📌 1968 SAS Land Rover Series IIA 109 ''Pink Panther'' Tactical Vehicle, Old Buckenham Airshow.
The ''Pink Panther'' often referred to as the ''Pinkie'' is a heavily customised Land Rover Series IIA built for British Special Air Service desert warfare operations in the Middle East. The SAS are globally renowned as being one of the single toughest and most effective special forces units in the world, so building them a 4x4 exclusively for desert use was no small undertaking.
The choice of pink may seem strange but it was discovered that it was the most effective colour for camouflaging vehicles in the desert, particularly in the dawn and dusk parts of the day. The story goes that an aircraft had been painted pink in order to make it highly visible, it crashed and proved impossible to find in the desert sands. It was later discovered entirely by accident.
The first SAS vehicles had been American Jeeps during World War Two, they’d be used for sabotage and reconnaissance missions behind enemy lines and they’d proven to be highly capable. In 1968 the British Ministry of Defence bought 72 examples of the Series IIA long wheelbase Land Rovers (the 109) it was officially known as ''Truck, General Service, 3/4 Ton'' or ''FV 18064''. These factory-stock 109's were sent to Marshalls of Cambridge for conversion to SAS specification.
The basic outline of this desert preparation included the following - four fuel tanks with a combined capacity of 100 gallons, a heavy duty chassis, heavy duty suspension, sand tyres, differential guards front and back, and a spare tyre was mounted to the front. Both doors and the windscreen were removed, as was the roof (this example has a soft top). Rifle boxes were added along with shovels, jerry cans, and sand ladders. For military purposes the vehicles were equipped with a general-purpose machine gun (GPMG) an anti-tank weapon, rifles, grenade holders, smoke canisters front and rear, navigation equipment, and spotlights front and back.
The ''Pinkies'' came from Marshalls painted bronze green, but for SAS desert service they were painted in light pink, typically including the wheels and even the tires. It’s hard to know what the enemy combatants in the desert must have thought because they’re no longer with us, but it must have been a sight to behold seeing a bright pink truck come roaring over the sand dunes full of decidedly well-trained SAS operatives.
Most of the original 72 Pink Panthers didn’t survive their military service, and those that did (approximately 20) are now amongst the most famous and highly-sought after Land Rovers in the world. Many replicas have been made, but when an authentic Pinkie comes up for public sale word of it spreads like wildfire across the Land Rover world, and the classic car world to a degree. An original genuine 1968 Land Rover Series IIA ''Pink Panther'' would probably be worth in the region of £65,000 plus, so start saving !
Information sourced from - silodrome.com/sas-land-rover-pink-panther-pinkie/
📌 1968 SAS Land Rover Series IIA 109 ''Pink Panther'' Tactical Vehicle, Old Buckenham Airshow.
The ''Pink Panther'' often referred to as the ''Pinkie'' is a heavily customised Land Rover Series IIA built for British Special Air Service desert warfare operations in the Middle East. The SAS are globally renowned as being one of the single toughest and most effective special forces units in the world, so building them a 4x4 exclusively for desert use was no small undertaking.
The choice of pink may seem strange but it was discovered that it was the most effective colour for camouflaging vehicles in the desert, particularly in the dawn and dusk parts of the day. The story goes that an aircraft had been painted pink in order to make it highly visible, it crashed and proved impossible to find in the desert sands. It was later discovered entirely by accident.
The first SAS vehicles had been American Jeeps during World War Two, they’d be used for sabotage and reconnaissance missions behind enemy lines and they’d proven to be highly capable. In 1968 the British Ministry of Defence bought 72 examples of the Series IIA long wheelbase Land Rovers (the 109) it was officially known as ''Truck, General Service, 3/4 Ton'' or ''FV 18064''. These factory-stock 109's were sent to Marshalls of Cambridge for conversion to SAS specification.
The basic outline of this desert preparation included the following - four fuel tanks with a combined capacity of 100 gallons, a heavy duty chassis, heavy duty suspension, sand tyres, differential guards front and back, and a spare tyre was mounted to the front. Both doors and the windscreen were removed, as was the roof (this example has a soft top). Rifle boxes were added along with shovels, jerry cans, and sand ladders. For military purposes the vehicles were equipped with a general-purpose machine gun (GPMG) an anti-tank weapon, rifles, grenade holders, smoke canisters front and rear, navigation equipment, and spotlights front and back.
The ''Pinkies'' came from Marshalls painted bronze green, but for SAS desert service they were painted in light pink, typically including the wheels and even the tires. It’s hard to know what the enemy combatants in the desert must have thought because they’re no longer with us, but it must have been a sight to behold seeing a bright pink truck come roaring over the sand dunes full of decidedly well-trained SAS operatives.
Most of the original 72 Pink Panthers didn’t survive their military service, and those that did (approximately 20) are now amongst the most famous and highly-sought after Land Rovers in the world. Many replicas have been made, but when an authentic Pinkie comes up for public sale word of it spreads like wildfire across the Land Rover world, and the classic car world to a degree. An original genuine 1968 Land Rover Series IIA ''Pink Panther'' would probably be worth in the region of £65,000 plus, so start saving !
Information sourced from - silodrome.com/sas-land-rover-pink-panther-pinkie/