Ocelot Makes 1st Public Appearance at Armed Forces Day in Cardiff

(June 17, 2010) -- Force Protection Europe will be showing its advanced new light protected patrol vehicle to members of the general public for the first time during the National Armed Forces Day event that takes place in Cardiff on Saturday, 26 June.

As one of the event's major sponsors, Force Protection Europe is also sponsoring the appearance of a Mastiff - one of the British Army vehicles that has been helping to save lives out in Afghanistan thanks to its high levels of blast protection.

An all-new UK designed and built vehicle, Ocelot has been developed by Force Protection Europe and defence automotive vehicle specialist Ricardo to provide levels of survivability comparable with vehicles such as Force Protection's Mastiff.

With survivability at its heart, Ocelot has also been designed to be highly manoeuvrable, flexible and excellent value for money. Accordingly, Ocelot is equally effective in a range of diverse environments, including mountains, deserts and urban areas.

Ocelot can be maintained and repaired quickly out in the field to ensure maximum availability, while its unique modular design enables the vehicle to be reconfigured in theatre within two hours to meet a variety of different roles, such as patrol, fire support and protected logistics.

The vehicle's capabilities have been proven by a sustained programme of blast, ballistic, automotive and manoeuvrability tests conducted since the summer of 2009 and it has recently been chosen as one of three vehicles to proceed to the next stage of the Australian Army's Land 121 programme.

Force Protection Europe Ltd's Managing Director, David Hind, said: "We are delighted to be able to show one of our growing fleet of Ocelots to the public at Armed Forces Day and also that we have been able to facilitate the display of one of our highly popular Mastiffs within the British Army display area. Armed Forces Day is an opportunity for all of us to reflect on the incredible commitment and bravery shown by our Armed Forces."

Source : Force Protection, Inc. (NASDAQ: FRPT)