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Otokar Altay

2015 MAIN BATTLE TANK MODERN

The Story of Ottocar Altay

As one of the latest generation of main battle tanks (MBT) currently under development, the new "Altai" tank aims to be one of the most advanced tanks of its kind in the world, and also a symbol of national pride in Turkish history On the MBT Design Initiative for Quantitative Production. Altay is expected to officially enter operation in 2015-2016, provided it successfully passes tests and extensive evaluations of various automotive and technical systems. The Turkish government initially planned to procure around 250 cars in an early series purchase, with an ambitious final target of 1,000.

The victory of the Altay MBT program will lie in producing major domestic MBT products that rival the world's modern systems - Turkey today has one of the largest and most powerful militaries in the world, even ahead of some long-running European powers. Production is planned at 1st Army Maintenance Center Command Facility at a cost of approximately $5 per Altay system. $5 million. By the end of the project, Altay should be comparable to other well-known MBT systems, including the latest versions of the M1 Abrams, Merkava, Challenger II, and Leopard 2.

The Turkish government commissioned the Turkish National Main Battle Tank project as early as 2005. After a preliminary agreement was signed in 2007, the design work on the Altay River (project name "Milli Tank Uretim Projesi ALTAY" or "MITUP ALTAY") began in 2008, and since then Turkish companies Otokar, Aselsan and Roketsan have benefited, as well as South Korean companies. Technical assistance and support from Hyundai ROTEM Corporation, the developer of the Korean Army K1 and K2 series main battle tanks.

As such, the Altay has some visual similarities to the Korean tank design and will be very modern, despite its distinctive overall form. The only exception in the design appears to be the turret, which will be mainly sourced from homeland to better meet the needs of the Turkish army. Otokar will be the main armor supplier, while Roketsan will be in charge of the armor development. Makine ve Kimya Endustrisi Kurumu (MKE) will be involved in the main Instructions for the development of guns and related systems. Further development will involve various currently unnamed subcontractors.

Altay's model was first shown to observers at the International Defense Industry Fair (IDEF) showcase in mid-2011, and the first prototype is expected to be ready in 2015, with a total of four prototypes delivered by Otokar.

From the outside, Altay will present a highly modern appearance, with clear and crisp lines throughout. The turret will have a flat design, as will the hull. The sides of the fuselage are protected by skirt armor along the upper rail area. There will be seven twin-tire wheels on one side of the track (as opposed to the six on the Korean K2), with the drive sprocket at the rear and the idler at the front. The Glacis panel will be very flat, almost horizontal in its presentation, and the fuselage roof will be absolutely flat.

The engine is located in the rear compartment. The turret will have some overhang above the hood to encourage more internal storage of ammunition and critical systems. Compared to the Korean K2, the Altay will have a longer hull and more armor, thus requiring a seventh wheel on the track assembly.

Like most modern MBTs in this class, the Altay will deploy a 120mm smoothbore main gun in a powered turret that rotates 360 degrees, allowing it to strike targets unobstructed from any angle. The main gun is digitally stabilized for "moving fire" and the Aselsan/STM Volkan-III modular fire control system is computerized.

The main gun near the artillery area will be fitted with a smoke vent and the gun will be fitted with a thermowell. A coaxial 7.62mm machine gun is mounted next to the main gun, while a heavy 12.7mm machine gun is designed to counter threats from lightly armored vehicles and low-flying aircraft.

Other weapons may include the STAMP/II series of remote-controlled turrets that Aselsan is developing. Smoke grenade launchers are mounted on both sides of the turret in groups of four (16 smoke grenades in total).

Crew duties and arrangements will be conventional, consisting of a driver in the right front hull and tank commander, gunner and loader in the turret. The commander and gunner are on the right side of the turret, the loader is on the left, and the commander is behind the gunner's position and slightly above the gunner's position. The fuselage is suspended on a torsion bar suspension system.

Overall, the vehicle has an operating weight of 66 tonnes, the same as any other MBT in the world. Altay's design will have standard MBT equipment, including an integrated NBC (nuclear, biological, chemical) system, as well as a stabilized laser rangefinder, night vision and thermal imager.

The selection of Altay series engines will vary between the first and last two production runs. The first 500 tanks will be equipped with 1,500 hp MTU brand multi-fuel diesel engines, while the last of the 500 series will be equipped with domestic 1,800 hp multi-fuel diesel engines.

On ideal road surfaces, top speed is estimated at 43 mph.

The chassis will serve as the basis for a family of armored vehicles not beyond the scope of the Altay project, including training vehicles, command vehicles, armored rescue vehicles, etc. Some sources suggest that Altai may also be available for foreign export orders in the future - Colombia and Pakistan have been mentioned as possible buyers. All in all, Altay will be done to NATO standards, so former Soviet/Russian customers will experience some kind of learning and logistics curve

By the way, the name Altay comes from the Turkish army general Fahreddin Altay, who commanded with distinction during the Turkish War of Independence (1919-1923). The name Altay itself comes from the Altai Mountains in Central Asia (note the spelling), the recognized ancestral homeland of the Turks. "Altay" translates to "Red Pony", referring to the mounts of their early warriors.