Land Rover marks 70 years of partnership with the Red Cross

Land Rover has revealed a specially equipped Defender 130 emergency response vehicle to mark the 70 years that have passed since the first Series Land Rover entered service with the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in 1954.

This special vehicle has already been handed over to the Italian Red Cross and comes fitted with advanced satellite communications hardware that will allow it to provide continuous, nationwide connection and access in some of the most hard‑to reach, disaster‑hit locations in the country, and to ensure that its ability to offer relief to those who need it most is never compromised by cellular network outages. The vehicle will also be equipped with a winch and tow hook, allowing it to make full use of 3,000kg towing capacity of the Defender Outbound.

The Defender is currently employed by the British Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, helping vulnerable communities prepare for, respond to and recover from crises around the world. Land Rover estimates that this partnership has positively impacted the lives of over two million people in more than 50 countries across the last seven decades.

The Defender is an active participant in six key international projects around the globe across regions including the U.K., Nepal, Italy, Australia, Switzerland, and Morocco.

The Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement were also involved in helping to test the suitability of this new Defender for humanitarian work - fleet experts from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Dubai took to the unforgiving desert sand and twisting tarmac of the Jebel Jais highway to evaluate the all‑terrain capability and on-road composure of Defender prototypes in 2019.

The Defender additionally played a key role during the COVID‑19 pandemic, with a fleet of 27 vehicles deployed with the British Red Cross to deliver medicine and food to vulnerable people across the U.K.