Armor: August 15, 2000

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Sweden has ordered 104 Pasi XA203 (6x6 armored cars) from Patria of Finland. This is the largest export order to date for Patria's XA series, and includes an option for 60 additional vehicles. Finland has more than 500 XAs in service with its own Army, and Ireland (2), Norway (50), and the Netherlands (90) have bought XAs for peacekeeping duties. Swedish troops on peacekeeping duty have used earlier XA-180s (some of them leased from the Finnish Army), and look forward to the newer vehicles. The order includes XA-203 armored personnel carriers with turret-mounted 20mm cannons and XA-202 command vehicles. An XA-203 weighs 22.5 metric tons and carries eight troops, the driver, and the two-man turret crew. With 300 liters of fuel, the operational radius is 600km. At top speed on a good road it can reach 95km/hr. The XA-203s can be quickly reconfigured in the field for casualty evacuation, maintenance, or logistics. The XA-200/202/203 series are designed to be fitted with additional external composite armor if needed for the specific mission.--Stephen V Cole