Technical vehicles –

SOCOM operates hundreds of them in scores of countries, but they’re looking to standardize things. A vehicle rodeo scheduled for 2019 is hoped to dial in the search for PB-NSCV SOF Technical Kits. Read more below.

It’s Not A Pick-Up; It’s A PB-NSCV

The kits need to do their job without betraying their true nature at a hundred meters while moving at 35mph. They must deliver the performance of a specialty tactical vehicle without sounding like a military truck, and they have to do so while carrying the weight of armor, weapons, and gear.

They’re kits for the PB-NSCV, or Purpose Built Non Standard Commercial Vehicle. The idea is to come give USSOCOM a single truck platform for use as a technical overseas, as opposed to various models of Land Cruisers, Ford Rangers, and of course the ubiquitous Toyota Hilux — and the logistical support such variety demands.

According to The Drive, the proposed PB-NSCV will have,

“…a curb weight of no more than 9,500 pounds, but be able to support a full gross weight of at least 12,500 pounds. For comparison, a new double cab Toyota Hilux straight off the dealership lot has a standard gross weight of less than 6,500 pounds and a payload capacity of around 2,300 pounds, for a combined weight of approximately 8,800 pounds.

SOCOM also wants the trucks to be able to fit inside one of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment’s MH-47 Chinook helicopters in at least a stripped down state. The hope is that contractors will be able to meet this requirement with a vehicle at its gross weight, but the command acknowledged in its briefing that the aircraft’s physical constraints could make that a difficult proposition.

There is a separate demand that special operators be able to sling load the PB-NSCV underneath a Chinook or a Sikorsky H-53 pattern helicopter, such as the Marine Corps’ CH-53E Super Stallion or its future CH-53K King Stallion. It’ll have to fit inside a C-130-size airlifter, too.”

Read more about the search for a SOF Technical Kit in Joseph Trevithick’s article Special Operators Want A Super Vehicle They Can Disguise.

Or, check out more of our vehicle gear/Overlanding articles:

See our full line-up of Overlanding articles, vehicle gear reviews, and tactical vehicle news.