Manufacturer FSC Star Assembly Poland Related | Production 1973 - 2000 Class 6x6 Truck | |
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Engine STAR 359/359M 6-cylinder diesel 150 hp | ||
Star 266 is a Polish 6x6 truck designed for transport of cargo and personnel. Created by Starachowice-based FSC Star, it is the basic transport truck used by the Polish Army, it was also available to civilian market. A successor to a highly successful Star 660 series of trucks, the Star 266 shared many components with Star 200 and Star 244 multi-purpose medium-capacity trucks.
Contents
The truck can transport up to 3500 kilograms cross-country and up to 5000 kg on paved roads, it can also tow trailers of up to 4000 kg. As a truck designed primarily with military service in mind, it can ford rivers of between 120 and 180 centimetres of depth. It was initially equipped with a 6-cylinder S359 diesel engine (6842 cm³, 150 HP).
The design works started in 1968. The following year the first prototypes were ready. Between 1970 and 1973 the vehicle was being prepared to enter serial production which it did in 1973. It remained in production until 2000, when it was replaced with Star 1466.
Usage
Star 266 is widely used by civilians to transport goods and served as a basis for many civilian vehicles including fire engines, garbage trucks, sewerage service trucks and truck-mounted cranes.
Two specially modified Star 266 trucks took part in the 1988 Dakar Rally. The two crews included Tomasz Sikora with Jerzy Franek and Jerzy Mazur with Julian Obornicki. Both trucks reached the finish line in Senegal but they went over the delay limit and as such were not classified. One of the trucks is currently in Muzeum Przyrody i Techniki (Nature and Technology Museum) in Starachowice.
Star 266 is a basic medium-capacity transport vehicle of the Polish Armed Forces and as such is used for a number of different tasks. Polish Army also uses the modernized variant of Star 266 known as Star 266M. Star 266 also served as basis for a number of different vehicles including CD-5 tank trucks which are used for transport of liquid fuel by supply platoons of tank and mechanized battalions, GD-2 smokescreen generation vehicles, truck-mounted cranes, excavators, WUS-3 and IRS special vehicles used for disinfection, deactivation and decontamination of vehicles, terrain, equipment and buildings, ADK-11 command vehicles as well as Star-266 AP-64 and Star-266 BP-64 special transport vehicles used for transporting the elements of the PP-64 Wstęga pontoon bridge.