The Dingo All Protected Vehicle (APV) was originally developed by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) as a private venture.

The Dingo's first customer is the German Army, which has now taken delivery of 147 units in three batches; some have been deployed to Afghanistan and Bosnia.

The Dingo essentially consists of a Mercedes-Benz Unimog Model U1550L 4x4 cross-country truck chassis fitted with an armoured body developed by KMW. This body provides the occupants with a high level of protection from small-arms fire, shell splinters, anti-tank and anti-personnel mines.

KMW markets the Dingo in various configurations to meet different users' operational requirements. The German Army selected the version with a 3.25m wheelbase.

Standard equipment includes a central tyre-pressure regulation system, an air-conditioning system, anti-lock braking, parking heating, a reversing camera, powered steering and an external communications system.

Optional equipment includes: various roof-mounted weapon fits, such as 7.62mm or 12.7mm machine guns or 40mm automatic grenade launchers; a nuclear, biological and chemical defensive system; and command, control, communications and intelligence support.

In addition to the baseline troop carrier, Dingo can also be used for a number of specialised missions such as reconnaissance, command and control, weapon carrier (including missiles), forward air control and cargo.

The latest version, the Dingo 2, is based on a U5000 chassis with increased payload. The German Army has ordered three vehicles against a total requirement for up to 1,600 units. A first order for 52 units is expected.

The Dingo 2 is being marketed in versions with a wheelbase of 3.25 m and a payload of 3.5 tonnes and with a wheelbase of 3.85 and a pay load of three tonnes.

Textron Marine and Land Systems has a licence to market the Dingo 2 in the US as well for potential overseas sales through the US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme.

The first generation Dingo 1 All-Protected Vehicle (APV) was originally developed by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann as a private venture, with some funding from the German BWB. Full details of the Dingo 1 are given in a separate entry.

A total of three Dingo 1 prototypes were built and this was subsequently adopted by the German Army as the Allschutz Transport Fahrzeug (ATF).

Three production contracts were awarded to Krauss-Maffei Wegmann by the BWB for a total of 147 Dingo 1 units (56 + 57 + 34) and all of these were delivered by mid-2003.

Production of the first generation Dingo is now complete and it is no longer marketed by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann.

By late 2007 the Dingo 2 order book was Austria (20), Belgium (220 plus option on 132) and Germany (201). First Belgian order includes 158 in troop carrying role, 52 command post and 10 ambulance.

It has already been deployed on operations to Southern Lebanon (Belgium) and Germany (Afghanistan).

Late in 2005 KMW delivered an enhanced Dingo 2 to the BWB for extensive trials which featured a new crew compartment extended to the rear of the vehicle. This created a significant amount of additional internal volume and headroom and allowed a wider range of roles to be undertaken.

Although the German Army has Dingo 2 (4×4) and Rheinmetall Yak (6×6) protected vehicles in service there is an ongoing competition within the German Army GFF programme for another batch under GFF 3. Both of these vehicles are competing and it is possible that additional buys of both vehicles are made as they have different characteristics.

These first generation Dingo 1 vehicles have seen extensive service with the German Army in the Balkans and more recently in Afghanistan where they have been used for a wide range of missions ranging from troop transport to patrolling.

The first generation Dingo 1 APV is based on a Mercedes-Benz U-1550L (4 × 4) UNIMOG chassis with a wheelbase of 3.25 m, and it can carry four fully equipped troops plus the driver.

Krauss-Maffei Wegmann received the chassis from Mercedes-Benz, which was then fitted with the specially armoured body it has developed.

Several years ago Mercedes-Benz decided to rationalise its family of UNIMOG series of 4 × 4 and 6 × 6 high-mobility cross-country vehicles to just three new chassis: U-3000, U-4000 and U-5000, all of which are 4 × 4.

At the same time it was becoming apparent that the user wanted a vehicle with a greater payload and volume, improved protection, as well as a power pack that met the latest European environmental regulations. This resulted in the development from 2002 of the much-enhanced Dingo 2, which is based on the latest generation Mercedes-Benz UNIMOG U-5000 series (4 × 4) chassis.

The first Dingo 2 demonstrator was completed by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann in 2003 with a total of three preproduction vehicles following, two long wheelbase (LWB) (3.85 m) and one short wheelbase (SWB) (3.25 m). These were funded by the BWB and one additional vehicle was funded by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Mercedes-Benz for presentations.

Two of the LWB vehicles underwent a six-month trial from November 2003 through to May 2004 by a joint evaluation team consisting of the user and the manufacturer, which involved extensive road and cross-country trials as well as maintenance.

Dingo 2 was accepted for service early in 2004 and the German Army ordered an initial batch of 52 vehicles, the first of these delivered in late 2004.

In September 2004 Austria placed a contract for 20 Dingo 2 APVs, which were delivered from late 2004 through to 2005.

In early 2005 Belgium placed a contract with Krauss-Maffei Wegmann covering the supply of 220 Dingo 2 APVs with an option on an additional 132 units.

The Dingo 2 was selected by Belgium following a competition to meet a Belgian Army requirement for a Multi Purpose Protected Vehicle. One vehicle was delivered to Belgium late in 2005, with series production vehicles to be delivered between 2006 and 2011.

In mid-2006 the German Parliament gave the green light for the procurement of an additional 149 Dingo 2 APV worth EUR109 million for the German Army.

Of this order for 149 Dingo 2, the first 15 were to meet an urgent operational requirement (UOR) and were delivered in 2006 with the remaining following in 2007.

It is understood that the Dingo 2 has also recently been selected as the platform for a mast-mounted battlefield surveillance radar for the German Army.

Late in 2005 KMW delivered an enhanced Dingo 2 to the BWB for extensive trials which features a new crew compartment extended to the rear of the vehicle. This creates a significant amount of additional internal volume and headroom and allows a wider range of roles and missions to be undertaken.

It is understood that the first customer for this enhanced Dingo is Austria who have ordered four in the ambulance configuration and eight in the Nuclear and Chemical (NC) detection role.

In general terms the layout of the current production Dingo 2 is very similar to the original Dingo, with power pack at the front, crew compartment in the centre and a small cargo area at the rear.

The Dingo 2 power pack consists of a Mercedes-Benz diesel developing 215 hp, which meets EURO III emission requirements. This is coupled to an automatic shifting transmission with the driver also having the option of a manual reversionary role. This is of particular use when the vehicle is operating in very rough terrain or is being loaded onto a transport aircraft when a very low speed and precise operation are required.

Dingo 2 is fitted with a newly designed fully enclosed crew compartment with a total of up to eight individual seats. Commander and driver are seated at the front with another six seats to the rear. The three to the immediate rear of the commander and driver face the rear with the remaining three seats facing the front.

The crew enters the vehicle via two doors in either side, which open forwards and are provided with special devices to assist the crew in opening and closing the doors when the vehicle is on a slope. The upper-parts of the hull sides slope inwards.

Bullet- and splinter-proof windows provide the crew with good visibility to the front and sides and the driver is provided with a rear view camera, which is very useful when driving in an urban environment. The seats are to an enhanced design and a full body harness and a special foot rest is provided so that the troops feet are not in direct contact with the floor, which provides added survivability in case the vehicle runs over a mine.

The original Dingo 1 was fitted with an additional armour shield under the crew compartment to provide a higher level of protection against anti-tank mines. This did lower the ground clearance and its heavy weight also reduced the total payload available.

The new Dingo 2 has a new integrated protection system under the floor that provides a very high level of protection against anti-personnel and anti-tank mines while still maintaining a high payload.

The baseline armour package provides the crew with protection from handheld armour-piercing attack through a full 360°, as well as artillery fragments. A higher level of protection is possible, although payload could well be reduced.

According to Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, Dingo 2 has a reduced infra-red signature when compared to the first generation Dingo 1 vehicle.

Armament depends on mission, but the Dingo 2 would typically be fitted with a Krauss-Maffei Wegmann Type 1530 Gun Mount one-person weapon station armed with a 7.62 mm or a .50 (12.7 mm) machine gun or the more recent Heckler and Koch 40 mm automatic grenade launcher. This can be aimed and fired with the gunner under complete armour protection.

A Lockheed Martin C-130 and a C-160 Transall transport aircraft can each carry one Dingo 2 APV.

Dingo 2 also features powered steering, parking heater, anti-skid braking system, run-flat tyres, central tyre-pressure regulation system and a separate NBC and air-conditioning system.

It is expected that one in two vehicles would be fitted with a command and control system that would include communications and a flat panel display showing the position of not only the vehicle but other units as well.

As Dingo 2 has a greater payload and internal volume it is capable of undertaking a much wider range of battlefield roles and missions. These could include light reconnaissance vehicle, transport vehicle, NBC command and control vehicle, weapons carrier, cargo carrier, ambulance, light air-defence vehicle and a forward observer vehicle. The last of these would be fitted with a mast-mounted sensor pod containing day/thermal observation devices and an eye-safe laser range-finder.

Late in 2005, Krauss-Maffei Wegmann was awarded a contract by the Bundesamt für Wehrtechnik und Beschaffung (BWB) covering the supply of one enhanced Dingo 2 (4 × 4) demonstrator.

This was built ahead of contract award and has now been delivered. It was supplied with different mission kits to enable the vehicle to be rapidly reconfigured for a wide range of battlefield missions.

The Dingo 2 (4 × 4) demonstrator is a potential candidate for the German Army GFF Class 3 requirement, which is for a vehicle with a gross weight of between 10 and 13 tonnes, has a minimum payload of 2 tonnes, a minimum internal volume of 9 m3 and be fully air transportable in a C-160 Transall aircraft as used by the German Air Force.

The new Dingo 2 delivered to the German Army has an armour-protected area extending to the very rear, as well as a higher roof line.

These features give greater internal volume and enable it to undertake a much wider range of battlefield missions when compared to the standard production Dingo 2. These additional roles include ambulance, command and control and NBC reconnaissance.

KMW is also studying a flat bed carrier, which will have the commander and driver in the fully enclosed crew compartment at the front and a flat load area at the rear that can carry various shelters and containers.