Oct 23, 2008

Air Force Takes Delivery of Swift Off-road Vehicle

The U.S. Air Force has just taken delivery of a preproduction model of a full-terrain vehicle (FTV) built by Torvec that is slated to be used as the platform for the Air Force’s new Advanced Combat Firefighting Vehicle. Delivery of the FTV, which came six months ahead of schedule, represents the first step in the Air Force-Torvec partnership’s efforts to create a combat firefighting tracked vehicle capable of unprecedented speed, maneuverability and diverse applications for use in the most extreme and inhospitable terrain.

The Air Force intends to maximize the FTV’s combat firefighting capabilities, including its robotic and autonomous potential, at its Robotic Firefighting Technologies Research Center at Tyndale Air Force Base, in Panama City, Fl. In addition, the Air Force will provide engineering and fabrication support in developing the firefighting payload in accordance with Air Force specifications. The Air Force also intends to demonstrate the vehicle within other agencies of the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of the Interior, federal emergency agencies, such as FEMA, as well as federal and state governmental agencies involved in securing U.S. borders. Demonstrations are also planned with civilian emergency response communities, such as the Firefighters Association of California.

Its builder claims that the Torvec FTV is the most advanced tracked vehicle in the world today and the only tracked vehicle capable of meeting the Advanced Combat Firefighting Vehicle’s specifications. Those specifications are stringent: Such a vehicle must be able to reach speeds of 45-60 mph, operate on a fully suspended tracked system, carry a load of no less than 3,000 pounds and turn on its axis on dry pavement, something we frequently have trouble with here at Driving Today.