Dennis Dagger

The Dennis Dagger was a compact fire engine built by Dennis Specialist Vehicles between 1998 and 2007. It was designed for fire brigades working narrow rural roads where a full-size appliance would not fit, a niche the earlier Dennis DS series had also tried to serve. Development began in 1997 under the internal codename F98, short for Fire 1998, and production began by 2002. It looked and was engineered much like the full-size Dennis Sabre and could carry a body from John Dennis Coachbuilders. Sales were aimed first at the Kent and Devon and Somerset fire services, but against other narrow truck conversions, such as those on MAN chassis, the Dagger sold poorly. It was the last new fire engine Dennis Specialist Vehicles produced before the company closed in 2007. Operators included the Hertfordshire and West Sussex brigades, and the New Zealand Fire Service bought a trial pair and an ex-demonstrator, all three of which remain in service with its successor agency.