Draft of an armored demining vehicle based on an Ikv 91 tank (Sweden)
In 2002, the Swedish army withdrew the lungs Tanks / tank destroyers Ikv 91. This equipment, created in the early seventies, no longer met modern requirements, which is why the military decided to abandon it in favor of more modern models. Cars went for conservation and in museums. In addition, there was a proposal for the use of decommissioned tanks as the basis for promising special-purpose armored vehicles. Perhaps the most interesting proposal of this kind concerned the creation of an engineering armored mine clearance vehicle.
Recall that the light tank or self-propelled artillery installation Infanterikanonvagn 91 has been developed since the late sixties by the Swedish company Hägglunds & Söner. In 1975, the army received the first production samples of such equipment. The construction of tanks continued until 1978, during which time 212 armored vehicles were manufactured. The tank carried a 90-mm high-pressure cannon in the barrel bore, designed for firing cumulative and high-explosive fragmentation shells. Later, the range of ammunition was replenished with a sub-caliber round.
According to the initial ideas of the customer, the Ikv 91 was supposed to be light and relatively cheap, simple and mobile armored vehicle designed to fight enemy tanks. By applying several compromises, the tasks were solved, but the tank actually lost any prospects for further development. As a result, after several decades of operation, the armored vehicle could no longer show the required combat effectiveness and was not of interest to the army. In 2002, the Ikv 91 was decommissioned.
Machine clearance at the exhibition of military equipment. Working bodies and jacks are lowered into the combat position. Photo Ointres.se
Even during operation, the Swedish light tanks were used in some new projects. In particular, the first prototype of the AMOS self-propelled mortar was built precisely on the basis of the Ikv 91 chassis. The existing chassis could find application in other projects of armored vehicles of one purpose or another. At the beginning of the last decade, simultaneously with the removal of tanks from armaments, a proposal appeared to create a promising specialized vehicle based on a tank chassis.
The characteristic features of the existing chassis, namely the relatively weak booking, did not allow it to be used as part of front-line combat vehicles. Nevertheless, it could solve assigned tasks at some distance from the front line. In particular, the armored hull of the light tank was considered acceptable for use in the project of a promising demining machine.
Unfortunately, the exact name of the project is unknown. In some English-speaking sources, a promising machine is referred to as Hurricane ("Hurricane"). This suggests that the original project had the Swedish name Orkan. At the same time, in most cases, the original designation is called simpler: an armored demining vehicle based on Ikv 91. The design of the new machine was carried out by the Swedish company BOA Defense. Probably, the developer of the base tank took part in the creation of a new project.
The overwhelming majority of projects for the creation of new technology based on existing samples use the same approach. The base machine loses part of the “native” equipment, instead of which certain new units are installed. In the same way, it was proposed to turn a tank into a demining machine. First of all, Ikv 91 was supposed to lose the turret with weapons and all the staff equipment of the combat compartment. In addition, side laying of ammunition was removed from the front of the case, which resulted in the release of a certain amount. Most of the hull elements remained unchanged, although some parts needed some kind of improvement.
The “Hurricane” demining machine, in general, retained the existing hull. The light tank Ikv 91 had a welded hull consisting of armor plates from 4 to 8 mm in thickness. This allowed to protect the car from small weapons when fired from any angle or from 20-mm automatic guns when attacking from the front hemisphere. After the machine had mastered the new specialty, the corps was intended to protect the crew and internal units from flying fragments of explosive devices.
The hull of the light tank of the base model had an inclined upper frontal part of a curved shape that covered both the central part of the hull and the frontal projection of the futonic niches. In the upper part of the frontal sheet, on the left side, there were some elements of the driver's hatch, as well as a set of viewing devices. In the framework of the new project, to the right of the driver's hatch, it was proposed to install an additional workplace. To install it, a window of the required shape appeared in the frontal sheet and the roof, over which an armored unit in the form of a truncated pyramid was to be mounted. The upper surface of the unit received a hatch and viewing devices.
The design of the sides of the chassis, in general, remained the same. The fencing niches had vertical sides of a small height, smoothly connected with the roof. At the same time, an additional grille, necessary for the correct operation of the new equipment, appeared on the right side. The shoulder strap of the tower was proposed to overlap with a horizontal cover, over which an additional casing of special equipment was mounted. Its front and aft parts consisted of several tapered sheets, and instead of the sides there were blinds between them. The feed of the tank hull was not modified.
The layout of the hull was redesigned according to the new role of the machine. The front part of the hull has retained the functions of the department of management, but now there were two places for the crew. Instead of fighting compartment chassis now had a compartment with the target equipment. The feed still contained the engine compartment.
The tank destroyer Infanterikanonvagn 91 was equipped with a Volvo Penta TD 120 A diesel engine with horsepower 330. To save space in the aft compartment, the engine was placed at the right side of the hull diagonally, at an angle 32 ° to the longitudinal axis of the machine. With the help of a propeller shaft, the engine was connected to an automatic transmission. That, interacting with other elements of the transmission, provided the rotation of the rear drive wheels.
The undercarriage of an existing structure was not recycled during the Ikv 91 Orkan project. On each side of the hull, six double support rollers with rubber bands were still placed. The rollers had an individual torsion bar suspension. In front of the hull were guide wheels of reduced diameter, in the stern - leading. Support rollers were not used.
Lehi tank / SAU Ikv 91. Photos of Tanks-encyclopedia.com
An additional power unit was placed at the site of the former combat unit, the task of which was to ensure the operation of special equipment. In the center of the case was an additional diesel engine with its own transmission, connected to the main pump of the hydraulic system. The engine and other devices of the central compartment were cooled with the help of radiators in the casing on the roof and starboard. The pipes of the hydraulic lines were connected to the main pump. To the working bodies of the machine the pressure was applied with the help of several flexible hoses of sufficient strength. The hoses came out of the corresponding window in the right flank niche and were connected with attachments.
The task of combating explosive devices was assigned to a special impact trawl using an unusual principle of operation. The basis of the trawl was a transverse box-shaped structure, suspended on the frontal part of the hull. As follows from the available materials, it was mounted on the chassis body with the help of hinges and levers, which allowed it to move relative to the machine within a small sector. On the sides of the box were outrigger hydraulic cylinders, covered with large covers. On the front surface of the box-like parts were hinges for the installation of mobile working bodies. From the top right, the box had pipes with fittings for connecting to the hydraulics of the machine.
The “Hurricane” demining machine received two identical working bodies, placed symmetrically about the width of the tracks. The working body of the trawl had a main body of small cross section and large height. Inside the case there was a motor (probably electric) and several mobile elements with means of their fastening. Behind the body were attached two swinging arms, with the help of which it was connected to the main trawl box. The lower arm had attachments for the hydraulic cylinder. The latter, using the principle of a parallelogram mechanism, could lower the working body into a “combat” position or lift it into a transport one. On the two vertical shells of the trawl and on the front sheet of the machine there were several mounts for installing a two-layer rubber screen.
The vertical bodies contained the motors responsible for the rotation of the impellers. The task of interacting with neutralizable ammunition was assigned to devices like propellers with two rectangular blades of viscous non-magnetic steel. Drives allowed impellers to rotate at speeds up to 1200 revolutions per minute. The swept discs of the two impellers partially overlapped. The joint operation of the two devices made it possible to clear the passage width 3,5 m.
The engineering machine was not designed to work at the forefront, but still received a weapon for self-defense. On the left hatch of the control compartment, a turret was provided for mounting a rifle caliber machine gun. The crew could also have personal weapons, hand grenades, etc. Other weapons available on the base tank were missing due to the dismantling of the turret.
To manage a promising model was a crew of two people. On the left in the control compartment was a driver, whose workplace corresponded to the control post of the original light tank. Right inside his own cabin was the commander-operator. He was able to monitor the surrounding terrain, and also had to control the operation of demining systems. When attacking the enemy, he was responsible for the use of a machine gun.
For greater convenience of working in various conditions, the Hurricane has developed advanced means of illuminating the working field. A pair of headlights was placed on the main body of the trawl, above the outriggers. A few more lighting devices and reflecting devices were located on the bodies of the working bodies. Finally, behind the cabin of the commander, in the center of the roof of the hull, an inclined support was installed with several lanterns for various purposes. Thanks to this equipment, the crew could clearly see the terrain and work without difficulty at any time of the day.
The Hurricane armored clearance vehicle with a trawl of the original design was designed to operate in relatively simple conditions. It was not supposed to be released on the rugged terrain of the battlefield, since the trawl was adapted to work at other objects. With the help of the “Hurricane” it was proposed to clean dangerous objects at airfields, roads and other flat areas of strategic terrain. The main purpose of the machine at the same time turned out to be unexploded cluster bombs submunitions, airborne minefields and other explosive devices remaining on the surface.
The Ikv 91 Orkan demining machine could get to its place of work on its own, raising the working bodies of the trawl to the transport position. Arriving in a given area, it was necessary to prepare the trawl for use. Side outriger jacks were lowered into the working position, at which the tracks were flush with the lower branch. The working bodies of the trawl also went down, after which the impellers were at a height of several centimeters from the ground. The use of lowered jacks allowed to maintain the correct position of the nose of the chassis and the trawl: the car could collapse back and forth, but the slope of the trawl forward and subsequent burial of the blades in the ground was excluded.
Bringing the impeller to the maximum defense, the crew could begin to move through the minefield. Getting under the blade, any unexploded ordnance had to collapse. A blow with a blade destroyed a mine and threw its fragments to the side. Calculations showed that this method of demining can destroy and thereby neutralize a dangerous object in just 2 milliseconds, whereas for triggering an electric fuse, the order of 10 ms was required. The wreckage of the destroyed product had to scatter in different directions. Some of them could get under the bottom of the case or under the tracks, others flew forward or sideways. To prevent debris from entering the roof of the hull, the trawl was equipped with a double rubber screen.
"Hurricane" in the stowed position, impellers raised. Photo Strangernn.livejournal.com
Despite the use of unusual ideas and methods of work, the original demining machine was of some interest to the Swedish army. At the beginning of the last decade, BOA Defense, by reworking one of its decommissioned tanks, manufactured a prototype Hurricane. According to some reports, this car was tested, confirming the calculated characteristics. Subsequently, it was shown several times to representatives of the military department and demonstrated at armament and equipment exhibitions.
Soon after the appearance of the original project, its prospects were announced. It was alleged that the Swedish army showed great interest in the new engineering vehicle and intends to order a serial restructuring of the tanks being written off. In the near future, four dozen Infanterikanonvagn 91 could be sent for modernization. Subsequently, a contract could appear for the modernization of two more lots of 40 machines in each. Thus, from 212 built self-propelled guns Ikv 91 more than half could turn into a technique for engineering troops.
However, all these plans were soon canceled. For one reason or another, the Swedish army did not want to sign a contract for the serial modernization and alteration of the existing equipment. The prototype of the Hurricane machine remained alone. Decommissioned tanks, in turn, were sent not for repairs and alterations, but for conservation. After the refusal of the military project was closed as unnecessary. The further fate of the only experienced car with an unusual trawl is unknown.
Without much difficulty, it is possible to determine at least one of the main reasons for the refusal of the military. In its present form, the “Hurricane” looked interesting and promising, but from the point of view of practical application such a technique had no serious future. The main problem of the project was the specific purpose of the machine. It was intended for the disposal of ammunition on the roads, runways and other flat surfaces. Any bump could disrupt the operation of machinery or even damage its impeller, stopping the process of neutralization. Moreover, a serious obstacle to the work of Ikv 91 Orkan could be an explosion funnel. It should also be noted that the machine could destroy only ammunition lying on the surface.
An unusual demining machine was designed to solve a specific problem in certain conditions. An attempt to solve the same problem outside the required terrain either would not have yielded results, or led to a breakdown of the equipment. The original piece of equipment turned out to be overly specialized. It is unlikely that the Swedish army needed an engineering vehicle capable of working only on roads and afraid of any irregularities, as well as being powerless against buried mines. As a result, plans for the future construction of new equipment were canceled. An attempt to give the existing tank chassis a new life was not crowned with success. The Ikv 91 tanks that were written off were not sent for rework, but for storage.
On the materials of the sites:
http://army-guide.com/
http://ointres.se/
http://strangernn.livejournal.com/
http://ritastatusreport.blogspot.fr/
Recall that the light tank or self-propelled artillery installation Infanterikanonvagn 91 has been developed since the late sixties by the Swedish company Hägglunds & Söner. In 1975, the army received the first production samples of such equipment. The construction of tanks continued until 1978, during which time 212 armored vehicles were manufactured. The tank carried a 90-mm high-pressure cannon in the barrel bore, designed for firing cumulative and high-explosive fragmentation shells. Later, the range of ammunition was replenished with a sub-caliber round.
According to the initial ideas of the customer, the Ikv 91 was supposed to be light and relatively cheap, simple and mobile armored vehicle designed to fight enemy tanks. By applying several compromises, the tasks were solved, but the tank actually lost any prospects for further development. As a result, after several decades of operation, the armored vehicle could no longer show the required combat effectiveness and was not of interest to the army. In 2002, the Ikv 91 was decommissioned.
Machine clearance at the exhibition of military equipment. Working bodies and jacks are lowered into the combat position. Photo Ointres.se
Even during operation, the Swedish light tanks were used in some new projects. In particular, the first prototype of the AMOS self-propelled mortar was built precisely on the basis of the Ikv 91 chassis. The existing chassis could find application in other projects of armored vehicles of one purpose or another. At the beginning of the last decade, simultaneously with the removal of tanks from armaments, a proposal appeared to create a promising specialized vehicle based on a tank chassis.
The characteristic features of the existing chassis, namely the relatively weak booking, did not allow it to be used as part of front-line combat vehicles. Nevertheless, it could solve assigned tasks at some distance from the front line. In particular, the armored hull of the light tank was considered acceptable for use in the project of a promising demining machine.
Unfortunately, the exact name of the project is unknown. In some English-speaking sources, a promising machine is referred to as Hurricane ("Hurricane"). This suggests that the original project had the Swedish name Orkan. At the same time, in most cases, the original designation is called simpler: an armored demining vehicle based on Ikv 91. The design of the new machine was carried out by the Swedish company BOA Defense. Probably, the developer of the base tank took part in the creation of a new project.
The overwhelming majority of projects for the creation of new technology based on existing samples use the same approach. The base machine loses part of the “native” equipment, instead of which certain new units are installed. In the same way, it was proposed to turn a tank into a demining machine. First of all, Ikv 91 was supposed to lose the turret with weapons and all the staff equipment of the combat compartment. In addition, side laying of ammunition was removed from the front of the case, which resulted in the release of a certain amount. Most of the hull elements remained unchanged, although some parts needed some kind of improvement.
The “Hurricane” demining machine, in general, retained the existing hull. The light tank Ikv 91 had a welded hull consisting of armor plates from 4 to 8 mm in thickness. This allowed to protect the car from small weapons when fired from any angle or from 20-mm automatic guns when attacking from the front hemisphere. After the machine had mastered the new specialty, the corps was intended to protect the crew and internal units from flying fragments of explosive devices.
The hull of the light tank of the base model had an inclined upper frontal part of a curved shape that covered both the central part of the hull and the frontal projection of the futonic niches. In the upper part of the frontal sheet, on the left side, there were some elements of the driver's hatch, as well as a set of viewing devices. In the framework of the new project, to the right of the driver's hatch, it was proposed to install an additional workplace. To install it, a window of the required shape appeared in the frontal sheet and the roof, over which an armored unit in the form of a truncated pyramid was to be mounted. The upper surface of the unit received a hatch and viewing devices.
The design of the sides of the chassis, in general, remained the same. The fencing niches had vertical sides of a small height, smoothly connected with the roof. At the same time, an additional grille, necessary for the correct operation of the new equipment, appeared on the right side. The shoulder strap of the tower was proposed to overlap with a horizontal cover, over which an additional casing of special equipment was mounted. Its front and aft parts consisted of several tapered sheets, and instead of the sides there were blinds between them. The feed of the tank hull was not modified.
The layout of the hull was redesigned according to the new role of the machine. The front part of the hull has retained the functions of the department of management, but now there were two places for the crew. Instead of fighting compartment chassis now had a compartment with the target equipment. The feed still contained the engine compartment.
The tank destroyer Infanterikanonvagn 91 was equipped with a Volvo Penta TD 120 A diesel engine with horsepower 330. To save space in the aft compartment, the engine was placed at the right side of the hull diagonally, at an angle 32 ° to the longitudinal axis of the machine. With the help of a propeller shaft, the engine was connected to an automatic transmission. That, interacting with other elements of the transmission, provided the rotation of the rear drive wheels.
The undercarriage of an existing structure was not recycled during the Ikv 91 Orkan project. On each side of the hull, six double support rollers with rubber bands were still placed. The rollers had an individual torsion bar suspension. In front of the hull were guide wheels of reduced diameter, in the stern - leading. Support rollers were not used.
Lehi tank / SAU Ikv 91. Photos of Tanks-encyclopedia.com
An additional power unit was placed at the site of the former combat unit, the task of which was to ensure the operation of special equipment. In the center of the case was an additional diesel engine with its own transmission, connected to the main pump of the hydraulic system. The engine and other devices of the central compartment were cooled with the help of radiators in the casing on the roof and starboard. The pipes of the hydraulic lines were connected to the main pump. To the working bodies of the machine the pressure was applied with the help of several flexible hoses of sufficient strength. The hoses came out of the corresponding window in the right flank niche and were connected with attachments.
The task of combating explosive devices was assigned to a special impact trawl using an unusual principle of operation. The basis of the trawl was a transverse box-shaped structure, suspended on the frontal part of the hull. As follows from the available materials, it was mounted on the chassis body with the help of hinges and levers, which allowed it to move relative to the machine within a small sector. On the sides of the box were outrigger hydraulic cylinders, covered with large covers. On the front surface of the box-like parts were hinges for the installation of mobile working bodies. From the top right, the box had pipes with fittings for connecting to the hydraulics of the machine.
The “Hurricane” demining machine received two identical working bodies, placed symmetrically about the width of the tracks. The working body of the trawl had a main body of small cross section and large height. Inside the case there was a motor (probably electric) and several mobile elements with means of their fastening. Behind the body were attached two swinging arms, with the help of which it was connected to the main trawl box. The lower arm had attachments for the hydraulic cylinder. The latter, using the principle of a parallelogram mechanism, could lower the working body into a “combat” position or lift it into a transport one. On the two vertical shells of the trawl and on the front sheet of the machine there were several mounts for installing a two-layer rubber screen.
The vertical bodies contained the motors responsible for the rotation of the impellers. The task of interacting with neutralizable ammunition was assigned to devices like propellers with two rectangular blades of viscous non-magnetic steel. Drives allowed impellers to rotate at speeds up to 1200 revolutions per minute. The swept discs of the two impellers partially overlapped. The joint operation of the two devices made it possible to clear the passage width 3,5 m.
The engineering machine was not designed to work at the forefront, but still received a weapon for self-defense. On the left hatch of the control compartment, a turret was provided for mounting a rifle caliber machine gun. The crew could also have personal weapons, hand grenades, etc. Other weapons available on the base tank were missing due to the dismantling of the turret.
To manage a promising model was a crew of two people. On the left in the control compartment was a driver, whose workplace corresponded to the control post of the original light tank. Right inside his own cabin was the commander-operator. He was able to monitor the surrounding terrain, and also had to control the operation of demining systems. When attacking the enemy, he was responsible for the use of a machine gun.
For greater convenience of working in various conditions, the Hurricane has developed advanced means of illuminating the working field. A pair of headlights was placed on the main body of the trawl, above the outriggers. A few more lighting devices and reflecting devices were located on the bodies of the working bodies. Finally, behind the cabin of the commander, in the center of the roof of the hull, an inclined support was installed with several lanterns for various purposes. Thanks to this equipment, the crew could clearly see the terrain and work without difficulty at any time of the day.
The Hurricane armored clearance vehicle with a trawl of the original design was designed to operate in relatively simple conditions. It was not supposed to be released on the rugged terrain of the battlefield, since the trawl was adapted to work at other objects. With the help of the “Hurricane” it was proposed to clean dangerous objects at airfields, roads and other flat areas of strategic terrain. The main purpose of the machine at the same time turned out to be unexploded cluster bombs submunitions, airborne minefields and other explosive devices remaining on the surface.
The Ikv 91 Orkan demining machine could get to its place of work on its own, raising the working bodies of the trawl to the transport position. Arriving in a given area, it was necessary to prepare the trawl for use. Side outriger jacks were lowered into the working position, at which the tracks were flush with the lower branch. The working bodies of the trawl also went down, after which the impellers were at a height of several centimeters from the ground. The use of lowered jacks allowed to maintain the correct position of the nose of the chassis and the trawl: the car could collapse back and forth, but the slope of the trawl forward and subsequent burial of the blades in the ground was excluded.
Bringing the impeller to the maximum defense, the crew could begin to move through the minefield. Getting under the blade, any unexploded ordnance had to collapse. A blow with a blade destroyed a mine and threw its fragments to the side. Calculations showed that this method of demining can destroy and thereby neutralize a dangerous object in just 2 milliseconds, whereas for triggering an electric fuse, the order of 10 ms was required. The wreckage of the destroyed product had to scatter in different directions. Some of them could get under the bottom of the case or under the tracks, others flew forward or sideways. To prevent debris from entering the roof of the hull, the trawl was equipped with a double rubber screen.
"Hurricane" in the stowed position, impellers raised. Photo Strangernn.livejournal.com
Despite the use of unusual ideas and methods of work, the original demining machine was of some interest to the Swedish army. At the beginning of the last decade, BOA Defense, by reworking one of its decommissioned tanks, manufactured a prototype Hurricane. According to some reports, this car was tested, confirming the calculated characteristics. Subsequently, it was shown several times to representatives of the military department and demonstrated at armament and equipment exhibitions.
Soon after the appearance of the original project, its prospects were announced. It was alleged that the Swedish army showed great interest in the new engineering vehicle and intends to order a serial restructuring of the tanks being written off. In the near future, four dozen Infanterikanonvagn 91 could be sent for modernization. Subsequently, a contract could appear for the modernization of two more lots of 40 machines in each. Thus, from 212 built self-propelled guns Ikv 91 more than half could turn into a technique for engineering troops.
However, all these plans were soon canceled. For one reason or another, the Swedish army did not want to sign a contract for the serial modernization and alteration of the existing equipment. The prototype of the Hurricane machine remained alone. Decommissioned tanks, in turn, were sent not for repairs and alterations, but for conservation. After the refusal of the military project was closed as unnecessary. The further fate of the only experienced car with an unusual trawl is unknown.
Without much difficulty, it is possible to determine at least one of the main reasons for the refusal of the military. In its present form, the “Hurricane” looked interesting and promising, but from the point of view of practical application such a technique had no serious future. The main problem of the project was the specific purpose of the machine. It was intended for the disposal of ammunition on the roads, runways and other flat surfaces. Any bump could disrupt the operation of machinery or even damage its impeller, stopping the process of neutralization. Moreover, a serious obstacle to the work of Ikv 91 Orkan could be an explosion funnel. It should also be noted that the machine could destroy only ammunition lying on the surface.
An unusual demining machine was designed to solve a specific problem in certain conditions. An attempt to solve the same problem outside the required terrain either would not have yielded results, or led to a breakdown of the equipment. The original piece of equipment turned out to be overly specialized. It is unlikely that the Swedish army needed an engineering vehicle capable of working only on roads and afraid of any irregularities, as well as being powerless against buried mines. As a result, plans for the future construction of new equipment were canceled. An attempt to give the existing tank chassis a new life was not crowned with success. The Ikv 91 tanks that were written off were not sent for rework, but for storage.
On the materials of the sites:
http://army-guide.com/
http://ointres.se/
http://strangernn.livejournal.com/
http://ritastatusreport.blogspot.fr/
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