A new vehicle standard is coming.

The fire brigade of the state capital of Baden-Württemberg is dazzling experts with a completely new fire-fighting vehicle, a real TLF-W (forest fire water tender truck). Why real? Until now, tenders had omitted, among other things for cost reasons, distinctive and absolutely necessary vehicle features that make a highly off-road-capable fire-fighting vehicle suitable for combating vegetation fires. Now, however, the Stuttgart brigade is following a new concept from the German Fire Brigade Association.

After numerous chassis and body suppliers initially assured the association of their competence, the Unimog ultimately proved to be the only sensible solution. The two completely newly designed U 5023 TLF-Ws will in future provide highly effective support to the fire-fighting vehicles of Stuttgart's professional fire brigade and volunteer fire brigade.

The fact is: the new Unimog is the TLF-W benchmark. The vehicle is intended to become the standard. At a length of 6,950 mm and an actual mass of 13,900 kg, the new Unimog TLF-W is very compact. In addition, the low body and tank arrangement result in a very low center of gravity. Key features of the vehicle include its wading depth of 1.2 meters, a self-recovery winch, and the double cab, which provides an air-sprung individual seat for each crew member and is equipped with air conditioning and an auxiliary heater. The two roof hatches above the rear row of seats are thoughtfully designed: they are watertight when closed and can be walked on without restriction.

The Stuttgart TLF-Ws have, in addition to digital BOS radio technology, a completely autonomous analogue radio system. The solution usually used here, with a handset that operates both analogue and digital radio via a Lardis system, was deliberately not used. At the pump control panel there are no radio handsets installed, only speakers, because the TLF-Ws are hardly ever used alone for normal pumping operations. Every crew member has their own headset.

Heat protection for all critical components and lines is essential, as are the innovative firefighting technology on the roof, the special warning system and surrounding-area lighting, and the tyre pressure control system operated from the multifunction steering wheel. Beadlock rims prevent the tyre from spinning on the rim.

The Inclisafe sensor system, which uses rows of green, yellow and red LEDs to indicate the criticality of lateral tilt, sets standards. In addition to a shutter reversing camera with sound transmission, there is a front camera and a turning assistant with camera and sensors, as well as a monitor on the right A-pillar. The sensors also signal every movement to the right of the vehicle acoustically.

The front camera significantly reduces the area in front of the vehicle that cannot be seen and has its own screen at the top centre between the driver and the vehicle commander. The reversing camera uses the screen of the Lardis system. The two Stuttgart TLF-W together form the tactically minimally necessary "pair", i.e. two TLF-W that mutually secure each other during operations.