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This is a model of the Korean Fire Support Combat Vehicle developed by Hanwha Aerospace, unveiled at ADEX 2023. Beyond just a simple model, an actual development project is in progress.
There has been a buzz on the internet recently about Latvia testing the K21 Infantry Fighting Vehicle.
Considering that an article stating that Latvia is testing the K21 Infantry Fighting Vehicle has already appeared in the Military Review Issue 2312, it is somewhat bitter that the culture of reading books in bookstores seems to be disappearing these days.
In fact, more important than Latvia testing the K21 Infantry Fighting Vehicle is that Hanwha Aerospace is initially targeting the needs of the Latvian military and is carrying out the development project for the Korean Fire Support Combat Vehicle (K-MPF).
Here, the Korean Fire Support Combat Vehicle is initially being developed for export, but Hanwha Aerospace plans to propose it to the Korean military in the future, especially for reconnaissance and fire support of the next infantry brigade.
This is the M10 Bucker Fire Support Combat Vehicle of the U.S. Army. It had the biggest influence on Hanwha’s Fire Support Combat Vehicle, and Hanwha aimed to secure a performance that could compete with the M10 and a more affordable production cost.
◆ What is a Korean Fire Support Combat Vehicle?
Hanwha Aerospace, the predecessor of Hanwha Defense, previously unveiled a 105mm light tank model based on the K21 Infantry Fighting Vehicle, but it experienced a setback in the promising Philippines light tank project.
Currently, it is participating directly and indirectly in India’s light tank project, and with the U.S. Army deploying the M10 Bucker MPF (Fire Support Combat Vehicle), it predicts that a light tank model equipped with a 105mm gun on a combat weight of about 30 tons will be widely spread in the future.
In fact, Latvia, which is testing the K21 Infantry Fighting Vehicle, has a demand for about OO light tanks in addition to infantry fighting vehicles. Therefore, Hanwha’s primary goal is to quickly develop the latest light tank and win in the Latvian project.
However, from the perspective of Hanwha Aerospace’s management, it was a significant burden to invest hundreds of billions of won in a development project whose success could not be predicted.
Fortunately, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration has prepared <무기체계 개조개발 지원사업>, and they plan to use it. And in the Fire Support Combat Vehicle development project, Hyundai Wia is in charge of developing the latest 105mm tank gun, and SNT Dynamics is in charge of developing automatic reloading devices and other devices. For more details, please refer to Military Review Issue 2312.
This is the M-55S tank that Slovenia aided to Ukraine. It is an upgraded model equipped with a Western standard 105mm tank gun and Israeli reactive armor on the Russian T55 tank, and it is surprisingly showing great performance.
Can a light tank make a difference?
An additional question here is the fact that Latvia, a small country among the Baltic 3 countries confronting Russia, is very interested in a light tank equipped with a 105mm tank gun. The opponent is Russia, which is developing the T14 Armata. Would there be a need to use a light tank?
Surprisingly, the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war is proving that light tanks and 105mm tank guns have sufficient value.
When the Ukraine-Russia war broke out, Germany, the Netherlands, and Denmark joined forces to start a project to send the Leopard-1A5 tanks, which were produced in the 1960s, after refurbishment. This was an inevitable choice as they could not secure the Leopard-2, and in fact, as soon as the aid project was announced, it became a laughing stock for sending industrial waste to Ukraine at a cost.
◆ The performance of M-55S and Leopard-1!
Germany, the Netherlands, and Denmark joined forces to send the Leopard-1A5 tank, but there was an immediate problem with ammunition supply. Germany had donated 105mm ammunition to Brazil and others at a very low price when the Leopard-1 retired, but Brazil, watching Russia’s reaction, refused to provide ammunition.
This is a scene of supplying ammunition to the Ukrainian Army’s M-55S tank. The conical shell in the middle is the M393A HESH shell.
The United States stepped in at that time. The U.S. Army selected the 105mm M393A3 HESH (High Explosive Squash Head) shell developed by Belgium’s Mecar for the Stryker MGS Fire Support Vehicle, and this ammunition is being supplied to Ukraine. And the German government has ordered a large quantity of 105mm shells of an unknown type from Mecar to hand over to Ukraine, and experts analyze this as M393A3 HESH and M1060A3 APFSDS shells.
The Ukrainian army, using the 105mm tank gun and excellent fire control device installed in the Leopard-1A5 and M-55S and the M393A3 HESH shell, is destroying Russian armored vehicles at a distance of 3,000 to 5,000m. Why is this possible?
First of all, the Ukrainian army realistically cannot secure air superiority, and if it conducts battles in a wide plain, it will inevitably be overwhelmed by the powerful Russian tanks with numerical superiority.
Therefore, Ukrainian tanks are hiding in scattered bushes, small woods, and small villages and conducting long-range ambush firing(like a bazooka), and the exposed Russian tanks are being hit without a plan one after another.
This is a scene of the Ukrainian army looking at the destroyed Russian tank. Many Russian tankers can’t withstand the shock of high-explosive shells and are abandoning their tanks.
The M393A3 HESH shell being produced by Belgium is designed in a wired form, making it possible for long-distance shooting, and it contains a 3kg explosive lump inside. As a result, as soon as it hits, Russia’s proud Contact-5 or the latest 4S23 Relict reactive armor is destroyed, and all the optical equipment of the exposed fire control device can be destroyed at the same time. In other words, it cannot kill the tankers inside, but it collapses the defense and attack power of the Russian tank at once, downgrading it to the level of World War II. {vi
