Photo: Oryxspioenkop.com
Transnistria has produced quite interesting armored fighting vehicles over the last decade. The place is a narrow piece of land located on the territory of the Republic of Moldova, between the Dniester River and Ukraine.
Unable to replace its obsolete inventory of Soviet weaponry since proclaiming independence in the early 1990s, the region has instead sought to supplement its vehicle fleet with several home-grown models. Many of these are based on existing models, which are then modified to suit an entirely new role.
The latest project to come out of Transnistria is a four-wheel-drive light utility vehicle based on a chassis belonging to an old Soviet truck. The design appears to be inspired by the famous American Humvee, and for want of a better name, has been dubbed the Transvee by the folks at Oryxspioenkop.
The Transvee was first seen during a special forces demonstration in February 2022. The model appeared alongside the GAZ-66 military off-road truck, on whose 4×4 chassis the Transvee is based. The performance is likely to be similar to that of the 1960s GAZ-66, which is prized for its ease of maintenance and robustness on all types of terrain.
To ease production and keep costs to a minimum, engineers have tried to incorporate as many GAZ-66 components as possible. Interestingly, this includes not only the GAZ-66 chassis, but also the front section of the cab. Two separate GAZ-66 cabs are used for each Transvee, with the second one welded in the opposite direction to the front section.
Not much else is known about this design, or how many examples have been produced to date. Given that the number of GAZ-66 trucks exceeds the operational requirements of the Transnistrian army, it does not seem unlikely that production will one day reach a considerable number.
The Transvee is designed mainly for transporting personnel and cargo behind the front lines. It is equipped with a tarpaulin-covered cargo compartment at the rear.
During the exercise, the Transvee was used for the introduction of special forces units. It has no armoured protection and would have to rely on its speed and mobility in rough terrain to keep out of harm's way. The Transvee has a firing post equipped with a light machine gun.
The latest project to come out of Transnistria is a four-wheel-drive light utility vehicle based on a chassis belonging to an old Soviet truck. The design appears to be inspired by the famous American Humvee, and for want of a better name, has been dubbed the Transvee by the folks at Oryxspioenkop.
The Transvee was first seen during a special forces demonstration in February 2022. The model appeared alongside the GAZ-66 military off-road truck, on whose 4×4 chassis the Transvee is based. The performance is likely to be similar to that of the 1960s GAZ-66, which is prized for its ease of maintenance and robustness on all types of terrain.
To ease production and keep costs to a minimum, engineers have tried to incorporate as many GAZ-66 components as possible. Interestingly, this includes not only the GAZ-66 chassis, but also the front section of the cab. Two separate GAZ-66 cabs are used for each Transvee, with the second one welded in the opposite direction to the front section.
Not much else is known about this design, or how many examples have been produced to date. Given that the number of GAZ-66 trucks exceeds the operational requirements of the Transnistrian army, it does not seem unlikely that production will one day reach a considerable number.
The Transvee is designed mainly for transporting personnel and cargo behind the front lines. It is equipped with a tarpaulin-covered cargo compartment at the rear.
During the exercise, the Transvee was used for the introduction of special forces units. It has no armoured protection and would have to rely on its speed and mobility in rough terrain to keep out of harm's way. The Transvee has a firing post equipped with a light machine gun.
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