystems.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 November 2006. Retrieved 11 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. ^ http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-6037098_ITM
  9. ^ "Germany delivers mixed news for Ukraine on vehicles". Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  10. ^ "Attack on Europe: Documenting Ukrainian Equipment Losses During the Russian Invasion of Ukraine".
  11. ^ http://www.strategie-technik.de/08_10/heer.pdf[permanent dead link], retrieved 15 November 2010
  12. ^ "Bundeswehr beschafft 50 Dingo 2 A4.1 auf modernem Unimog-Fahrgestell". soldat-und-technik.de (in German). 2023-11-30. Retrieved 2023-12-01.
  13. ^ "ISIS-Terror im Nordirak: Diese Waffen liefert Deutschland an die Kurden". 31 August 2014.
  14. ^ Nkala, Oscar (24 October 2014). "Germany approves export of military vehicles, small arms to Algeria". Defenceweb. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  15. ^ "Dingo 2 All-Protected Carrier Vehicle - Army Technology".
  16. ^ As per mod.gov.rs
  17. ^ "Military support for Ukraine | Federal Government". Website of the Federal Government | Bundesregierung. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
edit