Popemobile

A popemobile /ˈpoʊpməbiːl/ (Italian: Papamobile [papaˈmɔːbile]) is a specially designed motor vehicle used by the Catholic Pope during outdoor public appearances. It is usually considered as the heir of the antiquated sedia gestatoria. The popemobile was designed to allow the pope to be more visible when greeting large crowds. There have been many different designs for popemobiles since Pope Paul VI first used a modified Lincoln Continental to greet crowds in New York City, in 1965. Some popemobiles are open air, while others have bulletproof glass walls to enclose the pope (these were deemed necessary after the Ali Ağca assassination attempt). Some allow the pope to sit, while others are designed to accommodate the pope standing. The variety of popemobiles allows the Vatican to select a popemobile appropriate for each usage depending upon the level of security needed, distance, speed of travel, and the pope's preferences.

The Vatican vehicle registration plates for all official state vehicles begin with the letters "SCV" (acronym of the Latin Status Civitatis Vaticanae "Vatican City State") followed by the vehicle fleet number. The registration plate for the Ford Focus currently used by Pope Francis is "SCV 00919". In the past, the popemobile has typically used registration plate, "SCV 1", but plates "SCV 2" to "SCV 9" have also been utilized.

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