Mowag Duro

Duro with trailer

Protected Duro IIIP

Inside view of Duro IIIP

The Mowag Duro is an all-terrain, unarmored or protected military vehicle from the Swiss manufacturer Mowag .

development

The Duro was developed by Bucher-Guyer AG in response to a tender by the Swiss Army and was able to prevail against a competing design by Mowag. As part of a restructuring at Bucher-Guyer, Duro production was handed over to Mowag. This was also in the interests of the Swiss Army, which already purchased vehicles from Mowag and preferred to concentrate vehicle procurement on a few manufacturers.

The name Duro stands for DU rable (permanent) and RO bust. The vehicle is used as a personnel carrier, command vehicle, logistics, ambulance, equipment vehicle and as a launch vehicle for the ADS 95 drone . The Duros are used by the Swiss Army, the OSCE and the British Army.

Because of the Swisscoy deployment, the Swiss Army demanded protected Duros. These were again offered in the 4 × 4 and 6 × 6 versions, optionally with a swap body, a loading platform or a fixed armored body. The Swiss Army bought protected Duros in the 6 × 6 version as a team transporter and as an ambulance vehicle; a version as a valuables transporter was also derived from this specification. Under the name Rheinmetall YAK, the vehicle is used by the German Armed Forces as a troop transport, field hunter vehicle (military police) and ambulance, primarily in Afghanistan.

variants

Military

MOWAG Duro IIIP for the Swiss Army

MOWAG Duro IIIP Swissint ambulance

Users of the protected Duroversion in the 6 × 6 version:

Swiss Army
German Federal Armed Forces
Intervention Unit Scorpio ( Zurich City Police )

In the protected version, it offers ballistic protection and integrated mine and NBC protection. The Duro is available as a two-axle (4 × 4) and three-axle (6 × 6) with a higher payload. In the two-axle variant, it offers space for up to 20 crew members.

The Duro IIIP is an armored 6 × 6 version of the Duros, which is also known as the DURO GMTF in the Swiss Army and can optionally be equipped with a remote-controlled machine gun and smoke cannon. In the Swiss Army, the Duro IIIP is used as an armored troop transport and as an NBC detection vehicle. There is also the GSANF variant as an armored ambulance which has been in service since 2015, the Swiss Army owns 4 of them.

Denmark has ordered the Duro IIIP as a medical vehicle for use in Afghanistan.

In 2004, the German Bundeswehr initially procured 30 of the three-axle protected multi-purpose vehicles and carries them under the name DURO 3. In addition to 12 vehicles for the Central Medical Service, four field hunter vehicles and four vehicles for ground control as well as launch / landing troop vehicles for the Luna reconnaissance drones, the task force in Afghanistan handed over ten transporters for the disposal of ordnance (EOD) by the German general contractor Rheinmetall Landsysteme GmbH. In addition, a further 100 vehicles were ordered in 2005 as transport vehicles with extensive structural changes. The units of the second construction lot have improved ballistic protection, integrated protection against mines or IED , NBC protection and have space for up to ten people. These vehicles, introduced under the name YAK, were delivered between 2006 and 2009.

The Bundeswehr had procured a total of 175 DURO / YAK systems by 2017.

Civil

The Duro 4 × 4 and 6 × 6 were also offered in different configurations as a fire engine:

Emergency vehicle for up to 16 firefighters
Hose laying vehicle with 2 × 1000 m hose material
Small fire truck with 800 l extinguishing tank
Tank fire engine with 800 l water tank and 100 l foam concentrate

These vehicles are used by various fire brigade units in Switzerland. B. at the fire brigade in Bern .

In the 1990s, considerations were made to introduce the Duro to the fire departments in the area of the former GDR as a replacement for the Robur LO . Robur and Duro have comparable external dimensions, so that no structural measures for new vehicles would be required at the existing fire stations . However, the implementation failed due to the purchase price of the Duro, which exceeded the financial strength of the fire brigade.

The 4 × 4 Duro was also offered as a utility vehicle for local authorities as a dump truck or with a fixed aluminum body as a service vehicle, but there were no noteworthy sales. The configuration as a civilian ambulance was also unsuccessful.

A small number of vehicles, mostly equipped as expedition vehicles, are privately owned. They were converted by civil companies or private individuals as off-road mobile homes, expedition coaches and expedition vehicles based on 4 × 4 and 6 × 6 Duros.

Technical specifications

Technical specifications	Duro III 6x6
power	184 kW (245 hp)
engine	Cummins 5.9-liter 6-cylinder, turbo-diesel (in-line)
Top speed	100 km / h
Powertrain	6-speed Allison automatic transmission 2500SP (5 forward, 1 reverse), reduction gear, Torsen differentials
Weight (empty)	7 tons
payload	6 tons
Basic equipment	Air conditioning, vehicle information system, tires with emergency running inserts, can-bus system, preheating system
Optional equipment	Cable winch, central tire pressure regulation system (CTIS), ABC overpressure system, additional armor for increased ballistic protection up to level 3, IED protection, customer-specific C4ISTAR weapons and other systems, snow chains, EURO-V engine, trailer coupling, various protected superstructures