EE-9 Cascavel

EE-9 Cascavel
Engesa EE-9 of the Colombian Army
Type	Armoured Car
Place of origin	Brazil
Service history
In service	1974–present
Used by	See Operators
Wars	Colombian Civil War Western Sahara War Libyan–Egyptian War Chadian–Libyan conflict Iran-Iraq War Gulf War Second Congo War Iraq War Internal conflict in Burma 2011 Libyan Civil War Libyan Civil War (2014–present) Iraqi Civil War (2014–present)
Production history
Designer	Engesa
Designed	1970
Manufacturer	Engesa
Unit cost	USD $500,000 (new)
Produced	1974–1993
No. built	1,715
Variants	See Variants
Specifications
Weight	12 tonnes (13 short tons; 12 long tons)
Length	6.29 m (20 ft 8 in)
length	5.25 m (17 ft 3 in) (hull)
Width	2.59 m (8 ft 6 in)
Height	2.60 m (8 ft 6 in)
Crew	3 (commander, driver, gunner)
Main armament	90mm Engesa EC-90 (44 rounds)
Secondary armament	2x 7.62mm machine guns (2200–2400 rounds)
Engine	Detroit Diesel 6V-53N 5.2 l (320 in3) 6-cylinder water-cooled diesel 212 hp (158 kW) at 2,800 rpm
Power/weight	15.82hp/tonne
Suspension	6X6 double axle boomerang drive
Ground clearance	0.375 m (1 ft 2.8 in)
Fuel capacity	360 litres
Operational range	750 km
Speed	100 km/h

The EE-9 Cascavel (Portuguese pronunciation: [kɐʃ.kɐ.ˈvɛɫ], translated to Rattlesnake) is a six-wheeled Brazilian armoured car developed primarily for reconnaissance. It was engineered by Engesa in 1970 as a replacement for Brazil's ageing fleet of M8 Greyhounds. The vehicle was first fitted with the Greyhound's 37mm main gun, and subsequently, a French turret adopted from the Panhard AML-90. Later models carry unique Engesa turrets with a Belgian 90mm Cockerill Mk.3 cannon produced under licence as the EC-90.

The Cascavel shares many components with the EE-11 Urutu, its armoured personnel carrier counterpart; both entered production in 1974 and are now operated by over 20 nations in South America, Africa, and the Middle East. Rights to the design were also sold to the United States via the FMC Corporation. About 2,767 Cascavels and Urutus were manufactured before Engesa ceased operations in 1993.

Throughout the early 1960s, Brazil's bilateral defence agreements with the United States ensured easy access to a postwar surplus of American military equipment, including a number of World War II-vintage M8 Greyhound armoured cars. The Brazilian arms industry limited itself to restoring and maintaining this obsolete hardware until 1964, when American involvement in the Vietnam War placed restrictions on the amount of defence technology available for export. Brazil responded by creating an indigenous import substitution programme in 1968 aimed at reproducing US equipment already in service. By 1970 the Brazilian Army was developing an updated Greyhound known simply by its Portuguese initials, CRR (Carro de Reconhecimento sobre Rodas). Engesa, then an obscure civilian engineering firm, took over the project and by November 1970 a prototype was completed. The new EE-9 Cascavel entered the pre-production phase between 1972 and 1973. Assembly lines for the Cascavel and its armoured personnel counterpart, the EE-11 Urutu, were opened in 1974. The hulls were purchased by the Brazilian Army, but mounted the same antiquated 37mm cannon and turret recycled from its elderly Greyhounds. To compete with more formidable armament available on the international market, Engesa also marketed a heavily modified Cascavel with an automatic transmission and the same 90mm (3.54 in) low-pressure gun found on the Panhard AML. This model, intended for export, drew interest in the Middle East and twenty were immediately purchased by Qatar.