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Fahd-240

The Fahd four-wheeled APC, built by the Arab Organization for Industrialization (AOI), is the only domestically designed armored vehicle in production in Egypt. This 4-wheel drive vehicle has excellent cross country mobility, even on sandy terrain, and is suitable for use in tropical dusty conditions. The design of the vehicle allows the production of many versions for different military purposes and security, including AFV, APC, Command, Mines laying, Ambulance , Recovery and repair, Anti-riot and Mines dispensing.

The AFV Fahd-240/30 features tactical maneuverability combined with a high fire-power at effective long range. It can operated against tanks, armoured vehicles low flying aircraft, helicopters and personnel, with the ability to engage in a stationary position, on the move, at day or night, at a high fire accuracy. It can act without external fire-support [anti-tank nor anti-aircraft], and has easy maintenance, repair and operation. Egypt is also upgrading its Fahd-30 AIFV's with BMP-2 turrets.

The Anti-Riot Vehicle Fahd-240 is designed to secure for its crew the utmost level of protection. Anti-Riot equipment includes a twin gun turret with a search light aiming and vision devices. It can be equipped with a water gun actuated at 180 L/min pump to jet plain, coloured or mixed water at a distance of 30-50 m or 0.5 inch gun + 7.62 mm MG, as well as smoke grenade and tear gas launching from turret launcher. There is a steel grader in the vehicle front to remove barricades in streets and passes, along with 2 Flashers -Multi - tone Siren, loud speaker and Horn.

In 1975 Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates founded the Arab Organization for Industrialization (AOI) and capitalized the new organization with more than US$1 billion. These countries set up the AOI to establish an Arab defense industry by combining Egypt's managerial ability and industrial labor force with the Arab countries' oil money and foreign technology. The bulk of the arms manufacturing was intended to take place in Egypt. But the AOI foundered before it could become a major arms producer because the Arab states broke relations with Egypt over Sadat's peace initiatives with Israel. Egypt kept the AOI functioning in spite of a 1979 proclamation by Saudi Arabia dissolving the body. Some of the AOI's members have renewed military contacts, but as of 1989, the AOI had not been restored to its original status. Saudi Arabia and the Emirates gave back to Egypt their shares in AOI in 1993, valued at $1.8 billion. AOI now is entirely owned by the government of Egypt.

The AOI had operated as an independent enterprise since 1979 and was exempt from Egyptian taxes and business restrictions. The AOI consisted of nine companies, five wholly owned by Egypt and four joint ventures. The Egyptian plants manufactured missiles, rockets, aircraft engine parts, armored personnel carriers, electronics, radar, communications gear, and assembled aircraft. A joint venture with French firms assembled Gazelle combat helicopters and helicopter engines. A joint venture with the British manufactured the Swingfire antitank guided missile, while another venture with the Chrysler Corporation produced jeeps.

In 1988 Kuwait was reported to have ordered about 100 Fahd armored personnel carriers; Oman and Sudan ordered smaller quantities of these carriers. Because Egypt considered the value of its military exports confidential, it omitted this information from its published trade statistics.

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http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/row/fahd-240.htm
Maintained by Robert Sherman
Originally created by John Pike
Updated Wednesday, September 29, 1999 10:41:35 AM