Panthera F9

F9
F9
	A Panthera F9 captured in Syria and on display in Russia
Type	Armored Personnel Carrier;
Place of origin	UAE
Service history
In service	2017–present
Used by	See operators
Production history
Produced	2017–Present
Variants	See variants
Specifications
Crew	2, up to 9 passengers
Armor	Cast armor rated at B7/STANAG 4569-2 and mine resistance rated at STANAG 4569-1
Main; armament	Modular, some unarmed, others ARX20 20mm cannon
Engine	6.7L power stroke V8 turbo-diesel
Transmission	TorqShift 6-speed automatic

The Panthera F9 is a UAE-designed 5-door armored personnel carrier designed for border protection, policing and low-intensity military operations. The vehicle is designed to have a fully modular weapons system, with a base model sold without any armament. The F9 comes equipped with a remote controlled, roof-mounted search light, run-flat tyres, a rear-view camera, air conditioning, as well as side and rear facing gun ports.^[1]

The base model F9 is produced by MSPV in the United Arab Emirates. The Panthera F9 is also produced at a military production plant located in Ankara, Turkey.^[2]

History

The Panthera F9 is officially used by the armed forces of the UAE and Egypt.^[2] Furthermore, Turkish-made Panthera F9s have been supplied as military aid to various armed groups in the Syrian Opposition during the ongoing Syrian Civil War,^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6] while UAE-made models were shown to be in possession of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar's Tobruk-based Libyan National Army, during the course of the Second Libyan Civil War.^[7]^[8]

Variants

The company that designed and produced the F9, Minerva Special Purpose Vehicles (MSPV), partnered with French defense firm Nexter Systems to offer the M9 Panthera with a Nexter Systems ARX20 remote-controlled 20mm cannon, with an effective range of up to 1,200m. It may also employ a 7.62×51mm NATO belt-fed machine gun with up to 300 rounds, a GALIX Lacroix smoke discharger, as well as electronic fire detection and waste disposal systems.^[2]^[9]^[10]

Any F9 may optionally be fitted with a C4ISR surveillance system, electronic counter-measures, a non-lethal "STORM" or other custom configurations. It can also be fitted with a 360 degree ring mount, which can accept standard small arms.^[1]

The Panthera M9 is also offered in an armored ambulance configuration, holding up to 4 stretchers.

Several more vehicles of the Panthera family exist, with sizes ranging from 6 tonne to 23 tonne variants.^[11]^[12]