NationStates Jolt Archive

Ladies and Gentlemen of the world, I present to you the SE-12 Main Battle Tank, codenamed 'Viper'. This revolutionary design will allow Snake Eaters to become an even more potent force on the battlefield. Now, I assume you will all wish to view the latest incarnation of the this vehicle, and let me assure you will not be disappointed

SE-12 Viper

History
During the last few conflicts, it has been noted that the ageing Predator tanks need a replacement. Thus began the Viper Program. After ten years, and nearly ten billion dollars worth of R&D, the prototype was unveiled at Snake Eater's primary R&D centre, The Icarus Testing Grounds. With revolutionary technology behind this tank, Snake Eaters is poised to become a force to be reckoned with.

Primary Statistics
Crew: - Four (Commander, Gunner, Loader, Driver)
Weight: - 55,000 kg
Overall Length (Gun Forward): - 11.5 metres
Width: - 3.5 metres
Height: - 2.5 metres
Max Speed: 60km/h (On road), 45 km/h (Off-road)
Max Range: 550 km (On Road), 400 km (Off-road)
Image: http://www.fprado.com/armorsite/Challenger2_Pics/Challenger2-Exercising.jpg
Price per Unit: $25 million

Construction
Thanks to the titanium body construction, the Viper has reduced levels of vibration and noise within the main crew compartment, which has been designed for maximum efficiency by installing air purification filters, to reduce the amount of recycled air being passed through the tank inner. The titanium structure also allows for weight reduction on the Predator, reducing the overall weight by nearly 10,000 kilograms. This increases fuel economy, and therefore increases maximum operational range.

The Viper makes use of the William Cook Defence T60DP heavy-duty tank tracks. These include such features as: low wear; anti-chunking; quick pad changing; high durability rubber bushing, fixed for life "deadlock" end connectors; a winged end connector option and easy to fit crampons for extra traction. These tracks have been seen on other tanks such as the Challenger Mk.2E and the Leopard 1 and 2. These are complemented by a suspension system from Kinetics, allowing the tank to maintain a steady speed across rough terrain, whilst allowing for accurate, level fire. Such features include linear shock absorbers, heavy-duty hydraulic struts and enhanced torsion bars. This allows an increase in endurance, reducing maintenance costs on the vehicle. The increase is anywhere between 300-350% increased smoothness.

Command and Control
The Viper makes use of the latest version of the Joint Tactical Information Distribution Network (JTIDN), a system currently being installed in all Snake Eater military vehicles, allowing the commander to actively share information on targets or terrain with the others in his group, whilst maintaining near radio silence. By installing a low-power broadband network, the units can remain in communication without comprimising the tanks locations to direction-finding (DF'ing) equipment to a large degree. This system is capable of identifying up to fifty separate targets at once, and assigning each a threat index, ranging from 0 to a maximum of 10.

Should radio contact be required, the Viper is fitted with a number of communication systems. However, the primary system is a combined VHF/GPS antenna system, which is supplied by Comrod. This system allows the tank commander to know the location of his vehicle to within ten square metres, whilst allowing for VHF radio communication. Neither of these systems is affected by the use of the other. The Viper is also fitted with an UHF antenna, in case of failure of the VHF system, along with its back up. As a final resort, a miniature HF antenna is fitted, although the range is extremely limited. There is also capacity for satellite communications, which can be routed through the GPS system in order to maximise functionality and reduce costs

Armament
The Viper is fitted a 120mm rifled main gun, supplied by Snake Eaters Arms Development specifically for this tank. The rifling has the same effect as in a normal weapon, spinning the round as it flies through the air, increasing stability and thus accuracy and range are increased also. Made from Electro-refined slag, and insulated with a thermal sleeve, the turret is capable of 360o of rotation, and has an elevation window of –10o to + 20o. There is capacity within the tank for fifty rounds of ammunition, which can be increased if the loader is replaced with an auto-loader. This is rare however, so the fifty round limit is widely accepted. These rounds include: armour piercing fin-stabilised discarding sabot (APFSDS), high explosive squash head (HESH) or smoke rounds. There is also a capacity to fire Depleted Uranium (DU) rounds, but these are rarely used following research to indicate that they do affect the well being of the crew. Weapon control is co-ordinated via the JITDN, which acts as the primary target identification program. However, the final commander is given by the Commander, who will then tell the Gunner to engage a certain target. The turret is manufactured by Giat Industries, and is the 120mm LECLERC. This is a MBT two-man turret with ammunition autoloader operating in the hunter-killer role. It allows firing at successive targets in very short space of time whilst moving at high speed. The auto-loader is normally only used in the hunter-killer role, whilst the loader crewmember is used for more conventional operations. The turret is powered by the HR Textron Weapon Turret Drive and Stabilisation System, which isolates the gun platform from the disorienting effects of the vehicle pitch, roll and yaw. The drive system is also from HR Textron, and is the Motor Drive Unit (MDU), and is capable of rotating the turret through 360o in less than twenty seconds

In order to enhance the Viper’s capabilities even further, it is also fitted with 7.62mm chaingun, in order to increase its anti-personnel capacity. It is also equipped with a 7.62mm GPMG L37A2 anti-air machine gun, commonly crewed by the loader.

Fire Control and Navigation
The commander has a panoramic VS 580-10 gyrostabilised sight. A laser rangefinder is incorporated into an intermediate assembly. Elevation range is +35° to -35°. The commander's station is equipped with eight periscopes which provide 360° vision.

The Thermal Observation and Gunnery Sight II (TOGS II), from Snake Optronics, provides night vision. The sensor is based on TICM 2 common modules. The thermal image, with magnification x 4 and x 11.5 is displayed in the gunner's and commander's sights and monitors. The gunner has a Thales Optronics stabilised Gunner's Primary Sight, consisting of visual channel, 4Hz laser rangefinder and display. The laser rangefinder has a range of 200m to 10km.

The driver is equipped with an image intensifying Passive Driving Periscope (PDP) from Thales Optronics, for night driving.

Self-Protection
Given the increased use of High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT) rounds and other such devices, the Viper uses third-generation Chobham armour, first seen on the Challenger. Chobham is a lightweight matrix of ceramics and thermoplasts and metals that resists HEAT and APDS with much more protection than the average armour. Underneath this is 50mm of steel/titanium hull-mounted armour, providing protection from a wide variety of small arms whilst optimising the weight/power ratio. In order to prevent missiles coming into contact with the armour in the first place, explosive reactive panels are installed along the flanks, front and rear ends, and the turret of the tank, in order to deter incoming threats

The Viper is also equipped with Rheinmetall Waffe Munition MASKE smoke grenades. Capable of deploying in less than two seconds, the smokescreen is guaranteed to last forty seconds and provides cover from the ultraviolet through to the far infrared wavelength, as well as decoys against electro optically guided missiles

The Viper is equipped with the latest camouflage systems in order to optimise combat survivability. A SSZ TN95 camouflage system is installed in order to reduce the tank visibility in all of the following: visual spectrum, near infrared spectrum, thermal (MIR), RADAR and millimetre wavelengths. These systems allow the heat from the tank to be dissipated safely in order to deny heat-seeking missiles, whilst the RADAR and millimetre system is able to defeat SAR homing warheads whilst diminishing the detection range on ground-based radar.

Finally, all electrical sub-systems within the tank are EMP shielded, and are provided with redundant back-ups in case of system wide cascade failure

Propulsion
The Viper carries a 1500hp SnakePack, which consists of a transversely mounted MTU 883 diesel engine coupled to Renk HSWL 295TM automatic transmission. This small but powerful engine is included to increase the fuel storage capacity, allowing the maximum range to be increased to an impressive 550km.


Thank you for listening.

Nicely done. Just a couple of comments.

You can't fire APDS-FS from a rifled gun. What you can do is fire APDS, and have the sabot rotated by the rifling, but that tends to be bad for the gun and reduce muzzel velocity.

Unless you're using laser communications, it's impossible to share information while maintaining radio silence. You can use a low power broadband network, but there is still a chance that radio direction finding equipment will find you.

You are confusing Chobham armour with explosive reactive armour. Chobham is a lightweight matrix of ceramics and thermoplasts and metals that resists HEAT and APDS rather well. Explosive reactive armour is the kind that fires a plate into the incoming round to disrupt the high velocity metal jet.

Thanks. However, counter arguements to a number of points:

1) The Challenger Mk.2E is equipped with the same weapon as this tank (in fact most of the specs are very similar, but with my own twist on things) and it CAN fire the APDS-FS rounds. So, if it can happen in real life, then I can use it on NS. Check http://www.army-technology.com/projects/challenger2/ if you don't believe me

2) Fair point on the armour, I might alter it to be the main armour and use the explosive reactive armour as well

3) Again, the comms system... Laser communication requires line-of-sight, which is something I could do without. I am going to alter the tank to include satellite comms, but keep the radio. I will also change the idea behind the JTIDS and information exhange... a low energy broadband signal would work, and the chance of DF eqiupment working on something that small would be tiny

Sounds like it's either kinda pretty or really ugly. I want to see a pic, SE. ;)

OOC Hmm, I was under the impression that fin stablizaiton was unessisary because of the rifling and actually induced premature sabot release. Perhaps it's plain APDS instead of APDS-FS. And I know for sure you can't use HEAT, though you didn't mention it. Rifled guns also have lower muzzel velocities... generally inferior. Unless Armor Magazine has been lying to me...

Rifled weapons, despite shorter ranges, are generally more accurate due to the stabliazation provided.

Kay, I'll see if I can't get on to send you on IM

OOC Hmm, I was under the impression that fin stablizaiton was unessisary because of the rifling and actually induced premature sabot release. Perhaps it's plain APDS instead of APDS-FS.

Spin-stabilization do not allow as good a length-diameter ratio as fin-stabilizing, ie long-rod penetrators do not work for APDS.

The Brits solved that for the L7 back in the '70s by having a counter-spin sabot (ie the sabot revolved while the penetrator did not).

You lose a percentage of mE by doing this though (energy is consumed/lost keeping the KE rod stable), there is a greater chance of sabot separation failure and the complicated system costs more than a standard made-for-smoothbore APFSDS sabot. The penetrator do not recieve spin (beyond negligible levels), and therefore do not achieve any greater accuracy than smoothbore APFSDS.

So to sum up, with a rifled tube you end up with a somewhat less effective KE round (5-10%), that has no accuracy advantage (firing APFSDS), while ammunition and guntubes cost more.

The accuracy advantage is there for the spun projectiles like HE, HESH and APDS. Britain kept to the rifled system due to mainly two reasons, organizational inertia and their love for the HESH.

And I know for sure you can't use HEAT, though you didn't mention it. Rifled guns also have lower muzzel velocities... generally inferior. Unless Armor Magazine has been lying to me...

Actually you can. Early HEAT warheads suffered very poor focus of their penetrator stream if spun, but things have improved substantially. You do however still lose a few percent effective penetration.

The Swedish 84mm RCL "Carl Gustav" (called grg m/48 in Sweden, 84mm MAW in the UK, 84mm MAAWS in the US Army) is rifled and spin its HEAT projectiles f e.

OOC: Interesting, I was under the impression that performence degredation was worse than that. Thank you.

OOC: Interesting, I was under the impression that performence degredation was worse than that. Thank you.

I can give a few examples regarding the Charlie-G.

The first HEAT round developed for it by CGGM in the late 40's had a bench-penetration (no spin) of ~280 mm of RHA, but showed to penetrate only around ~200mm RHA when fired out of the weapon due to spin-caused defocusing of the penetrator stream.

Clearly a big loss of effective penetration (almost 30%).

The late 70's slpsgr m/75 (HEAT-T model 1975) penetrates ~400mm RHA spun, this can be compared to the mid-80's 84mm AT-4, wich is using a warhead derived from the m/75 but unspun and capable of penetrating ~420mm RHA.

Here the loss of effective penetration due to spin is down to just under 5%.

other than arguing about my weapon systems, is there any other criticism about this tank?

Anouncement
The updated version of the SE-12, designated the SE-12/B, is now in production. Designed as a faster and lighter version of the original, this one scarifices the 50mm under-armour and the L37A2 is also removed.

However, the most significant change is the removal of the tracks, to be replaced by repulsorlift technology. Allowing the tank to literally skim at a maximum height of six feet, this allows it to maintain a faster velocity over rough ground. A terrain-following radar system is also installed to ensure that the tank maintain a safe height above the ground, whilst retaining the full operational capablities of the original

The 'Viper B' is to be used primarily in a hunter-killer role.