User:Smufforz/OVIK Pangolin

Smufforz/OVIK Pangolin
Type	Armored vehicle
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
In service	2011 - present
Used by	Police Service of Northern Ireland, Merseyside Police
Production history
Designer	OVIK Group
Unit cost	£91,543.86 as of 2013
Produced	2011 - present
Specifications
Crew	Driver + 1 passengers (front car), up to 6 passengers (rear car)

The Smufforz/OVIK Pangolin is a type of armoured vehicle used in policing in Northern Ireland. Designed by OVIK as a replacement produced for the Land Rover Tangi, the PANGOLIN is based on the Land Rover 110 chassis and is primarily used by the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

History and design

Main article: Land Rover Tangi § History of armoured Land Rovers in Northern Ireland

Athough The Troubles in Northern Ireland largely ended with the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 and the signing of the St Andrews Agreement in 2006, the need for armored vehicles to provide protection to officers in the PSNI continued to exist.

Operational use

Being visually and operationally similar to the Tangi, the PANGOLIN is colloquially by the local population as 'Meat Wagons' and 'Land Rovers'. PANGOLINS are commonly used for patrolling across Northern Ireland, carrying two police officers in the front and a maximum of five officers wearing riot helmets and carrying shields in the rear when required.

The vehicles are painted in standard white with yellow and blue Battenburg markings, as seen on the majority of police vehicles throughout the United Kingdom.

Users

• Police Service of Northern Ireland - Entered service in 2011, as of 2015 165 vehicles have been purchased.

• Merseyside Police - 3 Pangolin vehicles were purchased in 2013.