Badger (tank)

"Dachs" pioneer tank
Dachs pioneer tank with extended telescopic arm and backhoe
General properties
crew	3 (commander, driver, mountain soldier / engineer)
length	8.93 m (telescopic arm in marching position for off-road driving)
width	3.25 m
height	2.57 m
Dimensions	43 tons
Armor and armament
Armor	Armor steel
Main armament	none, as engineering tanks
Secondary armament	MG3 ( 7.62 × 51 mm ) as Fla -MG and smoke grenade launcher
agility
drive	MTU MB 838 CaM-500, 10-cylinder multi-fuel diesel engine 610 kW (830 hp )
suspension	Torsion bar spring ( Leopard 1 chassis)
Top speed	62 km / h (road)
Power / weight	19.30 hp / t
Range	around 500 km

The Pionierpanzer 2A1 Dachs or Pionierpanzer Dachs belongs to the group of combat support vehicles and is the successor to the Pionierpanzer 1 . It is an armored pioneer work tool and is based on the Leopard 1 chassis. His area of ​​responsibility includes the recovery of damaged vehicles, the creation of entrances and exits as well as entrances and exits at water crossing points or steep and muddy bank zones, making the bottom of the water navigable as well as creating and removing obstacles and barriers on the battlefield. The vehicle is used by the pioneers and tank engineers of the Army of the German Armed Forces as well as by the Canadian armed forces under the name Badger - Armored Engineering Vehicle (AEV) . He is also used in the Chilean army . It is the Bundeswehr's first pioneer tank that has been specifically optimized for the areas of application of the pioneers.

development

After the failure of the armored pioneer machine (GPM) project, the Bundeswehr continued to look for a successor to the pioneer tank 1.According to the tasks of the pioneers , promoting the movements of their own combat troops and inhibiting the opponents by creating barriers, all work should be carried out under ABC - and armor protection can be implemented. The Federal Ministry of Defense (BMVg) requested a cost-effective, full-fledged pioneer tank that takes into account the experience gained from the GPM project. The total order volume comprised 140 vehicles with a total value of 190 million DM. The delivery target was 1990.

The company Maschinenbau Kiel (MaK) built its first two prototypes between 1981 and 1983 and tested them in a factory test in 1984. The third prototype followed in 1987 after the order was placed by the Federal Office for Defense Technology and Procurement . The MaK design was based on a modified Bergepanzer 2 and, instead of the crane system, was given a telescopic arm with a backhoe from Wieger Maschinenbau. The error-prone drilling rig of the Pionierpanzer 1 was not pursued further. Eisenwerke Kaiserslautern (EWK) were responsible for the slewing mechanism and the excavator system. As with the GPM project, Jung Jungenthal took over the conversion of the chassis again. 75% of the assemblies of the Leopard series were found in the roof. The combat weight reached 43 t.

As a general contractor, MaK manufactured the pioneer tank from 1988. According to the planning goal of the BMVg, these emerged from the conversion of 104 armored recovery vehicles 2 and the existing 36 pioneer armored vehicles 1. The first production vehicle of the pioneer armored vehicle 2A1 Dachs was handed over on April 13, 1989 in Plön and was thus before the delivery target of the German armed forces. The designation A1 was chosen to show the increase in performance of the assembly compared to the armored recovery vehicle. The ladder on the telescopic arm and the bow machine gun were omitted on the badger and could only be found on a prototype. The tried and tested hydraulic and mechanical cutting angle adjustment was also dropped. MaK - a part of Rheinmetall Landsysteme since 1992 - delivered a total of 149 vehicles of this type to Germany and Canada . The order from Canada for nine vehicles was worth 49 million DM.

technical description

Interior and crew

Badger interior. The remote control of the telescopic arm can be seen in the center of the picture and part of the NBC protection system in the lower area

View of the commander's seat through the hatch

The crew consists of a total of three soldiers: the driver, the commander and a third crew member as an additional worker. The driver sits in the front right of the vehicle under a one-piece hatch. He controls the tank according to the commandant's instructions and operates the engineering equipment, including the shield and winch. He is also responsible for maintenance work on the hull of the tank. The commander sits slightly to the left directly behind the driver. He leads the tank, maintains the radio link to the higher-level management level and can override the driver when operating the telescopic arm if necessary. He is also responsible for loading and operating the anti-aircraft machine gun. The third soldier sits in the back of the superstructure. Access to the fighting compartment is via the two roof hatches or the access hatch on the left side of the vehicle.

The vehicles of the Bundeswehr have a VHF radio SEM 80 (transmitter / receiver, mobile 80) for communication . All corner mirrors are tiltable in the area of ​​the work tools so that they can work under armor protection. Residual light amplifiers serve as night vision devices .

Protective equipment

The roof trough is made of welded armored steel and has a single-layer armor. The protection level for the chassis corresponds to that of the Leopard 1. The armored structure achieves armouring thicknesses of 25 mm to 35 mm for the sides and 10 mm for the roof. The hydraulic cylinders of the telescopic arm received a splinter protection. The standard equipment includes an NBC protection and ventilation system as well as a fire warning and suppression system. The exhaust system with fresh air admixture reduces the infrared signature and thus supports passive armor protection.

The Canadian pioneer tanks also received MEXAS additional armor from IBD Deisenroth Engineering for KFOR and ISAF operations .

Armament

The roof is mainly armed for self-defense. The three-man crew of the German armed forces has an MG3 machine gun on the anti-aircraft mount of the commander's cupola, a smoke-throwing system with six throwing cups and their hand weapons . The Canadian badger also has the bow MG. The Belgian FN MAG under the designation C6 GPM serves as a machine gun .

Drive and chassis

The badger from the right. When not in use, the telescopic arm is placed back in the marching position. On the side of the tub are the tool boxes that were added in 2009

The Leopard's torsion bar- sprung support roller drive was adopted without any changes. On each side it has seven rubber-tyred double castors and four support castors. The spring travel is limited by truncated cone springs and end stops. The chain drive wheel is at the rear.

In order to avoid losing the chain when 'driving on difficult terrain', the prototypes were given oversized discs on the drive wheel. The series vehicles were equipped with chain support beams (drive wheel cleaners) that can be attached across the drive wheel drum if necessary. When not in use, these are stowed at the rear right at the rear. A "living" end connector chain (type: D 640A ) with exchangeable chain pads from Diehl serves as the crawler belt . The ground pressure is 0.92 kg / cm².

The entire drive train was also taken over one-to-one. Driven by a 10-cylinder multi-fuel engine of the type MB 838 CaM-500 with two  mechanical loaders , the roof reaches a top speed of 62 km / h. The engine develops 830 hp with a 37.4 liter displacement and enables a power-to-weight ratio of 19.3 hp / t. The fuel supply in the tanks was increased to 1410 liters. The road range is 500 km with a consumption of 280 l per 100 km. In order to guarantee a constant oil supply even in difficult terrain and on inclined positions, the engine is equipped with dry sump pressure lubrication .

The 24 V on-board network is supplied with power by a liquid-cooled 9 kW three-phase generator. The battery system consists of six batteries of 12 volts each with a total of 300 ampere hours.

The Dachs uses the 4HP250 manual transmission from ZF Friedrichshafen to transmit power to the chain . Flanged to the engine, it has four forward and two reverse gears, which are shifted electro-hydraulically. The clutch is connected via a hydraulic torque converter with a lock-up clutch. The vehicle's brakes meet the minimum requirements of the Road Traffic Licensing Regulations and are designed as hydraulic single-circuit disc brakes with brake oil pump support and a nitrogen reserve.

Pioneering equipment

Front view of badger with enlarged blade. The widening of the shield is folded and locked behind the shield. The place of the bow machine gun is welded shut

Back with the 1.1 m³ backhoe

The heart of the roof is its pioneering equipment. These include the telescopic arm with backhoe, the clearing and support shield, the recovery and winch equipment as well as various pioneering equipment such as a cutting and welding system and work lights. The performance of the hydraulic system has been increased and works according to the load-sensing principle, which means that several hydraulic cylinders (up to three) can be operated simultaneously and independently of one another. The working pressure is 300 bar.

A special feature of the Pionierpanzer 2 is the possibility to work continuously in a water depth of 4 m with the help of an underwater shaft and special preparations on the engine and landing gear. The telescopic arm is controlled by a remote control from the shaft. Without these precautions, the working depth is 0.8 m and with deepwater equipment it is 2.25 m. A flushing device in the rear part of the combat area, originally developed for the armored pioneer machine , also enables work in heavily polluted and fast-flowing waters. The circulated water is used to cool the engine and hydraulic oil.

As with the prototype of the GPM from EWK, the excavator system was attached to the front right of the chassis. The similarity of the telescopic excavator arm is the most striking feature of this design by MaK. The construction, which can be extended to a length of 9.20 m, allows a swivel range of 195.5 ° and a tilting angle of +/− 60 °. Backhoe buckets with teeth and drainage holes are available for the earthworks . The capacity is 0.6 m³ and 1.1 m³. The excavator output reaches 140 m³ / h, the tearing force 125 kN. A clamp device with two claws can remove beams, trees and other obstacles. The optional device on the arm can be used together with the backhoe as a third claw. In addition, the pioneers also use the dredging system for indenting and tearing.

An upgradable swivel hook on the telescopic arm also allows it to be used as a crane, with which loads of up to 7.8 t at a 3.98 m radius and up to 2.6 t at a 7.92 m radius can be lifted. As a result of a technical change, the maximum load has been reduced to 2 t over the course of the period of use, whereby the bridge quarters of the Biber rapid tank bridge represent the exceptional load with 2.5 t. In the event of an overload in crane operation, an overload warning system - which must be reset manually by the operator - stops the hoist operation.

The shape of the clearing and support shield was tailored to the areas of application of the pioneers and can be expanded from 3.25 m to 3.75 m by folding extensions. The cutting angle is a fixed 50 °, the height 94 cm. Equipped with a tear-off edge that loosens and swirls the material, anti-tank trenches can be pushed and obstacles removed. The clearing capacity is 270 m³ / h. It takes about 15 minutes to put on a combat armor for a battle tank. Two ripper teeth that can be retrofitted allow the soil to be loosened when reversing to a depth of 45 cm. When used with excavators and winches, the shield serves as a ground anchor and thus ensures that the pioneer tank is stable.

The winch system was taken over by MaK unchanged and supplemented by an improved tensioning device, which ensures even rope tension during winding and unwinding. The pulling force of the drum winch is 345 kN (34.5 t) in a single pull and 690 kN (69 t) in a double pull with pulley . The working speed is 14 m / min in first gear and 44 m / min in second gear. A roller above the middle of the blade reduces the wear and tear of the 90 m long and 33 mm thick rope when it is unrolled. The cable drive must be covered for underwater use and can therefore not be used. The Canadian Badger has a capstan winch with a pulling force of 350 kN (35 t) in a single pull.

Additional equipment also includes a cutting and welding system (54 V / 360 A), angle grinder , impact wrench , vehicle jack, pulleys, tow shears , shackles and an extended tool set in addition to the on-board tools. The loss of internal storage space was compensated for by three boxes on the vehicle, which were supplemented by the German armed forces in 2009 with a waterproof storage box on the engine deck. Lockable tool boxes on the sides of the tub are also intended to protect against loss and damage to equipment during use.

Technical specifications

Removal of old rails in the Rajlovac military camp

designation	Engineer tank 2A1 Dachs / Badger AEV
Type	Engineer tanks
crew	3
engine	10-cylinder multi-fuel MTU MB 838 CaM-500 diesel engine
power	610 kW (830 hp)
transmission	ZF 4HP250 planetary gearbox with four forward and two reverse gears
landing gear	Torsion bar-sprung support roller drive with seven rollers and four support rollers
Length over all	8,930 m mm
Width over everything	3,250 mm
Height above everything	2,570 mm
Ground clearance	440 mm
Wading ability	2250 mm, with preparation up to 4000 mm underwater driving and working
Trench crossing ability	2,500 mm
Climbing ability	900 mm
Climbing ability	60%
Bank	30%
Empty weight	42,500 kg
Combat weight	43,000 kg
Speed ​​limit road	62 km / h
Top speed terrain	45 km / h
Fuel quantity	1,410 liters
Range	approx. 500 km (road), approx. 300 (terrain)
Armament	one MG3 machine gun or two C6 GPM (Canada), smoke-throwing system
particularities	Canadian version with bow machine gun and a ladder on the telescopic arm

literature

• Peter Blume: tank pioneers in the Bundeswehr. Vehicle Profiles - Volume 18, (2001).
• Jürgen Plate, Lutz-Reiner Gau, Jörg Siegert : German military vehicles. Motorbuch Verlag Stuttgart, ISBN 3-613-02152-8 .
• Stefan Marx: Bundeswehr pioneer tank 1956 - today. Military vehicles special No 5008, Tankograd Publishing - Verlag Jochen Vollert.

Web links

Commons : Pioneer Tank Badger  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Website of the manufacturer Rheinmetall Defense for the Dachs pioneer tank
• Website of the German Army for the Pionierpanzer 2 Dachs
• 60 seconds Bundeswehr: Dachs engineer tank ( YouTube video, January 23, 2019)
• Bundeswehr Classix: The Leopard as a Pioneer Tank (1970) (YouTube video)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ German Army: The badger, a powerhouse that convinces with versatility. Retrieved July 14, 2010.