New Indian BMP-2 Modernization Project
At the Defexpo-2014 exhibition in India, several dozen countries showed their new developments in the field of weapons and military equipment. In addition, a number of companies demonstrated their options for upgrading various types of old equipment designed to enhance its combat capabilities. The Indian conglomerate Kalyani Group, namely its defense units, presented a new project for the modernization of the infantry fighting vehicle BMP-2. In the land forces of India there are a large number of vehicles of this type, which can be considered the reason for the emergence of the next project of its modernization.
In addition to Indian defense enterprises, the Israeli company Rafael took part in the development of the new BMP-2 modernization project. She provided a set of weapons and a number of special equipment. It is expected that the result of such international cooperation will be a significant increase in the characteristics and combat capabilities of the upgraded armored vehicles. However, at the moment the infantry combat vehicle, upgraded by the Kalyani Group project, exists only in the form of a full-scale mockup. That he was shown at the exhibition Defexpo-2014.
As can be seen in the available photos, Indian designers propose to make significant changes in the design of the upgraded BMP-2. It is easy to see that the upper part of the armored hull layout is narrower than that of the base armored vehicle. This is best seen in the front of the car: it has a characteristic expanding shape. The reasons for this change in the hull are not completely understood. Apparently, the designers of Kalyani Group thus propose to change the reservation, as well as reduce the area of the frontal projection of the infantry fighting vehicle and thus to a certain extent increase its survivability in combat conditions. In addition to changes in housing design, dynamic or active protection systems are offered to increase survivability, which can be installed on upgraded equipment upon the customer’s request.
The aft part of the hull has also undergone significant changes. Instead of a flat bottom one should have an inclined bottom sheet. In addition, the dimensions of the two stern hatches are reduced. It should be noted that the shown layout of the upgraded BMP-2 had characteristic glass windows in the sides. Apparently, they were made to demonstrate the internal volumes of the machine and are not intended to be installed on serial equipment. Otherwise, the level of protection of the updated armored vehicle will be so low that it will immediately put an end to the further fate of the project.
The power plant, transmission and chassis of the updated BMP-2 in the new Indian project do not undergo any changes. Apparently, in the course of repair and modernization, outdated equipment may receive a new engine, but so far there is no exact information on this subject. The chassis still has six track rollers with a torsion bar on each side and a drive wheel in front of the hull. From above, the tracked propulsion unit is closed by large fencer shelves. In addition, the front part of the tracks and the drive wheel are covered with the lower frontal body part extending to the sides. On the existing photo layout, it is clear that the modernization project does not provide for the preservation of hydrodynamic grids in the stern of the machine. Thus, on the water, the upgraded BMP-2 will be slower than the basic version of the same machine.
It is proposed to install an Israeli-made Samson Mk II combat module on the site of the BMP-2 turret. A relatively small turret of this module is equipped with an automatic 30 caliber mm gun with a machine gun paired with it, as well as a set of sighting equipment. According to the official information of the Israeli company Rafael, the Samson Mk II combat module can be equipped with guns of various models, including Soviet / Russian 2А42, used on the BMP-2. On one guidance system with a gun, any suitable 7,62 caliber machine gun can be mounted. The system of installation of barreled weapons allows you to direct it in a vertical plane in the range of angles from -20 ° to + 70 °.
The internal volume of the combat module allows you to transport ammunition consisting of 200 shells for cannon and 230 cartridges for machine guns. Declared the possibility of equipment stores guns and machine guns from the combat compartment of the base machine. For this, the crew of the combat vehicle must open the hatch in the roof of the fighting compartment and place projectiles or cartridges in the appropriate volumes. At the request of the customer, the Israeli combat module can be equipped with a launcher for anti-tank missiles. Thus, the mock-up of the upgraded BMP-2 shown at the exhibition was equipped with a launcher for two Spike LR missiles. In the stowed position, the missiles are located inside the armored turret and are advanced only before launch.
The Samson Mk II combat module is equipped with two blocks of sighting equipment. One of them is used by the gunner and mounted in a small niche of the tower, to the right of the gun and machine gun. The second unit is located on the roof of the tower and should be used by the commander of the combat vehicle. The commander and the gunner can monitor the situation using the optical and thermal imaging channel. In addition, the sighting units are equipped with laser range finders. Commander sighting equipment unit can rotate in two planes, so that it can be used as a panoramic sight.
During repairs with a significant change in the various elements of the design, the infantry combat vehicle BMP-2, upgraded by the project of the Indian industrial group Kalyani Group, should improve its combat capabilities through the use of various pieces of equipment and new technical solutions. However, in its current form, the modernization project may look doubtful, since the number of applied innovations is controversial.
The advantages of the proposed modernization include a modern combat module that can enhance the capabilities of the combat vehicle. As follows from the characteristics of the Samson Mk II module, this unit reduces the risks for the crew, since the commander, gunner, driver and landing force are inside the body of the armored vehicle and are isolated from ammunition. Thus, even the destruction of the combat module may not have fatal consequences for the crew and the machine. In addition, the combat module of the Israeli development can be equipped with various weapons and equipment, which in the future will somewhat facilitate the modernization of armored vehicles.
Improvements in the armored corps of an infantry fighting vehicle are ambiguous. If the project provides for increased protection through the use of additional booking modules, dynamic or active protection systems, then this should be attributed to the upgrades. However, there is no exact information on this score, and one of the first to change the shape of the body is striking. It is easy to see that the change in the shape of the stern of the armored hull affected not only the appearance of the vehicle, but also the convenience of landing and disembarking the troops. Because of the bottom of the stern, located at an angle, soldiers will have to climb into the armored vehicle and leave it through two relatively small hatches located at a noticeable height above the ground. It is unlikely that such hatches can be called comfortable. A hatch or hatches on the roof will not add convenience to the landing either, since the soldiers will not be protected by the body of an armored vehicle when disembarking through them.
At the Defexpo-2014 exhibition, the Kalyani Group conglomerate presented only a mock-up of the upgraded BMP-2. Apparently, the project has not yet reached the stage of construction and testing of a prototype. In this case, there is reason to believe that in the near future, Indian designers will correct the existing shortcomings of the project. At the same time, however, the opposite scenario cannot be ruled out: the appearance of the modernized BMP-2 can already be determined, and now the specialists of the Indian defense industry are completing design work.
The proposed project may be of interest to the Ministry of Defense of India, since the Indian armed forces have over one and a half thousand infantry fighting vehicles BMP-2. At present, a program is being modernized with the installation of new equipment and weapons. In this regard, various projects for the deep modernization of such infantry fighting vehicles regularly appear. Thus, over the next few years, the modernization project of the BMP-2014 presented at the exhibition Defexpo-2 will either begin to be used to upgrade the existing equipment, or add to the already considerable list of similar proposals that failed to find a customer.
On the materials of the sites:
http://defense-update.com/
http://thumkar.blogspot.ru/
http://rafael.co.il/
http://vestnik-rm.ru/
In addition to Indian defense enterprises, the Israeli company Rafael took part in the development of the new BMP-2 modernization project. She provided a set of weapons and a number of special equipment. It is expected that the result of such international cooperation will be a significant increase in the characteristics and combat capabilities of the upgraded armored vehicles. However, at the moment the infantry combat vehicle, upgraded by the Kalyani Group project, exists only in the form of a full-scale mockup. That he was shown at the exhibition Defexpo-2014.
As can be seen in the available photos, Indian designers propose to make significant changes in the design of the upgraded BMP-2. It is easy to see that the upper part of the armored hull layout is narrower than that of the base armored vehicle. This is best seen in the front of the car: it has a characteristic expanding shape. The reasons for this change in the hull are not completely understood. Apparently, the designers of Kalyani Group thus propose to change the reservation, as well as reduce the area of the frontal projection of the infantry fighting vehicle and thus to a certain extent increase its survivability in combat conditions. In addition to changes in housing design, dynamic or active protection systems are offered to increase survivability, which can be installed on upgraded equipment upon the customer’s request.
The aft part of the hull has also undergone significant changes. Instead of a flat bottom one should have an inclined bottom sheet. In addition, the dimensions of the two stern hatches are reduced. It should be noted that the shown layout of the upgraded BMP-2 had characteristic glass windows in the sides. Apparently, they were made to demonstrate the internal volumes of the machine and are not intended to be installed on serial equipment. Otherwise, the level of protection of the updated armored vehicle will be so low that it will immediately put an end to the further fate of the project.
The power plant, transmission and chassis of the updated BMP-2 in the new Indian project do not undergo any changes. Apparently, in the course of repair and modernization, outdated equipment may receive a new engine, but so far there is no exact information on this subject. The chassis still has six track rollers with a torsion bar on each side and a drive wheel in front of the hull. From above, the tracked propulsion unit is closed by large fencer shelves. In addition, the front part of the tracks and the drive wheel are covered with the lower frontal body part extending to the sides. On the existing photo layout, it is clear that the modernization project does not provide for the preservation of hydrodynamic grids in the stern of the machine. Thus, on the water, the upgraded BMP-2 will be slower than the basic version of the same machine.
It is proposed to install an Israeli-made Samson Mk II combat module on the site of the BMP-2 turret. A relatively small turret of this module is equipped with an automatic 30 caliber mm gun with a machine gun paired with it, as well as a set of sighting equipment. According to the official information of the Israeli company Rafael, the Samson Mk II combat module can be equipped with guns of various models, including Soviet / Russian 2А42, used on the BMP-2. On one guidance system with a gun, any suitable 7,62 caliber machine gun can be mounted. The system of installation of barreled weapons allows you to direct it in a vertical plane in the range of angles from -20 ° to + 70 °.
The internal volume of the combat module allows you to transport ammunition consisting of 200 shells for cannon and 230 cartridges for machine guns. Declared the possibility of equipment stores guns and machine guns from the combat compartment of the base machine. For this, the crew of the combat vehicle must open the hatch in the roof of the fighting compartment and place projectiles or cartridges in the appropriate volumes. At the request of the customer, the Israeli combat module can be equipped with a launcher for anti-tank missiles. Thus, the mock-up of the upgraded BMP-2 shown at the exhibition was equipped with a launcher for two Spike LR missiles. In the stowed position, the missiles are located inside the armored turret and are advanced only before launch.
The Samson Mk II combat module is equipped with two blocks of sighting equipment. One of them is used by the gunner and mounted in a small niche of the tower, to the right of the gun and machine gun. The second unit is located on the roof of the tower and should be used by the commander of the combat vehicle. The commander and the gunner can monitor the situation using the optical and thermal imaging channel. In addition, the sighting units are equipped with laser range finders. Commander sighting equipment unit can rotate in two planes, so that it can be used as a panoramic sight.
During repairs with a significant change in the various elements of the design, the infantry combat vehicle BMP-2, upgraded by the project of the Indian industrial group Kalyani Group, should improve its combat capabilities through the use of various pieces of equipment and new technical solutions. However, in its current form, the modernization project may look doubtful, since the number of applied innovations is controversial.
The advantages of the proposed modernization include a modern combat module that can enhance the capabilities of the combat vehicle. As follows from the characteristics of the Samson Mk II module, this unit reduces the risks for the crew, since the commander, gunner, driver and landing force are inside the body of the armored vehicle and are isolated from ammunition. Thus, even the destruction of the combat module may not have fatal consequences for the crew and the machine. In addition, the combat module of the Israeli development can be equipped with various weapons and equipment, which in the future will somewhat facilitate the modernization of armored vehicles.
Improvements in the armored corps of an infantry fighting vehicle are ambiguous. If the project provides for increased protection through the use of additional booking modules, dynamic or active protection systems, then this should be attributed to the upgrades. However, there is no exact information on this score, and one of the first to change the shape of the body is striking. It is easy to see that the change in the shape of the stern of the armored hull affected not only the appearance of the vehicle, but also the convenience of landing and disembarking the troops. Because of the bottom of the stern, located at an angle, soldiers will have to climb into the armored vehicle and leave it through two relatively small hatches located at a noticeable height above the ground. It is unlikely that such hatches can be called comfortable. A hatch or hatches on the roof will not add convenience to the landing either, since the soldiers will not be protected by the body of an armored vehicle when disembarking through them.
At the Defexpo-2014 exhibition, the Kalyani Group conglomerate presented only a mock-up of the upgraded BMP-2. Apparently, the project has not yet reached the stage of construction and testing of a prototype. In this case, there is reason to believe that in the near future, Indian designers will correct the existing shortcomings of the project. At the same time, however, the opposite scenario cannot be ruled out: the appearance of the modernized BMP-2 can already be determined, and now the specialists of the Indian defense industry are completing design work.
The proposed project may be of interest to the Ministry of Defense of India, since the Indian armed forces have over one and a half thousand infantry fighting vehicles BMP-2. At present, a program is being modernized with the installation of new equipment and weapons. In this regard, various projects for the deep modernization of such infantry fighting vehicles regularly appear. Thus, over the next few years, the modernization project of the BMP-2014 presented at the exhibition Defexpo-2 will either begin to be used to upgrade the existing equipment, or add to the already considerable list of similar proposals that failed to find a customer.
On the materials of the sites:
http://defense-update.com/
http://thumkar.blogspot.ru/
http://rafael.co.il/
http://vestnik-rm.ru/
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