Snatch 2 Vixen Plus

History

The Snatch was the British Army's name for the Courtaulds (later NP Aerospace) CAV 100 composite-armoured body on the Defender 110 chassis, bought in 1992 for Northern Ireland and progressively uprated through Snatch 1.5, Snatch 2 and the Vixen and Vixen Plus standards for Iraq and Afghanistan, which added a stronger chassis, uprated suspension and brakes, and provision for electronic counter-measures and a roof-hatch weapon mount. Joint Forces' July 2021 report on the end of the Wolf notes that the Defence Equipment Sales Authority had signed a framework agreement with the disposals wing of South Africa's ARMSCOR, and that its 24-page brochure of equipment on offer listed the Land Rover TUM and TUL, the Snatch 2 Vixen Plus and the R-WMIK+.

The library photograph used for this model, by Bob Morrison, shows an uprated Snatch Vixen Plus at an MoD Urgent Operational Requirement day on Salisbury Plain: desert sand with a spotted camouflage net over the roof and rear body, the roof hatch open with two crew and a GPMG, ECM boxes on the wings and an ECM dome on the roof, a snorkel up the right-hand A-pillar, black flared arches, sand-painted steel wheels, a side locker on the rear body and the registration 25 KK 56. The registry's model is built on its Snatch with those additions; the crew are not modelled. Production numbers for the Vixen Plus standard are not given in the source.

Imagery

Registry record

Manufacturer

NP Aerospace ↗

Land Rover (Defender 110 chassis); CAV 100 composite armoured body by Courtaulds / NP Aerospace

Manufactured

Vixen and Vixen Plus upgrades from the late 2000s (dates not stated in the source)

Modifier / coachbuilder

NP Aerospace ↗

Snatch 2 Vixen Plus upgrade

Engine type

Land Rover 300 Tdi 2.5 L turbo-diesel (Defender 110 of the period; not stated in the source)

Production run

Unknown — an upgrade standard applied across the Snatch fleet

Country of origin

United Kingdom

Operated in

United Kingdom

Status

unknown

Catalogue data

Record kind

Named model

Model line

Defender

Wheels

4

Nominal wheelbase

110″

Catalogue fields describe the vehicle's structure and body as this registry records it. They are not certified factory measurements, and no performance figures are published here.

Sources & citations

Researched sources

• End of the Road for the Land Rover Wolf? (DESA framework agreement with ARMSCOR IDS; brochure lists Land Rover TUM/TUL, Snatch 2 Vixen Plus and R-WMIK+; library image of an uprated Snatch Vixen Plus at an MoD UOR Day on Salisbury Plain) ↗ — Joint Forces News (Bob Morrison) (accessed 2026-09-11)

Catalogue references

• https://www.joint-forces.com/land-rovers/44943-end-of-the-road-for-the-land-rover-wolf https://www.joint-forces.com/land-rovers/44943-end-of-the-road-for-the-land-rover-wolf ↗