technical

An improvised military vehicle built from a civilian motor vehicle. It is typically a light pickup truck with a tripod-mounted heavy machine gun on the back. However, they can be built on other types of civilian vehicles (such as sports utility vehicles or flatbed trucks) or use other types of manually-operated mounted guns or weapons.

Technicals are mostly associated with irregular and paramilitary forces. The etymology of the term is uncertain, but it is believed to have originated in Somalia in the 1980s or '90s.

Weapons commonly mounted on technicals include:

• Heavy machine guns, such as the DShK and Browning M2
• Anti-aircraft weapons, such as the ZPU
• Large recoilless rifles and rocket launchers

Civilian vehicles commonly used as technicals:

• Toyota Hilux
• Toyota Land Cruiser
• Mitsubishi Triton

Examples

See also

• military vehicle
• pickup truck
• List of ground vehicles

External links

• Wikipedia: Technical