Magach

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Magach 7C in the Yad la-Shiryon Museum, Israel

Magach ( Hebrew מגח; Ma-GAKH, German: “Rammschlag”) is a series of battle tanks of the Israeli armed forces (IDF), which is based on the US models M48 and M60 .

history

The tanks that formed the basis for the Magach were bought by the USA (M60) on the one hand, and captured by Jordan in 1967 in the Six Day War (M48) on the other . Some tanks of the type M48A2 were bought in the Federal Republic of Germany in the 1960s from retired stocks of the Bundeswehr and were already in service during the Six Day War in June 1967. In order to avoid internal political disputes, this was kept secret by both states.

After the war, the war experience began to be incorporated into technical modifications that marked the beginning of the Magach program. The M48A3 became the Magach 3. The original 90 mm cannon was replaced by the British 105 mm ( L7 ), the profile was lowered by reducing the turret height, the communications equipment was modernized and the weak and fire-prone petrol engine was replaced by a 750 hp diesel engine replaced.

During the Yom Kippur War (1973), in contrast to a few Magach 6 (M60 in the original version), over 800 Magach 3 were in use. The Israeli forces suffered heavy casualties on Magach 3, with highly flammable hydraulic fluid in the front part of the tower being the weak point. The failures were replaced by a new version, the M48A5 (Magach 5) and M60 (Magach 6) during the 1970s.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the Magach were gradually replaced by the Merkava in its role as the army's primary battle tank , but the series, with its continuously improved combat value increases, still forms the backbone of the Israeli armored weapon.

Before the 1982 Lebanon war Magach were 6 for the first time with a reactive armor (Engl. Explosive reactive armor (ERA)) as standard. The latest model Magach 7 is still in service and has improved armor, Merkava target electronics, a new automatic fire extinguishing system, heat signature reduction and a smoke release system .

In 2000 there were still around 1500 Magach 6B Gal and Magach 7 vehicles in service.

Versions

Magach 3 in the Kubinka Tank Museum
Magach 6 in the Yad la-Shiryon Museum, Israel
  • Magach 1 : M48A1 in the original version.
  • Magach 2 : M48A2C in original version.
  • Magach 3 : Modernized M48A1 / A2 with 105 mm L7 cannon, low turret profile, new communication technology, 750 HP diesel engine of the Continental AVDS-1790-2A type with an Allison CD-850-6 gearbox.
  • Magach 5 : M48A5 in original configuration. Basically similar to the Magach 3, but with a different engine and gearbox: AVDS-1790-2D and CD-850-6A.
  • Magach 6 : Modernized M60 / M60A1 / M60A3 with a low commander's cupola and Blazer ERA (reactive armor).
    • Magach 6A (6 Alef) : Modernized M60A1. All vehicles will likely be upgraded to the Magach 6B.
    • Magach 6B (6 Bet) : Similar upgraded M60A1 RISE (M60A1 with AVDS-1790-2C RISE (better and more reliable motor)).
    • Magach 6B Gal (6 Bet Gal) : Magach 6B with Gal fire control system.
    • Magach 6B Gal Batash (6 Bet Gal Batash) : Magach 6B Gal, equipped with fourth generation passive armor and a 908 hp engine. The tower has angled sides and shrouds. This version is unofficially referred to as Magach 7D or Magach 8. A small number have been upgraded to the Magach 6B Gal.
    • Magach 6B Baz (6 Bet Baz) : Magach 6B with Baz fire control system. A small number have been upgraded to the Magach 6B.
    • Magach 6C (6 Gimel) : Modernized M60A3.
    • Magach 6R (6 Resh) : Modernized M60 with an improved engine at AVDS-1790-2AG level with a better generator for the on-board electronics compared to the AVDS-1790-2A.
    • Magach 6R * (6 Resh *) : Magach 6R with preparation for receiving the Nachal-Oz-fire control system.
    • Magach 6M (6 Mem) : Magach 6R with Nachal-Oz fire control system.
  • Magach 7 : M60 with 908 PS AVDS 1790-5A engine, additional passive armor and fire control system based on Merkava. There are three sub-variants of the Magach 7:
    • Magach 7A (7 Alef) : Redesigned casing of the cannon heat outlet slits to reduce the heat signature.
    • Magach 7B (7 Bet) : Intermediate prototype variant with armor configuration similar to the 7C. Never went into series.
    • Magach 7C (7 Gimel) : With revised and angled casing of the heat outlet gaps of the cannon.

Current inventory:

Pereh weapon carrier with 12 spike NLOS missiles. The on-board cannon is a dummy barrel.
  • M48A5: 200 pieces, none of which are ready for use. The tanks are in storage.
  • M60 / M60A1: 360 pieces, 260 of which are ready for use. The tanks are in storage.
  • M60A3 / upgraded and M60 / Magach 7: 1040 pieces. All are on duty.
  • Pereh: At least 40 M48A5s were converted to the Pereh weapon carrier for Spike NLOS missiles in 1982. The existence of the tank was made public in 2015.

The Magach should not be confused with the Sabra , an upgraded M60A1 / A3 variant for export to Turkey , which is very similar to the Magach 7, but is equipped with the 120 mm smoothbore cannon of the Merkava 3.

Web links

Commons : Magach  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Robert Jackson: Panzer: Models from around the world from 1915 to today. Parragon Books, ISBN 978-1-4075-7742-5 , p. 224.
  2. ↑ inss.org.il ( Memento of April 30, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 121 kB), pages 12 and 13; Retrieved August 11, 2011
  3. ^ Yaakov Lappin: Analysis: IDF breaks 33-year silence on M48 Tamuz missile launcher. (No longer available online.) In: IHS Jane's Defense Weekly. IHS Janes, August 6, 2015; archived from the original on August 9, 2015 ; accessed on August 10, 2015 .
  4. ↑ army-technology.com accessed March 17, 2009