As the abbreviation in the name suggests, it is a car-based tank sprayer intended for extinguishing forest fires and as a fire extinguisher stockpile at the scene of an emergency, which can easily handle unpaved and difficult terrain. This vehicle has a tank capacity of up to 20,000 liters and weighs an impressive 44 tons when fully loaded.

In Slovakia, we have 3 such tanks that serve in Bratislava, Prešov and Banská Bystrica as part of special rescue units GFFF-V (Ground Forest Firefighting using Vehicles).

This vehicle can easily wade with a water depth of 1200 millimeters and has central tire inflation from the driver's seat, which also has control pressure gauges. The wheels are fitted with 14.00 R20 tires with increased resistance for operation in difficult terrain, on snow and mud. The vehicle allows changing the suspension settings, thanks to which the car can be raised by another 90 mm or, conversely, lowered by 120 mm. A special feature of this car is the increased protection of the chassis against radiant heat. Sleeves and heat shields are not only on the fuel pipe, but also protect air conditioning, wiring and other more sensitive components.

Photo used with permission of the author: Milan Dermek

Technical data of the vehicle:
• Total weight - 44,000 kg
• Length/width/height - 11,705 mm*/2,550 mm/3,200 mm*
• Engine - Cummins ISX15 600
• Engine power - 447 kW/2,000 min-1
• Transmission - Allison 4700 SP - fully automatic
• Water/foam/material tank - 20,000 l/500 l/glass laminate
• Pumping equipment (nominal flow) - 4,000 l/min / 1.0 MPa
• High pressure (nominal flow) - 250 l/min / 4.0 MPa
• Roof carriage jets - 1,790 l/min
• Superstructure - bolted from aluminum profiles, covered with Al sheet