DAF YP-408

     Notes:  This elderly Dutch APC is based on the chassis of a Dutch heavy truck which had been long out of service at the time that design of the YP-408 began in 1958.  The truck chassis is fitted with an armored body and is fitted with an extra axle to help support the vehicle.  Though design work began in 1958, they did not enter production and service until 1964; though they were essentially obsolete only a few short years later, they remained in service (in dwindling numbers) until 1989.  Reserve use lasted only a few years more. Production had stopped in 1968, and production of spare parts had stopped in the mid-1970s, so the numbers of the original 750 YP-408s declined as non-functional ones or older examples were scavenged for spare parts.  The YP-408 was largely replaced by the YPR-765 tracked APC and M-113. In addition to the Netherlands, the YP-408 was used by the ex-Dutch colony of Surinam, and some examples may remain in use there.  Portugal also used a small number of YP-408s for a short time, though none of these are operational anymore. The YP-408 is a hot item among collectors, however, and some may also be found in museums. Several APC and specialist versions were put into service along with the basic APC version.

The YP-408 SW-S(GR)

     The YP-408 SW-S(GR) is the basic APC version. The armored body of the YP-408 is a simple steel shell, and consists of a long body with sloping sides and a sharply-sloping front with a projection up front for the engine.  At the front of this projection are louvers for the radiator which can be closed off by the driver from within his compartment to protect the radiator and engine from high water or from enemy fire.  The front of the vehicle has the driver on the left and the commander on the right, with the commander having a pintle mount for a weapon.  Some commander’s positions have AV1 gun shields, but these were not often mounted as there is little room for them.  The driver and commander have vision blocks to their front; the commander and driver also have rotating periscopes (the driver’s is more of a rotating vision block).  The driver’s hatch is square on three sides and projects out towards the right side; the commander’s cupola hatch is a two-piece circular hatch opening to the right and left, and the halves can be locked open upwards to function as ad hoc (AV2) gun shields.  The commander’s machinegun is virtually fixed in its mount; it has an elevation capability of 170 degrees depression of 8 degrees, but can only traverse 8 degrees to either side before rotation of the cupola is necessary. Cupola rotation is manual, but easy. The driver has conventional controls. The rear passenger compartment is accessed through two doors on the rear face, and there are also six double hatches on each side of the rear deck which open upwards and downwards (necessary due to the sloped sides).  The driver and commander can also get to their positions through the troop compartment. Troop accommodations are basic and consist of folding bench seats along with a shelf for radios and some stowage lockers below the seats and in the sides of the vehicle for ammunition and some gear. On either side of the hull front are a cluster of three smoke grenade launchers.

     The YP-408 is powered by a 165-horsepower diesel engine (though prototypes had a gasoline engine) and has a manual transmission.  The YP-408 is not amphibious; indeed, the engine is quite susceptible to flooding and cutting out in deep water. The YP-408 is an 8x6 cross-country vehicle; the additional axle, which is the second axle, can be steered but is unpowered.  The YP-408 did not have run-flat tires.

Other APC Versions

     The YP-408 PWI-S(PC) is a command version for use by a platoon leader or a platoon sergeant.  The only difference between the PWI-S(PC) and the PWI-S(GR) is the carriage of additional radios, one extra long-range and one extra short-range, as well as additional stowage for maps, compasses, binoculars, and a set of night vision goggles (included in the cost below).

     The YP-408 PWCO is a battalion commander’s vehicle, and has a full set of command-vehicle radios: two long-range, two medium-range, and two short-range radios.  It is also fitted with a teletype machine, though late in the PWCO’s lifetime (mid-1980s) this was replaced with a ruggedized laptop computer, and one of the long-range radios was replaced with one that was data-capable.  Map boards and extra map stowage was fitted, along with fold-out table tops and stowage for office-type supplies.  A tent could be extended from the rear to double working space, and a folding table and four folding chairs carried. Also carried was a hand-held image intensifier, laser rangefinder, and (later) a thermal imager.

     The YP-408 PW-GWT is an armored ambulance which can carry two stretcher-borne patients and four seated patients, as well as a medic (and the commander and driver were usually medics as well).  The PW-GWT was unarmed.  The PW-GWT carried the equivalent of one doctor’s medical bag and 15 personal medical kits, an oxygen administration set, an assortment of bandages, cravats, splints, and suchlike, and later, a small refrigerator for perishable medical supplies and a defibrillator.

     The YP-408 PW-V is essentially a logistics vehicle – essentially an armored truck.  It is basically a YP-408 SW-S(GR) stripped almost down to the bare essentials, and equipped with a davit (a sort of manual crane) to help load and unload supplies through the roof hatches.  A removable steel grate separates the driver and commander’s positions from the cargo area, and stops loose cargo from hitting them.  The PW-V can be easily converted to one of the other APC versions through use of kits.

     Twilight 2000 Notes: Some YP-408s were taken out of mothballs by Dutch resistance forces after the French invasion, but during the Twilight War, most of these old vehicles were found in the hands of the Portuguese Army, and in South America, in use by Surinam.  Some were also known to have been used in Belgium and Luxembourg, in the hands of resistance forces; the Andorran independence movement was also known to operate two of them, captured from the Portuguese during some unknown fight.

* See Notes above for crew and passenger capacity.