P-32/46/50/80 Heavy Transport Trailers

     Notes: Formerly used by the Czechoslovakian and East German Armies, these heavy trailers were designed to carry heavy loads and vehicles.  They are standard trailers, rather then semi-trailers, connected to the towing vehicle using a long V-shaped towbar, and having wheels at the front and back of the trailer.  They are no longer in use by the Czech, Slovakian, or German Armies, but since a large number of these trailers were also sold to civilian companies (particularly construction firms), and more were acquired by civilians after service use with the military ended, they are still fairly common in Europe, though most have been upgraded with more modern brakes, electrical systems, and other such subsystems of the trailers.

     The smallest of these related trailers, the P-32, uses three axles (one at the front, two at the rear) with double tires on each side.  The P-46 is basically the same trailer with a beefed-up suspension and an added axle at the front, and capable of carrying more weight.  The P-50 uses the same design, but is over a meter longer, and uses three axles at the rear and two at the front.  The P-80 is essentially a P-50 with a stronger suspension and frame, enabling it to increase its load.  The P-50’s load is normally 50 tons, but an overload 63 tons may be carried; the P-80 can also carry an overload, increasing its carrying capacity to 80 tons.  These overloads are stressful to nearly every component of the trailer; maintenance figures are doubled for the time the overload is carried, and the maximum speed of the vehicle towing the trailers should be reduced by three-quarters or the maintenance figures are increased by another 150%, above the already-doubled maintenance requirements.

     All these trailers have hand-lowered ramps at the rear to load cargo or vehicles, as well as tie-down points along the length of the trailers.  They are not really intended for off-road use, and such use is very limited.

Trailer

Price

Load

Veh Wt

Mnt

Susp/Armor

P-32

$3,626

40 tons

10.6 tons

4

W(3)/HF1  HS1  HR1

P-46

$3,638

46 tons

10.6 tons

4

W(4)/HF1  HS1  HR1

P-50

$4,424

50 tons

16.2 tons

6

W(5)/HF1  HS1  HR1

P-80

$4,609

63 tons

16.2 tons

6

W(5)/HF1  HS1  HR1