Zastava-Arms
Banned
I was just wondering how the Croatian M-95 Degman and the Serbian M-84AS compare to other, better known tanks in the world, such as the T-90, Leopard 2, Challenger 2, Merkava IV etc etc.
CROATIAN M-95 DEGMAN
Link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-95_Degman
SERBIAN M-84AS:
Link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-84AS
Anyways, as the M-84AS article says, the M-84AS appears to be the "sister tank" of the Russian T-90, and we can already say that the T-90 is an EXCELLENT tank because India is very impressed by it, and has ordered some 500 more for its army.
So, how does these two tanks compare with other, better known tanks like the Leopard 2 and Merkava IV? Would it have a good chance of taking them on and suceeding?
CROATIAN M-95 DEGMAN
M-95 Degman is a prototype Croatian main battle tank, developed in the factory Đuro Đaković specijalna vozila d.d., located in Slavonski Brod, Croatia. It is also known as the RH-ALAN Degman[1].The Đuro Đaković factory is best known for its principal role in the production of M-84, a Yugoslav version of the Soviet T-72 MBT produced under licence. M-95 Degman represents a further development on the M-84.
The principal improvement over the M-84 is the application of explosive reactive armor on the turret, hull front and side skirts, offering more protection against HEAT shaped-charge munitions as well as separate ammunition compartment at the back of the turret a bustle which protects the crew if tank gets hit from behind.
Đuro Đaković offers optional thermal imaging, which would allow enhanced night activity and optional 1,200 hp (890 kW) engine, which would raise the power to weight ratio to approximately 27 hp/t. There are also numerous smaller changes in fire control, communications equipment, track etc. The Degman has also a 15% faster auto loader meaning 9 shells per minute instead of 8 shells per minute.[2]
The Degman M-95 has not entered serial production yet, however two prototypes were ordered by the Croatian Government, a M-95 model and the other M-84D sample (for export). Đuro Đaković is going to be producing the export version the M-84D (for Kuwait and other potential buyers), essentially, an M-84A4 with significant upgrades. The Kuwaiti Army has confirmed interest in modernizing its 149 dated M-84 to the new M-84D standard, as well as the procurement of an additional 66 new M-84D's.[3] The far superior M-95 model will be ordered by the Croatian government.
The M-95 Degman tank was largely based on the older M-91 Vihor tank. A full working prototype of the Vihor tank completed basic testing at the Đuro Đaković but due the hostilities in mid-1991 this tank was never delivered to JNA. Đuro Đaković was already working on a second prototype (at this point the hull had been completed) but due to the hostilities work on the second Vihor prototype stalled until 1994 when it was completed with the new turret.
Meanwhile, the first prototype was upgraded and modernized, a more powerful 1200 hp engine was installed which provided a higher power to weight ratio. A storage basket and slat armor at the back of the turret were added, increasing armour protection. A Racal communication suite was installed to improve communications range and digital battlefield compatibility and a new CBRN suite was also added, the SZ 2000 CBRN suite giving substantially superior performance over the older NBC suite used on M-84 tank; for example, in nuclear or chemical/biological warfare situations, SZ-2000 shuts the engines down and automatically filters fresh air into the tank.
The Optics and fire control system was developed by Fotona, a Slovenian company, and now comes as standard on all current Croatian and Slovene M-84 tanks. The Vihor/M95 tank received new laser range finder, LIRD-4B - a laser irradiation warning system. A Fotona/Končar/Đuro Đaković digital battlefield computer has also been added to improve battlefield performance. Diehl provided new tracks giving the tank better performance both on and off road.
This project received considerable assistance from Elbit of Israel. Explosive Reactive Armor developed by Elbit is one major upgrade and gives a distinctive look to the M95 tank. Rafael - Samson Remote Controlled Weapon Station which consist of a 12.7mm calibre heavy machine gun and 40mm grenade launcher is another upgrade. This Remote Controlled Weapon Station acts also as the commander's independent thermal viewer. Additional upgrades are planned, including a new 120mm compact gun developed by RUAG Defence of Switzerland and few additional defensive and ECM systems including LAHAT anti tank missiles.
Link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-95_Degman
SERBIAN M-84AS:
The M-84AS is a modernized version of the M-84 main battle tank produced by Yugoimport SDPR in Serbia. It was first presented in 2004 as the M-84AB1, but additional improvements led to the re-designation to M-84AS. This tank is equipped with an improved fire-control system with integrated day/night sight.[1] The M84A1 gun was replaced with a similar but improved gun which, along with better control characteristics, enables easy and fast field replacement of the barrel. The M-84AS tank is able to fire anti-tank guided missiles with laser guidance through the barrel, which enables accurate engagement of enemy tanks up to 6 km.
The M-84AS is equipped with non-explosive and non-energetic reactive armour (NERA) which offers protection against modern tandem cumulative warheads.[2] Besides better armour, the new tank is equipped with the modern Shtora electro-optical system for defense against wire and laser guided anti-tank missiles.[3] The new turret will provide protection against Kinetic Energy (RHAe) ATGs. Its new 9M119 Refleks is a laser beam riding guided anti-tank missile designed to penetrate 950 mm of RHA.
A commission is currently being drawn up to bring all 212 M-84 tanks currently in service to M-84AS standard. The project is expected to cost millions and span till the end of 2010.
Developed originally from the M-84, the M-84AS is more than just a quick tweak to bring it up to standard. Many improvements were adopted from what can be argued to be its' sister tank, the T-90. With slight differences in armour and maneuverability; the T-90 is better armoured while the M-84AS is faster and more maneuverable.
Apart from external differences to the M-84, it also has different internal structure and equipment, far surpassing the M-84AB in both capability and durability.
Link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-84AS
Anyways, as the M-84AS article says, the M-84AS appears to be the "sister tank" of the Russian T-90, and we can already say that the T-90 is an EXCELLENT tank because India is very impressed by it, and has ordered some 500 more for its army.
So, how does these two tanks compare with other, better known tanks like the Leopard 2 and Merkava IV? Would it have a good chance of taking them on and suceeding?