Without a doubt, the oldest military vehicle on display at the Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) 2024 exhibition this week is a vintage Marmon-Herrington armoured car on the DCD Protected Mobility stand, where it is highlighting the company’s long history.
DCD Protected Mobility has a long history of manufacturing armoured vehicles, starting with the ancestor company entering the African market in 1937 as Dorman Long (Africa) Limited (Wade & Dorman was established in the United Kingdom in 1911).
In 1938 the South African authorities began funding development of a new armoured car for the Union Defence Force. The outbreak of World War II led to a vehicle based on a Ford 3-ton truck chassis. As South Africa then lacked a developed automotive industry, many components of the vehicle had to be imported. Chassis components were purchased from Ford Canada and fitted with a four-wheel drive train produced by the American company Marmon–Herrington (hence the designation).
The first Marmon-Herrington armoured car (Mk I) entered service in 1940. It was followed by the Mk II 4×4 version, more heavily armoured Mk III, and completely redesigned Mk IV/MK IVF. Nearly 6 000 armoured cars were built, with many seeing combat during World War II and then in the Middle East in export service.
The vehicle’s armament was UK-made (with the exception of the US-made M1919 Browning machine gun), and armour plates were produced by the South African Iron & Steel Industrial Corporation (ISCOR). Final assembly was done by the local branch of the Dorman Long company, among others. Dorman Long Vanderbijl Corporation Limited was established in 1973, becoming Dorbyl Limited in 1979, DCD – Dorbyl in 2002, and the DCD Group in 2011.
Today, the DCD group has established itself as an international military vehicle manufacturer and engineering conglomerate, providing products and solutions to the defence industry. DCD Protected Mobility has supplied its vehicles to 25 countries in five continents. Its flagship vehicles are the Springbuck series and Husky vehicle-mounted mine detector.
To celebrate its long history in the armoured vehicles industry, DCD arranged with the Springs Mine and Military Museum to clean up and display its Marmon-Herrington armoured car at AAD 2024, after which the vehicle will be returned to the museum. The vehicle was donated to the Ditsong military museum in Saxonwold after World War II and in May this year loaned to the Springs museum.
