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Humber Pig, 4 x 4, 24V (Front view, right side)

 
 

Front view, right side

Picture courtesy of Royal Signals Historical Collection, Fredericia

 

The Humber Pig was a heavily-armoured truck used by the British Army from the mid 1950s until the 1990s. The original vehicles were built by adding an armoured body to a four wheel drive 1-ton Humber truck (FV 1601), and were designed as a stop-gap measure until fleets of purpose-built armoured vehicles were delivered. They were then sold off or put aside to be scrapped.
The development was carried out by The Royal Ordnance Factory in Woolwich, and production of the armoured bodies took place at Sankey (later GKN) at Telford or by Royal Ordnance.
The vehicles were powered by a 6-cylinder Rolls-Royce B60 engine developing 98 hp at 3.850 rpm. Power was was transmitted through a large dry-plate clutch to a 5-speed gear-box, and the transfer box was incorporated with the rear axle.
As the situation worsened in Northern Ireland the vehicles proved ideal for internal security duties, and were brought back into use. They have served longer than their battlefield successors, the Alvis Saracen. Legend has it that the vehicle acquired its nickname because its bonnet resembled a pig's snout and because its driving characteristics were somewhat unrefined.
As the troubles in Ulster escalated during the 1960s and 1970s the Pigs were modified to create the Mark II version. Extra armour for protection against armour piercing bullets and rocket propelled grenades were added, and "barricade removers" (heavy-duty bull bars) mounted to enable them to force their way through barricades erected in the streets.


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