| Alvis Saracen Mk 1 | |
|---|---|
.jpg) FV 603 Saracen at Woodvale Transport Festival 2015. | |
| Type | Armoured personnel carrier |
| Place of origin | United Kingdom |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1952–present |
| Used by | See "Operators" |
| Wars | |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | Alvis |
| Produced | 1952–1976 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 11.0 t |
| Length | 4.8 m |
| Width | 2.54 m |
| Height | 2.46 m |
| Crew | 2 + up to 9 troops |
| Armour | 16 mmRolled homogeneous armour (RHA) |
Main armament | Browning M1919 machine gun orL37 GPMG |
Secondary armament | Bren LMG, 6–12 smoke grenade launchers |
| Engine | Rolls-Royce B80 Mk 3A or Mk 6A, 8 cyl Inlet over Exhaust petrol 160 hp |
| Power/weight | 14.5 hp/tonne |
| Suspension | 6x6 wheel, independenttorsion bars |
Operational range | 400 km |
| Maximum speed | 72 km/h (off-road 32 km/h) |
TheFV603 Saracen is a six-wheeledarmoured personnel carrier designed and produced byAlvis from 1952 to 1976. It has been used by a variety of operators around the world and is still in use in secondary roles in some countries.[citation needed] The Saracen became a recognisable vehicle as a result of its part inOperation Banner inNorthern Ireland as well as for its role in theSouth African government's enforcement ofapartheid.[2]
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The FV603Saracen was the armoured personnel carrier of Alvis's FV600 series. Besides the driver and commander, a squad of eight soldiers plus a troop commander could be carried. Most models carried a small turret on the roof, carrying aBrowning .30 machine gun. A.303 Bren gun could be mounted on an anti-aircraft ring mount accessed through a roof hatch and there were ports on the sides through which troops could fire. Although removed from active service,[when?] it saw extensive use into the 1980s inNorthern Ireland and was a familiar sight, nicknamed 'Sixers', during "The Troubles". At times, they appeared on the streets ofHull, a less-hostile atmosphere for driver training in a city of similar appearance toBelfast, and only a few miles from theArmy School of Mechanical Transport.
As a member of the FV 600 series, it shared a similar chassis to theFV601 Saladin armoured car, theSalamanderairfield crash truck, and theStalwart high mobility load carrier. Thepunt chassis, suspension, andH-drivedrivetrain remained similar, but the engine, transmission, and braking systems varied significantly.
The Saracen was in turn used as an armoured personnel carrier, armoured command vehicle, and ambulance. The FV 603 model saw many variants in detail, including radio or command fitments and specialist equipment for artillery or signals use.
The Saracen series also includes:
Saracen was produced before Saladin because of the urgent need for a personnel carrier to serve in theMalayan Emergency, entering production in 1952.
The Saracen was produced both with and without turrets fitted. They are popular with collectors due to their prices being as low as $20,000 in Australia and $11,000 in theCzech Republic.
Amal Movement: Inherited from theLebanese Armed Forces (LAF).
Australia –Australian Army: 30 vehicles, registered consecutively as 115361 through 115390.[3]
Biafra – Biafran Army: 1[4]
Brunei -Royal Brunei Land Force: 15[5]
Indonesia –Indonesian Army: 55; some modernised by request in 1994.[5]
Jordan –Royal Jordanian Army: 120;[5] 60 operational.[6]
Kenya -Kenyan Army: 15[5]
Kuwait -Kuwaiti Army: 135[5]
Lebanon -Lebanese Ground Forces: 100[5]
Libya -Libyan Army: 15[5]
Mauritania –Mauritanian Army: 5 ordered in 1990.[5]
Nigeria –Nigerian Army: 20;[5] 10 operational.[7]
Qatar –Qatar Emiri Land Force: 30[5]
South Africa –South African Army: 280 were ordered between 1953 and 1956. All working Saracens were refurbished in 1979 and some were sold to local security contractors; at least one was modified with aComet tank turret forRooikat trials. Retired from theSouth African Armoured Corps in 1991.[8]
Sri Lanka –Sri Lanka Army: 67, All were removed out of service in the mid-1990s.[5][9]
Sudan –Sudanese Army: 50[5]
Thailand –Royal Thai Army: 20[5]
United Arab Emirates –United Arab Emirates Army: 20[5]
United Kingdom –British Army
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (until 2009)[10][11]
British Hong Kong –Royal Hong Kong Police Force: Fourteen Saracens were delivered to the Royal Hong Kong Police Force in 1970 for use as personnel carriers by the force'sPolice Tactical Unit (PTU), formed following the1967 Hong Kong riots. The Saracens were retired in 1988 after being replaced by theSaxon, with all but one subsequently being shipped back to the United Kingdom for decommissioning and sale; the first Saracen operated by the force was placed on static display at the PTU's headquarters inFanling, while two former PTU Saracens are operational in as-decommissioned condition in England.[12] South Africa –South African Police: 8[8] United Kingdom –Royal Ulster Constabulary
United States
Saracens were initially equipped with an L3A4 (0.30-inch Browning) machine gun in the turret, and aBren light machine gun for the gun-ring at the rear of the vehicle. Later Marks carried the LMG andL37 GPMG.
A Saracen masquerades as a German armoured car in the 1964 film633 Squadron, which was set duringWorld War II, a decade before the Saracen was first built.
In the 1967 episode "Mission... Highly Improbable" of the TV seriesThe Avengers (the penultimate episode with Diana Rigg in the female leading role), the villainous Dr Matthew Chivers (played by Francis Matthews) is trying to smuggle aSaracen FV 603 out of a British Army testing area by shrinking it to toy size with the help of a machine invented by his boss Professor Rushton (played by Noel Howlett).
In theTom Sharpe novelRiotous Assembly, a Saracen is destroyed by an elephant gun fired by Constable Els of the South African Police.
In the 1983 debut albumScript for a Jester's Tear, by British progressive rock groupMarillion, the Saracen was referred to in the final song: "...crawling behind a Saracen's hull from the safety of his living room chair..." The lyrics ofForgotten Sons describe the conflict inNorthern Ireland and the discrepancy between what was really happening and the perception of the conflict by the British public.[13]
In theIrish rebel music song Kinky Boots (a parody ofThe Combine Harvester) reference is made to the Saracen in the opening line of the song.
In the 1984 Indonesian filmPengkhianatan G30S/PKI, Saracens were used by theIndonesian Army and theKostrad as patrol vehicles during the infamous30 September Movementcoup d'etat. Saracens are also used as transport during state funerals of the six Army generals who became victims of the coup.[14]
Saracens were used almost unchanged in the1995 film ofJudge Dredd as carriers for prisoners and personnel carriers forJudges.101 FCs were used as the basis for taxis, fitted with a prop bodyshell.
The Saracen is mentioned in the Irish Republican song "Little Armalite".
In the 1992 film The Crying Game, one the main characters is killed, "he were run over by a Saracen" when he attempts to escape his IRA captors.
During the 2009G-20 demonstrations in London, members of theSpace Hijackers protest group[15][16] drove their Saracen into the City of London[17] and parked it outside theRoyal Bank of Scotland in Bishopsgate.[17] The Saracen, which had been painted bright blue withblack and white chequered stripes, was equipped with CCTV[15] and marked "RIOT" (butnot "police"). The group were reportedly there to protect the RBS building from "bad" demonstrators, although the police declined their assistance. Instead, the vehicle was searched and police questioned the protestors, who were dressed in plain blue overalls and helmets. The vehicle's eleven occupants were arrested for impersonating police officers and for traffic offences,[18] and were later charged with impersonating police officers, although the case was dropped before coming to court.[19][20]
A community protest against the sale of heritage-listedFort Largs by the state government of South Australia took place on 25 October 2014. The protest, organised by the National Trust of SA,[21] featured an Alvis Saracen and other vintage military vehicles.
