Rheinmetall Landsysteme Condor

Rheinmetall Landsysteme Condor History

The Condor was a Light Armored Vehicle (LAV) that appeared in West Germany during the Cold War (1947-1991), when Germany was still a divided country due to events at the end of World War II. West Germany was allied with the ruling powers of the West, led by the United States, France and Great Britain, while the East was supported by the Soviet Union. The Condor was developed in 1978 as a low-cost LAV solution for the chassis, running gear and power unit of the successful Mercedes-Benz UNIMOG ("UNIversal-MOtor-Gerat") 4x4 vehicle, with the addition of an all-new multi-faceted fuselage structure. Under Thyssen-Henschel's direction, the Condor evolved into a modular wheeled system that could be configured into a variety of battlefield shapes, although its primary use was as an armored personnel carrier (APC).

In this standard configuration, the Condor accommodates a crew of 2 and can accommodate up to 12 combat-ready infantry. The car has since been taken over by security/military forces in Kuwait, Malaysia, Portugal, Thailand, Turkey, Uruguay and South Korea.

In 1981, Malaysia became Condor's first customer, ordering 459 people. Production was taken over by Henschel Wehrtecnik GmbH in West Germany (now Rheinmetall Landsysteme in Unified Germany).

From the outside, the Condor shares the same excellent ground clearance as its business-oriented, middle-class UNIMOG service truck brother, ensuring good off-road capability. By using the same landing gear, Condor also benefits from relatively easy maintenance and repair, as parts can be located and sourced through non-military channels. Overall, the vehicle has an operating weight of 13.5 tons, a barrel length of 6.1 meters, a width of 2.5 meters, and a height of 2.2 meters to the top of the tower - all characteristics that allow the vehicle to pass through medium fixed-wing transport aircraft such as the popular Lockheed C- 130 Hercules.

Standard armament (on APC models) is centered on a 1 x 20mm autocannon mounted on a powered FVT900 series turret, with 360-degree traverse and limited elevation and tilt, capable of engaging enemy forces from almost any position angle allowed. Secondary armament consists of a turret-mounted coaxial 7.62mm machine gun that can be used to target infantry or low-flying threats (220x29mm projectiles and 500x12.7mm ammunition in this configuration). Additionally, the Condor is equipped with 7 launch ports with sights (3 on each side of the fuselage and 1 on each rear), allowing the crew to engage the enemy with their personal automatic weapons. For added defense, the vehicle is equipped with 12 smoke grenade launchers, mounted in two rows of six to create its own smoke screen. The driver sits on the left forward fuselage, the vehicle commander/gunner sits in the center of the fuselage, and the power pack is on the right front.

This resulted in the troop compartment running along the right side of the fuselage. The light steel armor used in the Condor series provides protection against small arms fire and artillery jets, but provides little protection against mines, improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs).

Occupants enter and exit through rectangular hinged doors on the sides of the fuselage and a single door in the center of the rear surface of the fuselage. The Condor is fully amphibious, with the propeller mounted under the rear fuselage and a decorative blade deployed in front of the water intake.

A power winch is standard on the vehicle, as is the cab heater.

The Condor relies on conventional propulsion from 1 x Daimler-Benz OM906LA 6-cylinder, supercharged, water-cooled diesel engine with 170 to 230 hp. As a 4x4 vehicle, the system is equipped with four large rubber tire wheels with steel rims, traditionally arranged on two axles (front steerable).

The hull is mounted on torsion bar suspension for added off-road comfort. Speeds up to 95 km/h on ideal road surfaces and a range of up to 560 miles (900 km) give the vehicle a powerful range on the battlefield.

The base vehicle for the Condor is the APC variant, which can also be used as a cargo carrier. Another APC shape fits a 2 x 7.62mm machine gun instead of a 20mm cannon.

In addition, the range is available in a number of other configurations including Light Armored Battlefield Ambulance, Armored Rescue Vehicle (ARV) with Powered Crane, Mortar Transporter, Anti-Tank Missile Transporter (ATGM) (TOW, HOT and Milan Support ). , Command and Control Vehicles (CaC) with upgraded communications equipment, reconnaissance vehicles (surveillance/reconnaissance), air defense (with appropriate weapons) and counter-insurgency with water cannons.

The Malaysian Army remains the largest operator of the Condor family with over 450 vehicles deployed.

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Performance

Performance

Armor

200 x 20mm bullet

500 x 12.7mm ammo

12 x Smoke Grenade

Changes