Shorland Mark 3 APC "Civilian" Parts Book

Shorland Mark 3 APC User's Handbook    

The bulk of Mark 3 Shorlands were on Series III Land Rovers using a 2625 cc 6 cylinder petrol engine developing 91 bhp at 4100 rpm. The earlier marks of Shorland having been based on Series IIA Land Rovers had to have the headlights moved from the radiator area to the wings to comply with export lighting requirements. This always gave a rather homemade appearance to the wings. However the early Mark 3 was still based on a Series IIA Land Rover, but as these were late Series IIA Land Rovers, they already had the headlights in the wings.   The Mark 2 was still in production when the Mark 3 became available, but if customers wanted Shorlands for particularly arduous terrain they were offered the Mark 3. The Mark 3 Went into production 1972 with over 500 sold.

Shorland Mark 3 as it appears on a late sales brochure. 

Some Shorlands had their turrets transplanted to Humber Pigs, I have seen about six Pigs with such an embellishment. Not only did this help the crew of a Pig have an improved observation point, but it downgraded the Shorland into a less aggressive looking vehicle.

When out of Army service several Shorlands were destined for use in Bosnia by TV news companies. The lack of turret was clearly an advantage in indicating a non-combatant role. This refurbished example never quite made it to Bosnia.

A pair of Shorlands Bosnia bound.

Anti-Hijack Shorland

The Anti-Hijack Shorland was designed for use at airports and other high-risk areas. Armoured windscreens replaced the normal visors and the door flaps were replaced with armoured glass. The turret was fitted with a vision block and a mounting for an HK33 sniper’s rifle. Dutch Airport Police were known to have four such Shorlands (registration numbers: 19-56-ZB, 13-52-NB, 54-11-MB, 19-57-ZB). The anti-hijack version first appeared in books with the launch of the Mark 4 Shorland. The example in the photo is clearly a Mark 3 but is always captioned as Shorland SB 403 Anti-Hijack Vehicle. Presumably the SB 403 would only be made to special order, and the photo of an older model was used. This was not unusual as some of the earlier Shorland sales brochures show previous models.

Inside view of the snipers turret, beneath the vision block can be seen the mounting for the HK33 sniper’s rifle. To the right is the control for the spotlight, and in the roof is a rather flimsy interior light that was commonly used in caravans.

Blowpipe Shorland

Having produced a Shorland capable of firing Vigilant anti-tank missiles, it was entirely logical to consider an anti-aircraft version. As it happened Shorts themselves were manufacturing Blowpipe; a short-range surface-to-air missile. Blowpipe was intended as a shoulder fired system and owed much to the success of the Seacat and Tigercat manufactured by Shorts.

An artist’s impression of a Mark 3 Shorland fitted with a pair of Blowpipes. The box-like turret supports a hydraulically controlled frame supporting the missile pods. A large dome would afford good all round vision to spot incoming aircraft. This drawing is dated 1972 and it seems that development never went beyond this stage.  However, some years later Blowpipe was available in the Series 5 Shorlands as the S 53 Air Defence Vehicle.