Kenya’s Ministry of Defense has purchased 118 Hızır 4x4 tactical wheeled armoured vehicles with Allison fully automatic transmissions from Turkish vehicle manufacturer Katmerciler, following a tender process. 

Delivery of the vehicles will commence in 2022 and be completed in 2023. The contract to supply Kenya is one of Katmerciler’s largest international contracts.

Katmerciler’s versatile Hızır nine-personnel capacity vehicle is designed and optimised for high performance under extreme operational conditions in rural and urban areas. It is available in various configurations, including a command control vehicle, CBRN vehicle, weapon carrier, ambulance, border-security vehicle and reconnaissance vehicle. 

Developed according to NATO standards, it is exceptionally well reinforced and has a high level of ballistic and landmine protection.  

Hızır vehicles come equipped with Allison 3200 Specialty Series fully automatic transmissions as standard. Allison says its patented torque converter ensures the extremely high torque is transferred to the driveline gradually, supporting the efficiency of the Katmerciler Hızır in field operations in all applications, road and terrain conditions.

“Katmerciler is one of the key vehicle manufacturers in Turkey’s defence industry and its vehicles attract great attention from different areas of the world,” said Berk Gönenç, Allison Transmission Turkey Sales Manager. 

Allison Transmission has provided propulsion solutions for military vehicles for nearly 80 years, said Gönenç. More than 600,000 military vehicles globally use its fully automatic transmissions for their field operations.