Olifant (tank)

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Olifant
Olifant in the current version Mk.2 Technical data of the Olifant 1A version

Olifant in the current version Mk.2
Technical data of the Olifant 1A version
General properties
crew 4 (commander, driver, gunner, loader)
length 9.83 m
width 3.38 m
height 2.94 m
Dimensions 54 t (combat weight)
Armor and armament
Armor Armored steel , composite armor
Main armament 105 mm L7A3 gun with 72 rounds
Secondary armament 7.62 mm MG coaxial in the turret
7.62 mm FlaMG on turret
2 × 4 smoke cans
agility
drive V12 diesel engine Rolls-Royce Merlin
550 kW (750 PS)
suspension Torsion bar
Top speed 34 km / h
Power / weight
Range 150 km

The Olifant ( Afrikaans : elephant) is a South African main battle tank . It is technically based on the British Centurion and is only used by South Africa . The original Centurions were modified over time to such an extent that a new tank was created. In addition, around five Centurion / Olifant-based armored recovery vehicles are in operation.

history

In 1953, 250 British Centurions Mk.3 and Mk.5 were delivered to South Africa. For the next two decades, these formed the basis of the South African armored forces alongside the Comet, which had previously also been supplied by Great Britain . In the 1970s, the South African army was looking for a way to modernize and further develop the existing Centurion tanks, as it had become practically impossible to South Africa due to a voluntary UN weapons embargo that had existed since 1963 and became binding on all states from 1977 onwards. to purchase new tanks abroad.

The development of the Olifant began in 1976 under the influence of the South African participation in the civil war in Angola and the fighting in the border area between Angola and South West Africa (today: Namibia ). The first examples were introduced as the Olifant Mk.1 from around 1979. In the early 1980s, fighting intensified in Angola. As more and more Cuban troops supported the Angolan central government, South Africa was forced to further develop the Olifant tanks in order to be able to oppose them to the Cuban T-55 and T-62 of Soviet design. The result was the Olifant Mk.1A, which was available from 1985 and was used for the first time in combat operations in autumn 1987.

The first major use of the Olifant Mk.1A took place on the Lomba River in October 1987 against Angolan infantry and Cuban T-55s. The mission ended with a victory for the South Africans; 62 of a total of 72 T-55s were destroyed or captured within 36 hours, the remaining ten could be captured intact in the next few days. The Olifant could also drive through thick bushes and fine sand quickly. Only three Olifant Mk.1A were lost during the entire war.

The Olifant was further developed and is still the standard battle tank of the South African army today .

development

Centurion Mk.5
Olifant Mk.1A
Olifant Mk.1B

The declared goal was to comprehensively improve the Centurion and thereby increase both its performance and its firepower in order to obtain a heavy battle tank that is particularly suitable for its own needs. The "Olifant Manufacturing Company" (OMC) was founded in 1976 to develop and manufacture the Olifant.

The Olifant Mk.1 was the first version; he was a Centurion with some detail improvements on the landing gear, a more powerful tower drive and also better night vision devices. The commander had a portable laser rangefinder and the gunner had an image magnifier. The original main weapon (20 pounder, 84 mm), the armor, the engine and the manual gearbox initially remained unchanged. The first copies were delivered to the South African army from 1979.

The Olifant Mk.1A , built from 1983 and introduced from 1985, was still a further developed version of the existing Centurion / Olifant Mk.1; However, it represented a decisive improvement in terms of maneuverability and firepower. The cannon was replaced by a British 105 mm L7A1 with a rifled barrel, eight smoke cannons were installed on each side of the tower, a new, more powerful diesel engine and a semi-automatic gearbox were installed, the night vision devices revised and the armor reinforced. The laser rangefinder was integrated into the gunner's view. This version was used from 1987 with great success in the fight against tanks of Soviet design. In version 1A, the vehicle has a ground clearance of 50 cm and has a gradeability of up to 60%. Furthermore, the trench crossing capability is 3.5 m.

The Olifant Mk.1B is instead because of the extensive changes to a new vehicle produced at Centurion basis as before only one Umrüstversion first time also differs optically clear from Centurion. The Mk.1B was commissioned in 1991. This tank has a slightly longer, improved hull and a completely redeveloped turret with much stronger armor. The chassis was further revised by replacing the old Horstmann suspensions with torsion bar springs . The ground armor was doubled in strength as the most important concession to the large numbers of mines laid in Angola, Namibia and other countries bordering South Africa. The engine was replaced by a new turbo diesel engine with significantly more power and a fully automatic gearbox was installed. The armor has been significantly reinforced on the hull front as well as on the turret and on the roof; there are also various mounting points for additional armor. New side skirts were installed to protect against shaped charge projectiles and missiles with warheads of this type ( HEAT ). The driver's area has now been made more spacious, provided with an easier-to-open hatch and equipped with a steering wheel instead of two steering levers. The latter, together with the automatic transmission, made operation much easier for the driver. A tower cage was added as additional storage space for the crew's equipment. The cannon is provided with a thermal protective cover, the gunner's view has been expanded to include a digital fire control computer, and an infrared searchlight can also be installed above the cannon .

The Olifant 2 (also: Olifant Mk.2) is a consistent further development of the earlier Olifant Mk.1B. The Olifant 2 was developed above all in order to be able to continue to counter the increasing spread of modern tanks of Soviet and Russian designs such as the T-72 in the neighboring countries with a superior tank. This latest version represents a very significant improvement in the impact force and also in armor protection. A newly constructed turret with beveled multilayer composite armor on a slightly modified hull is used. The improvements to the hull also include new front armor made of composite material (in addition to the original beveled armor made of steel) and the possibility of adding various additional armor to mounting points. In addition, new composite side skirts were installed. In addition to a version with a 105 mm cannon, there is also one with a new 120 mm cannon from LIW, the latter version being the more popular. A new, ultra-modern digital fire control computer has been integrated into the fire control system. There are also new considerations to install an even more powerful engine in order to further increase driving performance. From a technical point of view, this tank can be seen as an intermediate stage between the Olifant Mk.1B and the last South African tank prototype, Tank Technology Demonstrator (TTD). The first example appeared in 1998. It is not known how many tanks of this type have already been manufactured or when it is scheduled to go into service.

Compared to the Centurion, the Olifant has the following improvements:

  • Further developed chassis with torsion bar suspension
  • Improved mine protection through double bottom armor
  • More powerful turbo diesel engine
  • Fully automatic transmission
  • Increased speed, agility and range
  • Much stronger armor (composite armor from Olifant Mk.1B)
  • Various additional armor and devices can be mounted
  • Modern night vision devices
  • Fully equipped and precise fire control system
  • Fire extinguishing system

variants

There is a variant of the Olifant as an armored recovery vehicle .

See also

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Jane's 2010 (see lit.)

Web links

Commons : Olifant  - collection of images, videos and audio files