Engesa EE-11 Urutu (Pit Viper)

History

For decades, Brazil's Engesa (now defunct) has produced a range of viable armoured vehicle solutions for the Brazilian Army and interested foreign parties. The EE-11 "Ulutu" was specially developed at the request of the Brazilian Army in the late 1960s, leading to the introduction of a prototype in 1970 (the product was based on the EE-9 "Cascaville" armored vehicle, which was also being developed by the company at the time. In development).

Serial production began in 1974 and ended in 1987. Comparable parts price to EE-9, making it a popular economical purchase worldwide.

The EE-11 weighed 11,000 kg when manufactured (unladen, non-combat charge). It is 6.15 meters long, 2.65 meters wide and 2.13 meters high. Inside there is a driver and commander, and seating for eleven passengers. The engine is installed in a compartment on the right front of the hull, and the driver is located on the left front. A turret was placed on the central front of the fuselage's roofline, leaving the rear of the vehicle's fuselage as a passenger seat.

The wheel arrangement is a typical 6x6 with full suspension for off-road driving ("Boomerang" dual-axle rear-wheel drive). The ground clearance was very good at the time. The axles are divided into a front unit and a pair of rear units.

The thickness of the armor protection reaches 12 mm, and with the equipment prepared in advance by the crew, full amphibious combat capability can be achieved - propulsion can be achieved through the standard movement of rotating wheels.

NBC (Nuclear, Biological, Chemical) protection, night vision, sight/shooting ports and powered winch are all optional.

Power for the EE-11 series comes from a Detroit Diesel 6V-53T or a Mercedes-Benz series (manual or automatic) six-cylinder water-cooled 260 hp diesel engine (the original production model had a 158 hp engine). This allows the vehicle to reach a top speed of 105 km/h and a range of up to 850 km.

The EE-11 was produced in seven main variants, referred to simply as Mk I, Mk II, Mk III (212 hp engine), Mk IV, Mk V, Mk VI and Mk VII (turbo diesel engine).

Base design variants include 2 x 20mm/25mm Mobile Air Defense (AA) Platform, Standard Security/Riot Vehicle, 81mm/120mm Mortar Transporter, Field Ambulance, General Cargo Transport, Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) (with 25mm turret and ATGM support), Command Vehicle with additional communications equipment and Fire Support Vehicle (FSV) (with 90mm Armed Power Turret).

EE-11 operators currently run from Angola and Bolivia to Venezuela and Zimbabwe. Chile has eliminated all stocks. The vehicle was used in the Chad-Libya War (1978-1987), Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988), Persian Gulf War (1990-1991), Libyan Civil War (2011) and Iraq War (since 2014).

That's the value of this proven local system, and the Brazilian Army has reintroduced the design by modernizing the engine and drivetrain, allowing it to remain in service for over a decade.

The name Urutu is Brazilian, from the South American pit viper "Bothrops alternatus". The name refers to the markings on the snake.

Brazils Amry plans to replace its aging Urutu troop carrier inventory with the Italian Iveco VBTP-MR Guarani wheel range.

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Performance

Performance

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Armor

Depends on weapon.

Changes