"Will collide with Abrams - will be in an unenviable position": American magazine about the new North Korean tank
The closed nature of North Korea gives rise to many myths both about the peculiarities of life in this country, and about the nature of its weapons, combat training of personnel, and so on. There are numerous articles in which the North Korean battle tank "Songun-915" is described as possessing "terrifying" combat power.
The author of the American magazine Popular Mechanics Kyle Mizokami writes that the DPRK, despite its poverty, has managed to accumulate an impressive arsenal of diverse weapons... The Songun 915 main battle tank, also known as the Pokpung-ho IV, is one of the most recent developments. tanks for the ground forces of the DPRK. North Korean tank building has always developed according to the principle of improving old designs. For the economic opportunities of the DPRK, this is the best option.
Tank "Songun 915" is armed with a 125-mm main gun, created on the basis of the Soviet anti-tank gun 2A46. Of course, the American observer also recognizes the high quality of the 2A46 cannon, but asks about the quality of the ammunition used by the North Korean tank. Indeed, now many modern tanks use armor-piercing shells using tungsten or depleted uranium, but does the DPRK, given its economic capabilities, have access to such materials? Mizokami thinks not. But in this case, it is unlikely that a North Korean shell could penetrate the armor of the American M1A2 Abrams tank.
The author writes that if a new DPRK tank collides with Abrams, it will find itself in an unenviable position.
In addition to the cannon, the Songun 915 tank is equipped with two Bulsae-3 ATGM launchers, which is considered by experts as an analogue of the Kornet ATGM and has a firing range of up to 5,5 km. According to Mizokami, if the Songun were able to launch missiles through the gun barrel, there would be no need to install the rather bulky Bulsae.
Another point is the commander's anti-aircraft machine gun. This device is really missing from most tanks. After all, Western tanks use the M2 heavy machine gun, while the North Korean vehicles are armed with larger and more powerful 14,5 mm machine guns. Some Songongs also have a surface-to-air missile unit at the rear.
Mizokami believes that the MANPADS and machine gun are an attempt to negate the huge advantage of the American and South Korean armies in firepower. aviation, but this attempt can hardly be called successful: the new American helicopters are able to easily destroy North Korean tanks, being far beyond the range of their weapons.
As Mizokami admits, the North Korean Songun 915 tank is indeed well-armed, but its weapons cannot be classified as "terrifying" firepower. The addition of weapons, which in most cases is not used on other similar tanks, just indicates the presence of certain weaknesses and does not entail a real increase in the combat power of the vehicle, which is not seen as a rival for the American "Abrams".
Of course, "Songun 915" will be a worthy opponent for non-tank armored vehicles, the American observer concludes, but if the first American or South Korean tanks meet this tank, it will be in a terrible position.
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