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Napisano: 02 Dec 2012 17:12
Pakistan unveils upgraded Al-Khalid tank, APC:
Gordon Arthur, Karachi, Pakistan Section:
2012-Nov-14
An improved Al-Khalid main battle tank (MBT) and an upgraded armoured personnel carrier (APC) were among the armoured vehicles displayed by Pakistan's state-owned Heavy Industries Taxila (HIT) at the seventh International Defence Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS) in Karachi.
The Al-Khalid, a product of Chinese and Pakistani co-operation, is currently being marketed overseas by China as the MBT-2000 without Pakistani permission, an HIT spokesman stated . On 8 November HIT moved to close this loophole by signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Al-Khalid exports with Chinese firm Norinco.
An Al-Khalid main battle tank, the premium product of Heavy Industries Taxila, on display at IDEAS 2012. (Gordon Arthur) The MoU arranges for joint marketing and profit sharing between the two partners, as well as ongoing technology transfer. Potential export markets for the Al-Khalid include Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Middle East, said the spokesman, who nonetheless acknowledged that it is competing in a very challenging market.
More than 300 of the 46-tonne MBTs have entered Pakistan Army service since 2001 - the first 215 of which were fitted with a Ukrainian engine. Meanwhile, a senior official at Ministry of Defence Procurement said an improved version is nearing induction that will feature a more powerful diesel power pack, improved command and control and better night-fighting capabilities. HIT manufactures around 20 Al-Khalid tanks a year and also produces the Al-Zarrar MBT. A spokesman said HIT has no intention of marketing the latter internationally, adding that its lesser capabilities render it uncompetitive.
HIT also exhibited an improved Talha APC that Qasim Ijaz Cheema, an HIT marketing manager, said had been developed in response to an army request.
HIT has developed the Talha M113P with a cupola and angled add-on armour suite that offers higher protection levels. (Gordon Arthur) The 11.2-tonne Talha is based on the US Combat Systems M113A2/M113A3 series and is often referred to as the M113P. It features a modular armour package consisting of Kevlar sandwiched between steel on the outside and aluminium on the inside and a 1,375 kg bolt-on armour package that can resist 12.7 mm rounds. The M113P, which is armed with a rotating cupola mounting a heavy machine gun and powered by a 275 hp engine, has been sold to Iraq and is also available in a longer version.
Cheema said the Talha and Al-Khalid upgrades reflected HIT's current focus on improving and up-armouring existing products suitable for the type of internal defence duties the armed forces are currently engaged in, rather than developing new vehicle designs.
HIT also displayed three Muhafiz 4x4 armoured vehicle variants in service with Pakistani police, ranger and army units, including the latest 3,200 kg Muhafiz III security vehicle fitted with a remote-controlled weapon system. The latest version is based on a Toyota Land Cruiser chassis and is capable of 120 km/h on roads. The indigenously designed Muhafiz has already won sales to Bangladesh, Iraq and Sri Lanka.
Source: http://www.defence.pk/forums/pakistan-army/127686-.....z2DuaHogUH
Dopuna: 03 Mar 2013 18:05
 
Dopuna: 03 Mar 2013 18:06
 
Dopuna: 03 Mar 2013 18:08
ISLAMABAD: State-run companies of Pakistan and China today signed a contract for manufacturing the Al-Khalid-I tank, the latest version of the combat vehicle jointly developed by the two countries.
The Al-Khalid tank was developed in the 1990s and introduced in 2001.
The new version has improved capability and systems, an official statement said.
The contract for making the new tanks was signed by Pakistan's Heavy Industries Taxila and China's NORINCO at the Ministry of Defence Production.
The joint marketing of the Al-Khalid tank with China would open up potential markets, the statement said
Pakistan, China sign contract for manufacturing Al-Khalid-I tank - The Economic Times
Mon, Dec 31, 2012 17:10 CET
Pakistan and China today signed a contract to manufacture a version of the jointly developed Al-Khalid-I tanks.
First developed in the 1990’s, the tank was introduced in 2001 with the new version equipped with has improved capability and systems.
The contract was signed by Pakistan's Heavy Industries Taxila and China's NORINCO at the Ministry of Defence Production.
The joint marketing of the Al-Khalid tank with China would open up potential markets, the statement said.
China, Pakistan To Manufacture New Version Of Al-Khalid Tanks : Defense news
Source: http://www.defence.pk/forums/pakistan-army/127686-.....z2MUuHlIzb
Dopuna: 03 Mar 2013 18:10
HIT Al-Khalid
Notes: Also called the MBT-2000 (particularly during development), the Al-Khalid is touted as Pakistan’s first indigenous tank design, but is believed to incorporate much of its design from Type 90-IIs, Type 85s, and some other equipment supplied by China for analysis. Regardless of the origins of the Al-Khalid, it is essentially vehicle dissimilar enough to other tanks to be considered a new design, if not a completely independent one. The Al-Khalid was developed over the period from 1990-99, with production and fielding beginning in 2001. Most Western observers agree that the Al-Khalid is a surprisingly modern and effective design. Some 300 are in service with Pakistan, and they intend to being that total to 600. In addition, 22 Al-Khalids started being delivered to the Bangladeshi Army beginning in May 2008, and the Saudis are reportedly giving the Al-Khalid a hard look to supplement their M-1A2 Abrams tanks.
The design places the driver in the center front of the hull; he has a hatch which opens slightly upwards and to the left as to not interfere with turret rotation if the hatch is open. He has vision blocks giving him views to the right, left, and front; the frontal vision block can be replaced with an IR vision block. The gunner has his own hatch, as the Al-Khalid uses an autoloader instead of a loader crewmember, and has vision blocks that allow vision to the front, rear, and right side. The gunner is equipped with a full night vision suite, including a 2nd-generation thermal imager developed by France. The gunner also has an image intensification scope and a conventional telescopic sight; all of which are stabilized. The commander has his own thermal imager, image intensifier, and conventional telescopic sight, in a separate sensor head that gives the Al-Khalid a hunter-killer capability. The commander also has emergency controls for the main gun and coaxial machinegun. The Al-Khalid has a ballistic computer of French design, along with a laser designator of Chinese design.
The main gun is a version of the Chinese ZPT-98 gun, though the barrel has a length of 48 calibers. The gun is fed by an autoloader that has a capacity of 24 rounds, with additional ammunition being stored in the hull of the Al-Khalid. In addition to being able to fire indigenous and foreign 125mm rounds, the gun can also fire a Chinese license-produced version of 9M119 Reflecks (AT-11 Sniper) gun-launched ATGM. The autoloader is improved over that of the Al-Zarrar, able to handle newer long-rod penetrators. (ATGM rounds must be hand-loaded.) The laser rangefinder acts as a designator when the 9M119 ATGM is fired. The commander’s machinegun can be aimed and fired from under armor. On each side of the turret is a cluster of five smoke grenade launchers. The Al-Kalid has a feature found in most of the newest generation of tanks: a battle management system called Rabhar by the Pakistanis. This is a computerized system that not only monitors the state of the tank and feeds the appropriate information to the crew, but also plots the location of enemy and friendly units and keeps them updated as new information becomes available. It also passes orders from higher headquarters down and allows the commander to give orders to subordinate units, as well as providing any other intelligence and information the commander may require. This system also has GPS, with inertial navigation as a backup. The tank’s electronic systems are connected to large batteries for "silent watch" use.
In development, the Al-Khalid was powered by an MTU-396 diesel engine with a German LSG-3000 transmission. Germany placed an embargo on these items in the mid-1990s due to their stance on development of indigenous nuclear weapons, and this led to the Pakistanis fitting the Al-Khalid with a license-produced Ukrainian KMDB 6TD-2 1200-horsepower engine and a French SESM ESM-500 fully-automatic transmission. This engine had the virtue of being smaller than the German engine, yet provided the same 1200 horsepower. The Al-Khalid can carry auxiliary fuel tanks at the rear a la Russian/Chinese tanks, though in practice they are little used except in long road marches.
Armor protection is modular, allowing for quick battle damage repairs and improvement as more advanced armor becomes available or heavier armor is desired. Frontal armor is composite and of Pakistani design, with side armor being spaced; it is of a more modern design than that on the Al-Zarrar and lighter in weight. The turret front, turret sides, glacis, and hull sides have lugs for ERA. Attention was paid to land mine damage in the form of thickened floor armor. The ammunition is carried in armored bins, and virtually the entire vehicle has thick Kevlar anti-spalling blankets. The engine also has a thick bulkhead separating it from the crew compartment. An automatic explosion and fire suppression system is provided, and the crew has an NBC overpressure system; the engine compartment and ammunition bins have their own systems of the same sort. The Al-Khalid has a laser detection system that can automatically trigger smoke grenades to block the laser, and a radar warning system that can give the crew a chance to take evasive action.
Twilight 2000 Notes: Though the Pakistanis were able to field some Al-Khalids in the Twilight 2000 timeline, only some 50 or so were available for the Twilight War.
Pakistani Tanks
Dopuna: 03 Mar 2013 18:12
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