Griffin II: now the official US light tank
Source: www.globalsecurity.org
More recently, on June 28, 2022, it became known that military officials from the US Army have finally decided on an easy a tank, which should enter the troops in the near future. They became a modified prototype from the General Dynamics Land System called "Griffin-2" (Griffin II). There is quite a bit of information about this type of equipment, but, according to available data, it is already possible to get some picture of the machine, which will soon strengthen the American infantry formations.
Mobile Protected Firepower
At first glance, it may seem that the United States, having received far from ambiguous experience in the use of M551 Sheridan light tanks in Vietnam, decided to completely abandon the idea of using such combat vehicles. Indeed, after the removal of the M551 from service, not a single light class tank settled in the American army. All this is true, but only partly.
Work to replace the Sheridan has been carried out since the 80s of the last century, but it all ended with the fact that the projects were shelved for various reasons, ranging from lack of funding and the extreme conservatism of the military to inconsistency with the requirements. By the way, the requirements for technology themselves often underwent fundamental changes. One of them led to the purchase of the Griffin II.
In 2015, as part of the Mobile Protected Firepower (MPF) program, the US Army was finally able to shape the look of a new light tank and set the appropriate task for its development. General requirements included:
- high firepower due to the installation of a high-impulse gun of 105–120 mm caliber;
- protection from small arms fire weapons, small-caliber automatic guns and fragments;
- increased mobility, both due to speed characteristics, and due to the possibility of transportation by air;
- a relatively small mass within 32 tons.
With the last condition - the mass - they still could not unambiguously decide. It should be noted here that the future tank was positioned as a means of fire support for infantry, including landing troops. One of the MPF program managers also stated that this machine is likely to resemble an assault gun. Indeed, the range of his tasks included the destruction of fortifications, manpower and, if it comes across, enemy armored vehicles. It is impossible to implement all this with a small-caliber gun, and a large-caliber one with high ballistic characteristics will definitely lead to a heavier overall design of the machine. You can also add a booking here.
This was confirmed by U.S. Army Major General Bassett, who said that the tank's protection and firepower requirements would likely make it heavier than acceptable for low-speed landings from C-17 aircraft.
As a result, one of the most important conditions - airborne landing - was abandoned, and the maximum allowable mass for a promising tank was subsequently increased to 38 tons.
Several companies applied for participation in the competition under the MPF program at once, but at the end of 2018, only two received an order for the development of a combat vehicle: BAE Systems and General Dynamics. Both firms received government funding of $375,9 million and $335 million, respectively. The preliminary contract provided for the development and delivery of the first prototypes 14 months after the conclusion of the contract. Based on the results of comparative tests, by the end of 2021, the winner was determined, who received the right to full-scale serial production of his product.
BAE Systems presented a project for a modernized M8 tank, which was developed back in the 90s to replace the Sheridan. Aluminum armor, a relatively small combat weight from 18 to 24 tons, depending on the chosen protection class and the installation of armor modules, a 105-mm cannon and an automatic loader - all this could become significant arguments for putting this particular project into service. But BAE Systems was unable to provide the required number of prototypes for testing on time due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and then was completely disqualified for violating the terms of the contract.
One of the M8 prototypes. Source: en.wikipedia.org
The technical winner in these competitions was General Dynamics with its 38-ton Griffin II, which literally fit right into the new weight category. Subsequently, before the final tests, this machine was finalized, therefore, due to the lack of complete information, the data that is known today will be presented in the future.
Griffin II
The Griffin-2 tank project is based on the upgraded ASCOD-2 tracked platform developed by the European divisions of General Dynamics - the Austrian Steyr Daimler Puch and the Spanish General Dynamics Santa Barbara Sistemas. The manufacturer claims that this platform is universal and can serve as the basis for machines for completely different purposes in the middle weight category. It is not yet known whether this product has undergone any radical modifications in the course of the creation of the American light tank, so we will rely on the available data for further consideration.
Layout of the tank
Already at the first glance at the tank, it becomes clear that it was actually created on the basis of an infantry fighting vehicle with a typical front-engine layout. Indeed, one of the main features of the ASCOD platform is the ability to transport troops, which, however, was cut in Griffon-2. Because of this, by the way, the chassis of the car was reduced to six road wheels on board instead of the previous seven.
In the frontal part of the body on the left is the workplace of the driver, and to the right of it is the engine-transmission compartment. In the middle of the hull, closer to the stern, there is a fighting compartment with a triple turret. The seating of the towers, apparently, does not differ from the Abrams: to the right of the gun, one behind the other, the gunner and commander are sitting, and to the left is the loader.
Reservation
As you know, the passive armor of the "Gryphon-2" should provide protection against shelling by 30-mm armor-piercing shells in the frontal projection. The sides must withstand a burst of 14,5 mm machine guns. What accounts for such resilience?
The basis of the armor of the new tank, in contrast to its counterpart in the face of the M8 from BAE, is rolled steel sheets, which, most likely, are stacked in two or three layers with an intermediate low-density filler. At the same time, of course, the laws of differentiated armor are also observed: the largest steel mass is located in the frontal part of the turret and the lower frontal part of the Griffon-2 hull, while, for example, the upper frontal part of the hull, a large part of which is the engine compartment cover, has a smaller thickness, but a large angle of inclination.
Assembly of BM "Ajax", built on the ASCOD-2 platform. The thickness of the armor of the upper frontal part of the hull in the area of the roof of the MTO is visible. Source: otvaga2004.mybb.ru
However, in order to provide protection against armor-piercing shells of 30-mm automatic guns within the given weight restrictions, the above armor is not enough. Therefore, in addition to it, protective modules installed on the hull and turret are attached. Their composition is unknown, but something suggests that they could not do without reinforced ceramics.
The thickness of the side screens "Gryphon-2". Source: www.globalsecurity.org
The bottom of the Griffin-2 has also been reinforced. The original version of the ASCOD platform did not have mine protection, for which he received many complaints from the military of different countries. They listened to the comments, and now the ASCOD-2, like the light tank based on it, is protected from mines and various explosive devices weighing up to 10 kg of TNT.
It is worth noting that one of the requirements for the future tank was the presence of an active protection complex. With him, apparently, there is no certainty yet, so it’s too early to say whether there will be a Trophy or another complex.
Armament and fire control system
In addition to the standard 12,7mm and 7,62mm machine guns, the new light tank has a rifled 105mm KhM35 high-impulse cannon. It is noteworthy that initially the machine assumed the installation of a 120-mm gun, however, due to savings in weight and dimensions, a smaller caliber became the final version.
The development of the XM35 began back in 1983, when the US military issued a number of requirements for a promising lightweight gun for medium and light weight vehicles. On the face of it, it may seem that this gun is similar to the M68 gun, which was equipped with the American M60 and M1 Abrams tanks. And there is no arguing here: the length and configuration of their trunks are generally the same. However, the XM35 used a lighter breech and improved recoil devices, which made it possible to reduce the recoil force and, accordingly, the impact on the tank hull by more than 20 percent.
All this made it possible to install a new 105-mm gun in the Griffon-2 without any changes to the chassis. But the term “lightweight” is by no means synonymous with the word “weakened”. The KhM35, like its heavy counterpart M68, uses the same ammunition for firing, including: armor-piercing high-explosive, feathered sub-caliber and cumulative shells. The caliber also allows you to expand the range of shots and include high-explosive fragmentation and multifunctional projectiles with controlled detonation in the range.
The Griffon-2 weapon system is controlled by an aiming system similar to the M1A2 SEP v.3 tank. It has two main components.
First: the gunner's sight, mounted on the right side of the turret roof, which includes a laser range finder and a TV-thermal imaging channel for detecting and hitting targets at any time of the day and in almost any weather.
Second: the commander's 360-degree panoramic observation device, located on the left side of the turret roof. Like the gunner's sight, the commander's device has a television thermal imaging channel with a stabilized field of view. Through it, the tank commander can not only observe the terrain, but also give target designation to the gunner in the “hunter-shooter” mode, as well as independently fire from a cannon and a coaxial machine gun.
General view of the Griffin-2. The gunner's sight and the commander's panoramic observation device are visible. Source: www.globalsecurity.org
A digital ballistic computer helps to issue the necessary corrections for firing to the gunner and commander in real time, collecting the maximum possible information about the conditions of firing, ranging from wind speed and direction to the temperature of the powder charges in the shells.
It must also be added: there is some probability, while very vague, that the Griffin may acquire drones-kamikaze, or reconnaissance quadrocopters, as in the German Panther from Rheinmetall.
Mobility and some problems of the British
There have been rumors about the engine that will be installed on the new American light tank for a long time. Someone talks about a 1000-horsepower engine, someone even bends the bar to one and a half thousand horses. However, there is ground for speculation: the car weighs 38 tons, and this is almost the level of the Soviet T-64, so a fairly powerful engine is needed.
The British Ajax BM, which is built on the same ASCOD-2 platform as the Griffin-2, and also has a comparable combat mass, can serve as a reason for reflection here. It has a German MTU diesel engine with a capacity of 800 horsepower, paired with an automatic six-speed transmission. It is quite enough to easily accelerate the car to 70 km / h. Perhaps the Americans will take this version of the power plant.
It is noteworthy that when testing the Ajax, the British encountered great difficulties. The fact is that at fairly high speeds, a strong vibration began inside the body of the vehicle, which broke the electronics and even prevented firing from a stabilized automatic cannon. Crews also suffered: headaches and swollen, painful joints of the limbs became an indispensable companion of driving this car.
The exact reason for this behavior of the ASCOD-2 platform is not yet clear, since both marriage in the manufacture of hulls and an elongated chassis could intervene, but General Dynamics specialists clearly have something to think about.
Conclusion
What can be said in general about this car? First of all, the fact that the Americans completely abandoned the idea of aerial landing of tanks, giving them the opportunity of air delivery to their places of deployment. In this, the differences between light tanks and the same Abrams are practically erased, but the possibility of replacing a heavy main tank with a lighter and more mobile one in secondary areas of operations is quite a viable option.
Aft projection "Gryphon-2". Source: www.globalsecurity.org
In addition, the US military has very precisely defined the requirements for a light tank. And in them, collisions with an enemy equipped with heavy weapons do not appear. In fact, the "Gryphon-2" is a kind of "anti-partisan" tank, capable of operating in contact with the enemy, equipped mainly with small arms and anti-tank missile systems.
From this we can conclude that any fitting of the "Gryphon-2" in the NWO, held in Ukraine, or a global war with NATO, have no basis. In combined arms combat, this vehicle (like a tank) will have practically no advantages. And if the manufacturer himself and the customer did not provide for this, then why jump over your head?
As for the state order, the situation is as follows. The US military plans to purchase 504 Griffin-2 units by 2035. At the same time, tanks formed into companies will be given to the infantry brigades of the US Army and the National Guard. The total cost of the production of tanks, their repair and maintenance, crew training, etc. are estimated at 17 billion dollars.
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