Komatsu LAV

Komatsu LAV
A Komatsu LAV parked at JASDF's Hamamatsu Air Base in central Japan. The roof-top shield has a provision for a machine gun.
Type	Armoured Scout Car
Place of origin	Japan
Service history
In service	2002-present
Used by	Japan
Wars	Iraq War
Production history
Designed	1997
Manufacturer	Komatsu
Unit cost	¥30 Million
Number built	1889 (2015)
Specifications
Weight	4500 kg
Length	4.4 m
Width	2.04 m
Height	1.85 m
Crew	4+1 (MG or ATGM gunner)
Main armament	Can mount the Sumitomo M249 LMG or Sumitomo M2HB 12.7mm machine gun.
Secondary armament	Type 01 LMAT or a Kawasaki Type 87 anti-tank missile.
Engine	4-cylinder diesel 160 hp
Suspension	4x4 wheeled
Operational range	500 km
Speed	100 km/h (Speeds can exceed 70mph)

The Komatsu Light armored vehicle (Japanese: 軽装甲機動車; (kei-sōkō-kidōsha^?) is a Japanese military vehicle first produced in 2002. currently used exclusively by the Japan Self-Defense Force (JSDF), it has seen use in the Iraq War. It is built by Komatsu Ltd. Defense Systems Division in Komatsu, Ishikawa, Japan. Komatsu's factory designator for the vehicle is KU50W.

The exterior resembles the Panhard VBL, used by the French army, but the LAV has 4 doors and a large cabin for carrying soldiers. The LAV can also be transported by air in vehicles like the CH-47J and the C-130H.

The Komatsu LAV was developed in 1997 to meet a JGSDF need for an armored wheeled vehicle that could provide armored protection since their Toyota High Mobility Vehicles and Mitsubishi Type 73 Light Trucks were not adequate to provide protection from small arms fire. They were initially created with the concept of a potential Soviet invasion during the Cold War before they were relegated to anti-terrorist/invasion operations.

It had made its first appearance in Kuwait when JGSDF units had deployed the Komatsu LAV prior to humanitarian operations in Samawah, a city in Iraq, 280 km (174 mi) southeast of Baghdad. An initial 400 LAVs were brought into JGSDF service in March 2005. JASDF base security units are also equipped with the LAV as a main vehicle for patrols.