IDF
29-12-2005, 05:34
M5A1 Dayan Main Battle Tank
OVERVIEW: The IDF has learned many harsh lessons in its decades of experience in armored warfare. This tank is the result of these lessons. The M5 packs a powerful punch while maintaining the ability to withstand multiple hits from ATGMs, ATRLs, and various types of tank shells. This comes from mixing multiple types of proven armor along with new sloping techniques. The tank also has improved command and control through the addition of new technologies allowing tank commanders to get a good view without exposing their head and body to fire.
http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/row/chal2-1.jpg
STATS
CONTRACTOR: Israeli Defense Industries (Haifa, Israel)
WEIGHT: 62.25 tons
LENGTH: 31 feet
WIDTH: 11 feet 10 inches
HEIGHT: 7 feet 10 inches
GROUND CLEARANCE: 20 inches
GROUD PRESSURE:14.8 PSI
POWER PLANT: AGT-1500 Turbine Engine
POWER RATING: 1500 HP
HP to Weight Ratio: 24.1 HP per ton
TRANSMISSION: 4 gears forward, 2 reverse
SPEED: max: 55 mph
SPEED cross country: 32 mph
SPEED 10% slope: 20 mph
SPEED 60% slope: 5 mph
ACCELERATION: 0-20mph in 6.8 seconds
CRUISING RANGE: 275 miles
MAIN ARMAMANT: 120 mm M256 Smooth Bore Cannon
COMMANDER'S WEAPON: .50 cal M2 Machinegun
COAXIAL WEAPON: 7.62 mm M240 Machinegun
ARMOR: 600 mm Chobham Composite armor (with spacing) and reactive armor is attached to our tanks. Armor is also sloped.
CREW: 4: 1 driver, 1 gunner, 1 loader, 1 commander
WEAPONS
The Main weapon is a 120 mm cannon. This is an IDF improvement over the main cannon from the highly successful M1A2 Abrams tank. It is much larger than the 105 mm cannon mounted on the Merkava III tank that until now has been Israel's only indigenous tank. The gun has the ability to have degredation up to 10 degrees allowing the tank to hide behind a hill with only the top of its turret exposed as it looks down.
The cannon is versatile and can fire multiple types of rounds, High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT), Armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS), Armor Piercing (AP), High Explosive Squash Head (HESH), anti-personnel cluster shells, Armor Piercing Discarding Sabot (APDS), and Armour Piercing Composite Rigid (APCR). This wide weapon load makes the M5A1 a very deadly weapon on any battlefield.
The commanders gun is for use against infantry and aircraft. Traditionally, this has been operated by the commander who would be exposed to fire with the hatch open and his body out of the tank. IDI has developed a system based on the remote guns of the Stryker which allow the twin mahcine gunes to be operated by the commander while he is safely inside the tank without exposing himself to fire.
The coaxial machine gun is on the turret and is fired by the gunner using the same sights as the primary cannon.
ARMOR
The M5A1 Dayan MBT has 600 mm of composite armor. This armor is made out of alternating layers of plastics, ceramics, and depleted uranium armor. This type of army is effective against HEAT and HESH shells. The armor layers are further enhanced through the use of spacing between layers. This defeats the HEAT warheads of Anti-Tank Guided Missiles. This is done by using smaller armor sheets mounted a few inches from the main armor. The result is the HEAT shell detonates prematurely and the plasma meant to burn through the tank's armor burns through air outside of the armor instead.
-Composite armor adds 40-70% to their effective armor protection against AP and 200-250% against HEAT. Composite armor weighs about the same as the steel armor it replaces.
The tank also has layers of reactive armor installed on top of its hull. Reactive armor explodes when hit by shells or missiles. It makes the explosion of HEAT shells or ATGM warheads less efficient as much of the energy of the weapon is directed away from the tank. It should be noted that this does pose a threat to infantry in the area, but IDF Generals still want this armor to be installed as a tank with its fuel and ammo exploding due to a hit would be a greater threat to nearby infantry.
The composite armor sheets on the tank are sloped. Sloped armor has a devastating effect on the penetrating effect of shaped warheads. Think of it. While the armor may be 600 mm thick, more than 600 mm must be penetrated if that armor is at an angle. Sloped armor has also been known to deflect some shots completely. On average it degrades shaped charges by 50%.
CONTROL
Every M5A1 is equipped with radios and IVIS gear to allow individual tankers to have the best intelligence available to them allowing them to take the initiative in battle.
The Israeli Army watched closely as the Navy replaced its periscopes with Fiber Optic Masts. Tankers had long had problems of being limited due to little visibility from slits and the periscope. Tank commanders had to expose themselves by sticking their heads out of the turret to effectively command their tanks. This problem has been solved with the addition of fiber optic cameras that allow the commander to have a wide view and evern the ability to zoom in on objects all while being protected by the turret and not exposed to fire. He can also remotely operate the commander's machine gun.
BACK DOOR FEATURE
The Merkava was a successful tank. One of its best features was the rear door. This large door allows the crew to make easy escapes, and it makes the M5A1 the easiest tank to reload in the world. With its wide assortment of shells, company commanders can quickly order a tank to take a different load that is specific for its mission.
There is 1 downside. The door is not well armored so this is the M5A1's weakspot. The Israeli Army was worried about this, but studies show only 5-10% of hits are to the rear of tanks so this won't be an extremely large problem.
COST = $8 million
OVERVIEW: The IDF has learned many harsh lessons in its decades of experience in armored warfare. This tank is the result of these lessons. The M5 packs a powerful punch while maintaining the ability to withstand multiple hits from ATGMs, ATRLs, and various types of tank shells. This comes from mixing multiple types of proven armor along with new sloping techniques. The tank also has improved command and control through the addition of new technologies allowing tank commanders to get a good view without exposing their head and body to fire.
http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/row/chal2-1.jpg
STATS
CONTRACTOR: Israeli Defense Industries (Haifa, Israel)
WEIGHT: 62.25 tons
LENGTH: 31 feet
WIDTH: 11 feet 10 inches
HEIGHT: 7 feet 10 inches
GROUND CLEARANCE: 20 inches
GROUD PRESSURE:14.8 PSI
POWER PLANT: AGT-1500 Turbine Engine
POWER RATING: 1500 HP
HP to Weight Ratio: 24.1 HP per ton
TRANSMISSION: 4 gears forward, 2 reverse
SPEED: max: 55 mph
SPEED cross country: 32 mph
SPEED 10% slope: 20 mph
SPEED 60% slope: 5 mph
ACCELERATION: 0-20mph in 6.8 seconds
CRUISING RANGE: 275 miles
MAIN ARMAMANT: 120 mm M256 Smooth Bore Cannon
COMMANDER'S WEAPON: .50 cal M2 Machinegun
COAXIAL WEAPON: 7.62 mm M240 Machinegun
ARMOR: 600 mm Chobham Composite armor (with spacing) and reactive armor is attached to our tanks. Armor is also sloped.
CREW: 4: 1 driver, 1 gunner, 1 loader, 1 commander
WEAPONS
The Main weapon is a 120 mm cannon. This is an IDF improvement over the main cannon from the highly successful M1A2 Abrams tank. It is much larger than the 105 mm cannon mounted on the Merkava III tank that until now has been Israel's only indigenous tank. The gun has the ability to have degredation up to 10 degrees allowing the tank to hide behind a hill with only the top of its turret exposed as it looks down.
The cannon is versatile and can fire multiple types of rounds, High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT), Armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS), Armor Piercing (AP), High Explosive Squash Head (HESH), anti-personnel cluster shells, Armor Piercing Discarding Sabot (APDS), and Armour Piercing Composite Rigid (APCR). This wide weapon load makes the M5A1 a very deadly weapon on any battlefield.
The commanders gun is for use against infantry and aircraft. Traditionally, this has been operated by the commander who would be exposed to fire with the hatch open and his body out of the tank. IDI has developed a system based on the remote guns of the Stryker which allow the twin mahcine gunes to be operated by the commander while he is safely inside the tank without exposing himself to fire.
The coaxial machine gun is on the turret and is fired by the gunner using the same sights as the primary cannon.
ARMOR
The M5A1 Dayan MBT has 600 mm of composite armor. This armor is made out of alternating layers of plastics, ceramics, and depleted uranium armor. This type of army is effective against HEAT and HESH shells. The armor layers are further enhanced through the use of spacing between layers. This defeats the HEAT warheads of Anti-Tank Guided Missiles. This is done by using smaller armor sheets mounted a few inches from the main armor. The result is the HEAT shell detonates prematurely and the plasma meant to burn through the tank's armor burns through air outside of the armor instead.
-Composite armor adds 40-70% to their effective armor protection against AP and 200-250% against HEAT. Composite armor weighs about the same as the steel armor it replaces.
The tank also has layers of reactive armor installed on top of its hull. Reactive armor explodes when hit by shells or missiles. It makes the explosion of HEAT shells or ATGM warheads less efficient as much of the energy of the weapon is directed away from the tank. It should be noted that this does pose a threat to infantry in the area, but IDF Generals still want this armor to be installed as a tank with its fuel and ammo exploding due to a hit would be a greater threat to nearby infantry.
The composite armor sheets on the tank are sloped. Sloped armor has a devastating effect on the penetrating effect of shaped warheads. Think of it. While the armor may be 600 mm thick, more than 600 mm must be penetrated if that armor is at an angle. Sloped armor has also been known to deflect some shots completely. On average it degrades shaped charges by 50%.
CONTROL
Every M5A1 is equipped with radios and IVIS gear to allow individual tankers to have the best intelligence available to them allowing them to take the initiative in battle.
The Israeli Army watched closely as the Navy replaced its periscopes with Fiber Optic Masts. Tankers had long had problems of being limited due to little visibility from slits and the periscope. Tank commanders had to expose themselves by sticking their heads out of the turret to effectively command their tanks. This problem has been solved with the addition of fiber optic cameras that allow the commander to have a wide view and evern the ability to zoom in on objects all while being protected by the turret and not exposed to fire. He can also remotely operate the commander's machine gun.
BACK DOOR FEATURE
The Merkava was a successful tank. One of its best features was the rear door. This large door allows the crew to make easy escapes, and it makes the M5A1 the easiest tank to reload in the world. With its wide assortment of shells, company commanders can quickly order a tank to take a different load that is specific for its mission.
There is 1 downside. The door is not well armored so this is the M5A1's weakspot. The Israeli Army was worried about this, but studies show only 5-10% of hits are to the rear of tanks so this won't be an extremely large problem.
COST = $8 million