The Defence Forces have just taken delivery of a batch of shiny new 4x4s; SHANE O'DONOGHUEtried one out at the Army training centre in the Curragh
AS THE dry, spiky gorse scratches along the length of the car, I wince at the thought of the resulting damage to the paintwork. This is, after all, an 09 vehicle and nothing less than the pride and joy of its owners, the Defence Forces. Sgt Tom Mullen dissuades my fears though; new as the Pajero is, it’s still a functional vehicle, intended for use in much tougher terrain than the off-road training course in the Curragh Camp.
Few SUVs bought in this country will ever venture further than a muddy school sports day car park and I’m willing to bet that the last Mitsubishi Pajero you saw on the road was weighed down with chrome detailing and polished alloys. The latest addition to the Defence Forces’ fleet looks a little different – shorn of anything shiny and wearing a set of sensible looking wheels and tyres. Low-profile rubber may look good, but it’s no use off-road; and chrome detailing, as Capt Mick Murray puts it, “just gives them something to aim at”.
Given that the most obvious use of army SUVs in this country is as “cash escorts” between banks and security companies, you’d be forgiven for thinking Capt Murray is referring to would-be criminals planning a heist. In fact, little of what the Army does abroad is publicised – as part of various peacekeeping forces it currently has more than 750 troops stationed significantly further afield than Dundrum Town Centre, including Kosovo, Afghanistan and Chad.
Motors spent the day with the instructor staff in the transport and vehicle maintenance school and, while the atmosphere and conversation were light-hearted, it was clear that some of the conditions the soldiers are exposed to are no laughing matter.
Temperatures as high as 52 degrees Celsius are reached in the current “hot spot” – Chad – and that’s not even the biggest challenge. At the other end of the scale is the freezing winter climes of Kosovo. Such conditions are a massive test for man and machine alike.
The vehicles have to be capable of operating in both extremes without a problem.
A new four-year contract went out to tender in 2008, and the Army whittled the offers down to five manufacturers: Kia, Land Rover, Mitsubishi, Nissan and Toyota. Finalists were put through technical and driver assessments by the Army.
An example of the detail under scrutiny is whether a soldier, clad in full combat gear, can quickly manoeuvre in and out of the vehicle without snagging anything. It’s often the seemingly trivial things that really matter when your life is under threat, so nothing can be taken for granted.
Alongside the practicalities and reliability, cost and serviceability are crucial factors. The end result was a contract for Mitsubishi’s Pajero.
From there, the Army worked closely with Mitsubishi during an intense four-month period. The vehicles themselves are not very different from the Pajeros you would find on any Mitsubishi forecourt. They have air conditioning, a decent stereo and electric windows.
However, while there are no major aesthetic or mechanical differences, a significant amount of work was required to integrate the military communications systems, with recharging of batteries of particular importance.
Additionally, every vehicle must incorporate a Nato-specification tow hitch. Army vehicles also have specific lighting needs – including the ability to operate in complete darkness without giving away their position.
Not that the Army ever wishes to rely solely on stealth or camouflage for safety while driving its SUVs. These are not armoured cars, after all, and therefore not designed to be regularly used in highly perilous situations. Nevertheless, each and every member of the Army that will potentially drive the Pajero must go through a rigorous training programme in order to prepare for conditions they hope never to encounter.
Before anyone is allowed behind the wheel, they must pass a written driving test – something the Army has had in place since the late 1980s. It’s no walk in the park either; the minimum pass rate is set at 81 per cent.
We were shown part of the classroom training on off-road driving and it’s surprisingly in-depth, describing the operation and function of differentials, along with teaching advanced off-road driving techniques. Drivers are also expected to know enough about their vehicle to carry out roadside repairs when needs be – surprisingly, the AA doesn’t have a call-out service in Chad.
Alongside this basic mechanical training there are several important guidelines encouraging drivers to conserve their vehicle at all times. Off-road driving is to be avoided unless strictly necessary and if the situation demands it, speed should be kept to a minimum to avoid damaging the vehicle, while local knowledge should be exploited wherever possible to assist with tricky obstacles – such as fording a fast running river.
There are no such dangers on the green hillocks of the Curragh: just plenty of opportunities for embarrassment. After all, we’re supposed to know what we’re doing here.
So we tried the new Pajero out for size and attempted a few off-road techniques, including wading through deep muddy water and a reverse start on a hill. The latter simulates the situation where you lose momentum on the way up a steep hill and need to stop and take a longer run at it.
We stopped at the top of the hill and turned off the engine to mimic a stall situation. Reverse gear is then selected and the instruction is to release the clutch and brakes before turning the ignition and letting the engine’s compression slow down the car in reverse.
It’s a little unnerving at first, but in the case of low grip it’s far safer than braking and risking a sideways slide that could turn into a roll.
Not that anything we tried really tested the Mitsubishi. Sgt Mullen repeatedly praised the Pajero for its off-road abilities, as it combines various differential lock options with clever electronic programming to simplify the process for the driver. That said, trainees must be taught the basics first and foremost on older SUVs before they graduate to the new vehicles.
But the Pajeros won’t be seeing much action abroad just yet. The Army likes to get to know a new vehicle before deploying it into extreme situations, so the Mitsubishis are likely to remain on Irish soil until the end of 2010. They will have their day, though – the Army believes its 4x4s should have a notional life of 10 years, which begs the question as to why the rest of us are so obsessed with changing cars so often.
Alongside the new army recruits there’s a UN training school on-site too, where a wide variety of personnel are instructed by the Army.
In some situations, doctors, volunteers and members of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) form part of rapid response corps and they are deployed in hazardous situations with virtually no support, days from assistance.
The Army has offered basic training to these people too, with survival and conservation and maintenance of their vehicles in isolated conditions being the most important aspects. No wonder a little scratch in the paintwork means so little.