The Nigerian Air Force has taken an order of an undisclosed number of Marauder mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) vehicles from South Africa’s Paramount Group. The Marauder can carry a crew of two and eight dismounts at a top speed of 120 kph (75 mph) features that will improve the operation-ability of the force.
Each NAF vehicle is equipped with a King Abdullah II Design and Development Bureau (KADDB) Snake Head protected weapons station, fitted with a 7.62 mm machine gun. The Snake Head features comprise armored glass to enable improved visibility as compared to other vehicles while at the same time enabling a weapon to be operated from a protected position.
The Nigerian vehicles can withstand a side blast “equivalent to 50 kgs of explosives,” a critical capability given Boko Haram’s use of roadside bombs in northern Nigeria. The Marauders will give the Nigerian Air Forces an upper hand in fighting Boko Haram and ISIS-WAP the officially recognized province of the global terror caliphate in Nigeria.
