Built in the UAE to save burning jets: up close with NAFFCO's Falcon 6 airport firefighter

ArabGT's Special Car programme takes a close look at the Falcon 6, a six-wheel-drive airport rescue and firefighting vehicle built by UAE-based safety specialist NAFFCO. These machines never touch public roads and aren't sold to private buyers — they exist to reach and extinguish aircraft fires on runways. The family also includes a 4x4 Falcon 4 and a forthcoming 8x8 Falcon 8, and NAFFCO already ships the trucks to more than 40 countries, serving every airport in India as well as UAE airports and Karbala International Airport in Iraq, in both left- and right-hand-drive configurations.

Power comes from a bespoke 16.0-liter V8 turbodiesel supplied by Scania and mounted at the rear for balance, producing 700 hp and more than 3,300 Nm of torque. The tested example uses a six-speed Twin Disc automatic limited to 118 km/h, while a newer eight-speed version lifts the top speed to 125 km/h — remarkable for a vehicle this size — riding on 20-inch wheels with Michelin tactical tires.

Firefighting output is extreme: the front-bumper monitor flows 3,000 liters per minute and the roof cannon up to 7,500, fed by a 12,000-liter water tank and a 1,500-liter foam tank. The brown demonstration unit adds a 16-meter hydraulic platform topped by a water cannon and a piercing nozzle that can punch through a fuselage and inject foam directly into a burning cabin within seconds; the black tactical unit swaps these for four-wheel steering, a roof crew platform and a rescue hatch. A self-protection system seals the truck and sprays water over its own bodywork to shield the crew from radiant heat, and towing hooks let it drag a disabled aircraft off the runway.

Inside, the cab offers stand-up headroom, panoramic visibility, touchscreen controls running locally developed software, mechanical backup buttons, joysticks with laser aiming for the cannons, a stability monitor that warns of rollover risk, and even color-changing mood lighting. In an off-road test, the truck proved surprisingly comfortable thanks to a special driver's-seat suspension and diff-lock-equipped 6x6 driveline, with the overall package meeting NFPA firefighting standards.