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China\u2019s light tanks are getting active protection systems to shoot down anti-tank rockets.<\/p>\n<\/u><\/b>Los Sistemas de Protecci\u00f3n Activa para blindados (APS-Active Protection Systems), que permiten neutralizar el ataque de cohetes antitanque, fueron dise\u00f1ados inicialmente para los grandes tanques de batalla (60 \/ 70 Tn). La raz\u00f3n principal es el incremento del peso que los APS generan, adem\u00e1s de la demanda de energ\u00eda extra necesaria para que funcionen adecuadamente. Sin embargo, China ha presentado un sistema APS apto para equipar sus tanques medianos VT-5 de 30Tn, lo cual significar\u00eda un importante avance en el \u00e1rea de sistemas de protecci\u00f3n blindada.<\/p>\n
China\u2019s light tanks are getting active protection systems to shoot down anti-tank rockets.<\/p>\n
This may indicate that China has solved a problem bedeviling armored vehicles: how to fit anti-rocket defenses on light armored vehicles without adding prohibitive weight.<\/p>\n
“Compared to a heavy main battle tank, a light tank like the VT5 carries lighter armor, meaning weaker passive protection,\u201d a military expert told China\u2019s state-owned\u00a0Global Times. \u201cUsing an active protection system would be a great choice.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, exactly how the Chinese active protection system (APS) works on the VT-5 isn\u2019t clear. Western hard-kill APS\u2014notably Israeli system like Trophy, which is being adopted by the U.S. military\u2014work by using radar to detect incoming anti-tank projectiles, and then intercepting them with shotgun-like pellets. Russia\u2019s Afganit is similar, and China unveiled\u00a0its GL-5 hard-kill system\u00a0in 2018.<\/p>\n
But these systems are designed for 70-ton main battle tanks. And even then, Trophy weighs about 5,000 pounds, which caused problems with turret balance on M1 Abrams tanks during U.S. Army testing, according to a 2017 U.S.\u00a0Department of Defense\u00a0report.<\/p>\n
The biggest problem is installing APS on lighter vehicles. For example, the U.S. Army is currently struggling with finding an APS that can fit the size, weight and power requirements for mounting on a\u00a0Stryker light armored vehicles. The 2017 Department of Defense report also found that Iron Fist, another Israeli APS evaluated by the U.S. Army, couldn\u2019t be added to the M2A3 Bradley infantry fighting vehicle because the vehicle \u201cdoes not generate sufficient power to operate the APS.\u201d<\/p>\n
Interestingly, Chinese media said the \u201cVT5 is still equipped with multiple explosive reactive armor units,\u201d an older technology in which explosive tiles on the vehicle detonate and destroy incoming rockets before they penetrate the tank.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not clear if the 35-ton VT5 will feature both an APS and explosive armor. If the vehicle can handle the weight on an APS, that would be impressive. If it can accommodate both explosive armor and APS, remarkable would be a better word.<\/p>\n
It does appear that the VT5 is equipped with passive warning sensors. The vehicle has \u201ca sensor system that sends a warning when the tank is aimed by a laser beam, which can notify the operators to take evasive maneuvers like releasing smoke,\u201d Chinese media said.<\/p>\n
Either way, the weight of adding defensive systems would seem to be a challenge for an export light tank whose selling point is lightweight and high speed. \u201cWeighing from 33 to 35 tons, the VT5 is only about half the weight of main battle tanks like the US M1A2, allowing it to run faster with quicker acceleration, beating most other tanks by a large margin,\u201d according to Chinese television. \u201cThe goal of the light tank is to operate in places where normal main battle tanks could not easily get to, like dense forests, deserts, water nets, rice fields and plateaus.\u201d<\/p>\n
The VT-5, which is similar to the Chinese army\u2019s new Type 15 light tank (here\u2019s a\u00a0video of the Type 15), features a 105-millimeter cannon that can fire shells and missiles, the standard array of optical and laser fire control sensors, and a 1,000-horsepower engine. Since the classic design dilemma for tanks is firepower vs. protection vs. mobility, something has to give. In the VT5, the tradeoff is having steel armor, rather than the heavy depleted-uranium armor of a main battle tank like the Abrams.<\/p>\n
For the export market that China is targeting\u2014which includes poorer nations with mountainous or jungle terrain\u2014a cheap, fast and lightweight tank might be worth the lack of protection. In the meantime, it will be interesting to see how\u2014or if\u2014China has solved the APS weight problem for light armored vehicles.<\/p>\n