Chaiseri Unveils New Armoured Vehicles

Thai defence firm Chaiseri, which specializes in land systems and armoured vehicles, is showing new armoured vehicle variants from its portfolio for the first time at the ongoing Defense & Security 2025.

On display is Chaiseri’s Guardian - T 8x8, an AFV with an 8x8 driveline. The vehicle is equipped with a two-man stabilized turret featuring a 105 mm as its main armament, a 7.62 mm coaxial armament, and four anti-tank guided missiles (ATGM) along with an E/O set, day/thermal sight, and a laser range finder (LRF). It features STANAG 4569 Lv 2 to Lv 4 ballistic and mine protection.

Also on display is its First Win Armored Fighting Vehicle (AFV). It can be equipped with a 30 mm chain gun, unmanned turret, or RCWS. With 30 mm airburst ammunition, it can operate as a drone-hunter. The vehicle was designed with a rear powerpack concept due to the fact that the engine compartment is always the weak point of the armored vehicle.

Also being shown for the first time is the First Win HISAAR, which is a collaborative effort involving TDI (Chaiseri, DTI JV company) and HIT (Heavy Industries Taxila) of Pakistan. The Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle is manufactured by HIT at Taxila, Pakistan, with TDI support as the technology partner. HISAAR is developed from the technology of First Win ATV, which has been in service with “MISNUCA” in the Central African Republic and “UNMISS” in South Sudan.

Chaiseri’s Ridgeback 4x4 Special Operation Vehicle (SOV) is another model from the company that is on display. The fully indigenously developed Ridgeback is a soft-skin, high-mobility vehicle equipped with a power-to-weight ratio of more than 45 hp/ton and a fully independent suspension for a cross-country military vehicle.

Also neing displayed at the ongoing show is the Armored Wheeled Amphibious Vehicle (AWAV) 8x8. It can carry 3+11 crew members and is currently in service with the Royal Thai Marines, having been deployed in missions to secure the Thailand-Cambodia border. The AWAV 8x8 can attain speeds of 12 kmph in Sea Stage 2 conditions.

The First Win AFV is essentially a variant of the First Win Armoured Reconnaissance Vehicle (ARV) with its low-profile design aimed at reducing detection by the enemy during reconnaissance operations. The First Win ambulance has been qualified according to the United Nations standard. They have been deployed by the United Nations at MISNUCA in the Central African Republic and UNMISS in South Sudan.

At the show is First Win High Mobility Vehicle (HMV), which is the lightest armored vehicle in the First Win family and boasts a high power-to-weight ratio with double wishbone independent suspension. Despite weighing only 6.5 tons it offers STANAG Lv 1 to Lv 3 protection.

The First Win Gen 1 was the first “armor monocoque” vehicle and has been deployed by the Royal Thai Army since 2011. The First Win Gen 2 features upgraded protection and includes the First Win II and First Win Internal Security Vehicle (ISV). Due to improvements in armor protection technology, FW Gen 2 has a higher level of armor protection while maintaining the same GVW as FW Gen 1. They have been deployed in Thailand and exported to overseas markets.

This was followed by the First Win Gen 3, which featured more variants such as the First Win ATV / ALV / AFV / ARV, Ambulance, HMV, D-Tiger, Wildcat, and Ridgeback. All variants featured a significant improvement in mobility due to the double wishbone suspension and optimized power-to-weight ratio. All Gen 3 variants featured an embedded digitalized electrical system that allowed seamless interconnection with vehicle subsystems and were equipped with a Vehicle Control Unit (VCU) which the user can use to monitor the vehicle and its subsystem status, perform vehicle health checks and diagnostics, and run Built-in Test (BIT) by simply using a GUI multi-function display.

While one model of Chaiseri’s First Win Gen 1 was deployed, two models of the follow-on Gen 2 were deployed. Six out of nine models of the First Win Gen 3 have so far been deployed.