Plasan Sasa, located in Kibbutz Sasa, has developed an armored vehicle equipped with systems designed to disperse demonstrations and rapidly gain control over public disturbances using advanced non-lethal equipment. The company, which frequently adapts vehicles and systems originally designed for the battlefield for homeland security, has done it again with the SandCat. The new version of the Sand Cat armored vehicle, known in Israel as the Plasan Caracal, is designed for use by police and security forces throughout the world. The vehicle is not new; it was launched a year ago. This time, however, it is being presented in a version with the steering wheel on the right side of the vehicle for use in countries in which people drive on the left side of the road.
The Sand Cat integrates most of the tools currently used to handle public disturbances in a focused manner in order to minimize possible harm to innocent bystanders. The system, which is installed on the vehicle's roof, is equipped with a special camera capable of taking pictures during the day and at night, while performing computer analysis of threatening persons in an unruly crowd. It is controlled from within the vehicle without putting the operator and the vehicle's crew at risk.
The system is also equipped with a powerful blinding light that paralyzes the target for several seconds, a noise cannon that uses high-frequency sound waves against mobs, and a system for dispersing tear gas at close range. The Sand Cat has a powerful 300-horse power Ford motor and is capable of quick and safe movement on crowded streets and highways. The SandCat enables 10 policemen to move safely in a vehicle that is no larger than an average family SUV.
The Sand Cat is introducing a new era in armored vehicles for police forces around the world, and it appears that the vehicle is likely to prove especially effective in thwarting terrorist attacks in the middle of a civilian population. It should be noted, however, that there has been quite a lot of criticism of the use of excessive force in dispersing illegal demonstrations and overuse of military technologies against civilian populations.
Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on November 22, 2017
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