Since 2020, the Austrian Armed Forces have been using a new vehicle: the MAN HX2 heavy-duty protected mountain specialist – nicknamed “Bison”. There are only three of them in Austria, but wherever the 38-ton heavyweight appears, people breathe a sigh of relief. Because it often means rescue in an emergency. The Bison recovery vehicle can recover any type of vehicle from any situation and can even cope with off-road terrain without any problems. Thanks to the various attachments for its recovery arm, it can both recover and transport cars, trucks, wheeled armored vehicles and semi-trailers. It can also easily remove objects from the road and load cargo. Thanks to the additional equipment it carries, the crew of the Bison can even cut open accident vehicles to rescue injured people – making the recovery specialist a real all-rounder. 
Below we take a look at some of the highlights and technical features of the mountain specialist:
Additional equipment The so-called “Lukas rescue kit” consisting of rescue shears, spreader and separator can be used to cut open vehicles and rescue trapped persons. Other additional equipment includes a reversing camera, auxiliary heating, air conditioning and three rotating warning lights.
https://militaeraktuell.at/die-naechste-pandur-generation/ Loading crane The loading crane from the manufacturer Hiab can be used to remove obstructions from the road and load objects. Its slewing angle is endless, the support leg width is 5.8 meters. The lifting capacity is 2,860 kilograms with a maximum reach of seven meters and up to 6,600 kilograms with a minimum reach.
Articulated arm extension (lower lift) Double hydraulic extension up to 2,400 millimetres, maximum reach 4,400 millimetres, maximum angle of attack 90 degrees, minimum angle of attack -25 degrees.
Brake system A Knorr EBS 5 air brake system with retarder and off-road ABS serves as the service brake, while the parking brake is a spring-loaded brake acting on all axles.
Engine & tank Under the hood hums a six-cylinder 4-stroke diesel engine with turbocharging, intercooling and common-rail injection. Up to 600 liters of fuel can be filled into the tank.
Light mast The light mast has a light output of 22,000 lumens and can be rotated 360 degrees. When the light mast is extended, the vehicle has a height of 4.93 meters.
Winches The recovery winch has a pulling force of 27 tons and its 26 millimetre thick rope has a length of 80 meters. The rope of the frame winch with a pulling force of twelve tons is 16 millimetres thick and 60 meters long. If “all else fails”, there is also the auxiliary winch with a pulling force of ten tons, a rope length of 250 meters and a rope diameter of six millimeters.
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