Big Bang Ricochet 006: The Desert Patrol Vehicle

Back in the Second Gulf War* on operational force that managed to cruise into Kuwait City at the front of the liberation force became media darlings with their nifty armed dune buggies. This group was the US navy's SEALs, lead by an Army major, the joint services liaison at NSWG1 at the time, and they were cruising along in their Desert Patrol Vehicles, an evolution of the Army's own Hellfire Fast Attack Vehicles.

The Desert Patrol Vehicle, or DPV, is a light, fast, unarmored but heavily armed vehicle now deployed by all of SOCOM, rather than just the SEALs. For several years even the USMC's Force Recon used a number of them as their Fast Maneuver Force (FMF) element.

Carrying multiple machine guns, grenade launchers, anti-tank rockets and even an anti-aircraft missile, these vehicles can put a world of hurt on anyone, racing by at up to 80 MPH during its 1400 mile patrol.

*Instant History Lesson:
The United States labels wars in the gulf differently from most of the rest of the world: First Gulf War: Better known in the US as the Iran-Iraq War, fought from 1980 to 1988. Ended in a US brokered stalemate.
Second Gulf War: Better known in the US primarily as Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm, this was a global coalition response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Events pertaining directly to the war occured in 1990 and 1991.
Third Gulf War: Better known in the US as Operation Iraqi Freedom, began in 2003, with most major combat operations concluded less than two months. US occupation of Iraq has lasted more than two years.