Monitor Lizard vehicle undergoes PLA trials

The Monitor Lizard all-terrain vehicle – a model of which was displayed at the DSA 2024 exhibition – can be used as an armoured personal carrier and can carry 14 soldiers to high-altitude areas. (Janes/Rakend P)

The Monitor Lizard all-terrain vehicle (ATV) developed by Chinese company Sichuan Jinjia Special Equipment Technology (SJSET) is undergoing trials with the People's Liberation Army (PLA), a company representative of SJSET told Janes in early May.

The company developed tracked Monitor Lizard – which weighs 17 tons – to meet the PLA's requirements for a lightweight ATV that the service intends to deploy in high-altitude and cold mountainous regions, the representative added.

According to company specifications, Monitor Lizard is an armoured dual-body vehicle and its rear body can be fitted with various types of modules.

The vehicle can be used as an armoured personnel carrier (APC), command-and-control vehicle, logistics vehicle, or rescue vehicle.

Monitor Lizard has a payload capacity of 8 tons. The ATV can attain a maximum speed of up to 50 km/h in high-altitude areas with a floating speed of 5 km/h.

It can climb up to a maximum angle of 35°. Monitor Lizard can carry a crew of 14 soldiers – four in the front and 10 in the rear cabin – and it has a length of 9.1 m, a width of 2.45 m, and a height of 2.6 m.

Minimum turning radius of the vehicle is 7.8 m. The vehicle can also be fitted with a 12.7 mm machine gun at the top.

SJSET showcased a scale model of Monitor Lizard at the Defence Services Asia (DSA) 2024 exhibition held in Kuala Lumpur from 6 to 9 May 2024.

For more information, please seeChina – Army.