The combined-arms association in Buryatia received four of the latest universal Tiger-M armored special-purpose vehicles with a 4 × 4 wheel arrangement, the press service of the Eastern Military District (BBO) reports. It is noted that vehicles will significantly increase the combat capabilities of troops in performing various tasks.
“The machine is designed to conduct reconnaissance, escort and guard of columns, patrolling and fire support. An armored car provides high security for the crew, cargo and vehicle components from small arms and land mines in combat conditions, ”the BBO press service said in a statement.
The upgraded Tiger has been supplied to the army for the past few years. From the official information of the Ministry of Defense it follows that these armored vehicles are routinely received in parts of all military districts. They are arming units of special forces, airborne forces, motorized rifle troops, military police and law enforcement agencies of the Russian Federation.
Machine production is deployed at the facilities of Military Industrial Company LLC. In the army, the Tiger replaces the SUV UAV Gusar, which belongs to the class of light assault vehicles. The turret of this vehicle allows the installation of a 30 mm automatic grenade launcher, 7.62 mm and 12.7 mm machine guns.
However, this car has a number of significant drawbacks. In particular, it is equipped with imported components (engine and manual gearbox). In addition, the “Gusar” is noticeably inferior in terms of driving performance, comfort and level of protection to the models of a new generation of domestic armored vehicles, said Alexey Leonkov, commercial director of Arsenal of the Fatherland magazine in a conversation with RT.
“The main drawback of UAZ is the lack of even normal bulletproof protection. Naturally, such a transport will not save the crew from a high-explosive explosion and shrapnel damage. UAZs are good off-road vehicles, but they are very poorly adapted to combat operations. Therefore, the complete replacement of Gusarov is a logical and necessary process, ”Leonkov said.
Unpretentiousness and "omnivorous"
"Tiger-M" is available in three versions: multi-purpose modification is presented by AMN-233114, special purpose - ASN-233115, armored - SBM VPK-233136. At the international military-technical forum “Army-2017”, a version of the Tiger-US communications machine was presented to replace combat command and staff vehicles. However, relevant information on the fate of this sample is missing.
All types of "Tigers" combine the qualities of an all-terrain vehicle and a high-speed maneuverable car. They are distinguished by high cross and unpretentiousness. Domestic cars can be operated in any geographical areas in the temperature range from -50 to +50 ° С.
- Upgraded Tiger-M armored vehicles
- © Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The materials of Rosoboronexport say that Tiger-M is able to perform tasks at altitudes of up to 4.5 thousand meters, overcome mountain passes, withstand dusty air up to 1.5 g / m³ and gusts of wind up to 20 m / s. A car can overcome ford 1.2 m deep, a vertical wall 0.4 m high and a ditch 0.5 m wide.
“It (Tigre-M) has an independent torsion bar suspension that allows you to reach the highest possible speeds when traveling over rough terrain, while maintaining a high level of comfort for the crew and the troop transport,” the Rosoboronexport website says.
The speed of the multi-purpose version of the Tigra-M on the highway is at least 110 km / h (off-road - up to 90 km / h), the power reserve is more than 1 thousand km. A YaMZ 5347-10 / 53472-10 engine developed by Avtodiesel OJSC (Yaroslavl Motor Plant) with a rated power of 215 liters is installed on the machine. from. and a working volume of 4.43 liters. The resource of the power plant before overhaul is 300 thousand km.
In an interview with RT at the end of 2017, VPK CEO Alexander Krasovitsky called the Tiger-M an “omnivorous” machine. According to him, the car is capable of operating on any type of fuel - “be it kerosene, diesel fuel, gasoline” - and develop a speed of up to 155 km / h.
All Tiger-M wheels are equipped with hydraulic telescopic shock absorbers. The machine is manufactured both with a mechanical and with an automatic transmission. The vehicle components are unified with the units of the BTR-80 armored personnel carrier, which received positive reviews from the military for maneuverability, maneuverability and reliability.
“As a standard equipment, a centralized tire inflation system is installed on the machine, which allows the driver to change the tire pressure on the go depending on road conditions, an electric winch with a pulling force of 4000 kg and a filter-ventilation system,” Rosoboronexport reads.
Armor and Firepower
Perhaps the most important advantage of the Tiger-M was the increased level of crew protection, experts say. The frontal projection of the machine has the fifth class of ballistic protection out of six possible. Such armor plates withstand bullets from a Kalashnikov assault rifle and the Dragunov sniper rifle (SVD) from a distance of 5 or 10 m. The side and aft projections of the car have a third class of protection.
Thanks to the all-welded hull made of armored rolled steel, the Tigra-M crew will be protected from fragments of artillery ammunition and explosive elements of high-explosive shells, even if they detonate in the immediate vicinity of the vehicle.
- Armored vehicles "Tiger" during a training session before a military parade at the Khmeimim airbase in Syria
- RIA News
- © Maxim Blinov
In addition, the crew of the machine is able to maintain mobility by blasting 0.6 kg of explosive under a wheel or underbody. Also, the Tiger-M is equipped with bulletproof tires with explosion-proof inserts. The inner surface of the car is sheathed with anti-splinter protection made of fabrics based on aramid yarn.
"Tiger" is an armored fighting vehicle. We have it in different protection classes, including fifth-class cars that withstand a bullet from a Kalashnikov assault rifle with a heat-strengthened core. This is a rather serious load, not only on the armor, but also on glass, seams and other elements, ”RT Krasovitsky said earlier.
The Tigr-M’s armament also looks very solid. If necessary, military personnel can install machine guns “Kord”, “Pecheneg”, automatic machine-gun grenade launcher AGS-17 “Flame”, reconnaissance, communications and electronic warfare machines on the turret. Military men can fire from machine guns both from the hatch and from the windows that open.
However, the safest way to fire from the Tiger is considered to be firing from a combat module with remote control. In particular, domestic cars are equipped with a complex "Crossbow-DM", which includes two machine guns and one grenade launcher.
The upgraded Tigers went through baptism of fire in Syria. It was on these armored vehicles that Russian servicemen and members of the military police moved. According to Alexei Leonkov, the domestic machine has shown itself worthy.
“The key advantage of the Tiger family of armored vehicles is that they are designed specifically to be in the war zone. For this reason, they have a very serious level of protection, including mine action, as well as very powerful weapons. It is imperative that the crew can fire from a remote combat module, ”Leonkov said.
A similar point of view is held by military expert Alexei Khlopotov. In a commentary on RT, he praised the wide combat capabilities and reliable chassis of the Tiger-M. According to him, in many ways the domestic car surpasses its closest foreign competitors - the American SUV HMMWV and the Italian car Iveco.
“Structurally, the Tiger is closer to the armored personnel carrier, so the“ foreigners ”are inferior to it in security, mobility and cross-country ability. Russian engineers have created a universal platform with deep modernization potential. "Tiger-M" has become a popular car in the army, police and civilian versions have already appeared. I think that in the future the Tiger-M will be successful in foreign markets, ”Khlopotov predicts.