The Arjun Tank

[dragonfire]

The Arjun will be quite relevant in the 2020 timeframe imo. I'm pretty sure the Chiense Type-99 and the Russian T-90 will still be around. Some M1s will probably remain. And it's roughly in the same class.

I am not stating the Arjun will become irrelevant or obsolete in the 2020 time frame rather the IA stated that for future orders for Tanks it will look at a futuristic design. I can see the T-90s serving easily upto 2030

 

[kato]

That weight list up there is mixing up short, long and metric tons left and right. There's a a difference, you know.

 

[dragonfire]

That weight list up there is mixing up short, long and metric tons left and right. There's a a difference, you know.

I thought i stuck to mt, source was wiki. The imp thing is i was trying to convey a point that the Arjun MBT is not "overweight" but rather inherently heavier than other MBTs with IA.

 

[shag]

Additional 124 Arjun's orders placed :
NEW DELHI: The Army on Monday placed a fresh order for an additional 124 'Arjun' main battle tanks, giving a much-needed fillip to the over three-decade-long DRDO programme. The new order comes in the wake of reports that Arjun had outdone the Russian-made T-90 tanks during comparative trials in the deserts of Rajasthan earlier this year.

"The Army has decided to place fresh order for an additional home-built 124 Main Battle Tank Arjun. This is over and above the existing order of 124 tanks. The development follows the success of the indigenous MBT Arjun in the recent gruelling desert trials," a defence ministry spokesperson said here.

http://www.indian-military.org/news...ces-fresh-order-for-124-more-arjun-tanks.html

 

[eckherl]

Additional 124 Arjun's orders placed :
NEW DELHI: The Army on Monday placed a fresh order for an additional 124 'Arjun' main battle tanks, giving a much-needed fillip to the over three-decade-long DRDO programme. The new order comes in the wake of reports that Arjun had outdone the Russian-made T-90 tanks during comparative trials in the deserts of Rajasthan earlier this year.

"The Army has decided to place fresh order for an additional home-built 124 Main Battle Tank Arjun. This is over and above the existing order of 124 tanks. The development follows the success of the indigenous MBT Arjun in the recent gruelling desert trials," a defence ministry spokesperson said here.

Breaking News: Army places fresh order for 124 more Arjun tanks

This doesn't surprise me, good for DRDO. I was told that the only thing that they found impressive on the T-90 was the second layer of armor protection, other than that the primary layer of armor on Arjun is better along with FCS and mobility.

 

[dragonfire]

This doesn't surprise me, good for DRDO. I was told that the only thing that they found impressive on the T-90 was the second layer of armor protection, other than that the primary layer of armor on Arjun is better along with FCS and mobility.

The DRDO is looking for a total order of 500 units though. Currently the order stands at 293 (45+124+124). The first 45 have already been delivered though. Also interesting is the FMBT (Future Main Battle Tank) requirement that the IA has come out with. The requirements are vast and performance expectation is superlative.

Edit: Or perhaps the 45 delivered are from the first order of 124 (so total order could be so far 148), if any one can offer a correct answer...

 

[shag]

The DRDO is looking for a total order of 500 units though. Currently the order stands at 293 (45+124+124). The first 45 have already been delivered though. Also interesting is the FMBT (Future Main Battle Tank) requirement that the IA has come out with. The requirements are vast and performance expectation is superlative.

Edit: Or perhaps the 45 delivered are from the first order of 124 (so total order could be so far 148), if any one can offer a correct answer...

You are right they need atleast 500 to break even. However this order is significant as it will keep the production line running. The total order now is 124+124 =248 iirc. Hopefully it will also give DRDO time to further work on improvements.
I notice that Army is warming up to indigenous products now, considering the recent trend with orders for Nag and Akash. I guess the products are finally maturing as well. The 43rd Armoured, the current user of Arjun has supported it staunchly since a few years now. I think their feedback matters much more than what people at DGQA say. Of course DGQA is respnsible for approving foreign purchases so you can see why they would berate an indigenous product(no bribes).

 

[Falstaff]

This doesn't surprise me, good for DRDO. I was told that the only thing that they found impressive on the T-90 was the second layer of armor protection, other than that the primary layer of armor on Arjun is better along with FCS and mobility.

The Business Standard puts it this way: "[...] the Arjun tank has outperformed the T-90 on every crucial parameter."
Well, now that the Arjun finally had its comparative trials with the T-90S it puts things into perspective really and I'm curious about what the future holds for the Arjun.
Perhaps we'll finally see even more orders and a Mk II which brings the design up to latest standards and the production costs down. We'll see.

 

[kay_man]

The work on Arjun mark 2 has begun long back.
The increased order would mean that we will definately see an arjun mk2.
Whether it will be inducted or not that is to be seen.
However this is a huge accomplishment... for DRDO.
the army has been most reluctant to accept indegenous tech.........

The arjun mk2 will feature new armour....which is aimed at making the tank lighter but more protected. Network centric capability and more firepower and mobility.

 

[shag]

This doesn't surprise me, good for DRDO. I was told that the only thing that they found impressive on the T-90 was the second layer of armor protection, other than that the primary layer of armor on Arjun is better along with FCS and mobility.

Hi Eckherl, if its not an issue can you tell the source for that info(source for the comment not the fact about two layers of armour on T-90)?
thanks!

 

[eckherl]

Hi Eckherl, if its not an issue can you tell the source for that info(source for the comment not the fact about two layers of armour on T-90)?
thanks!

Lets just say that the Indian Army was rather disappointed with the T-90's primary armor when compared to the Arjuns, I got a feeling that you are going to see alot of technology advancements from DRDO's armor programs getting passed on to Indian T-90S and T-72 series. Too many people out there have only focused on the negatives versus the positives when it comes to DRDO's progress in certain areas.

To my Indian friends;

I have heard that Israel is giving a big hand in regards to tank projectiles, whats the word on the streets, anything being printed in India with regards to this.

 

[shag]

Lets just say that the Indian Army was rather disappointed with the T-90's primary armor when compared to the Arjuns, I got a feeling that you are going to see alot of technology advancements from DRDO's armor programs getting passed on to Indian T-90S and T-72 series. Too many people out there have only focused on the negatives versus the positives when it comes to DRDO's progress in certain areas.

To my Indian friends;

I have heard that Israel is giving a big hand in regards to tank projectiles, whats the word on the streets, anything being printed in India with regards to this.

Yeah I would have expected that. Few people had any doubts on the comparison of the primary armour of these tanks

I am not sure about the rounds but they do use Israeli lahat on the tank.
Here is the link to the Developer' s page for the Arjun tank round. Too many marketing words on the page though, I admit.

120 Millimetre MBT Arjun Armament System
I have the link for the firm that manufactures it, will try to dig it out and post it here. If someone else has it, please post it

 

[eckherl]

Yeah I would have expected that. Few people had any doubts on the comparison of the primary armour of these tanks

I am not sure about the rounds but they do use Israeli lahat on the tank.
Here is the link to the Developer' s page for the Arjun tank round. Too many marketing words on the page though, I admit.

120 Millimetre MBT Arjun Armament System
I have the link for the firm that manufactures it, will try to dig it out and post it here. If someone else has it, please post it

Yes, I have known about the precision round, apparently though Israel may also be giving a hand to KE projectile information also, this is what I am most interested in.

 

[shag]

Its quiet possible but there hasn't been anything on the grapevine AFAIK.
will keep my ears open. Cheers!

 

[joanieQ]

To me, the Arjun is a tank with modern tech. It is a good tank. Except the fact that the Indians havn't been able to sucessful integrate all the tech. into a producable, non-expensive platform. Either way, the Arjun provides the Indians with experience in tank building.

this is a good talk.i fully support you!

 

[kay_man]

Yes, I have known about the precision round, apparently though Israel may also be giving a hand to KE projectile information also, this is what I am most interested in.

Israel helped a lot with the turret launched missile (lahat)....the KE rounds and the gun itself were developed inhouse by DRDO.
However i heard romours about israel helping with the Arjun mk2 ....especially on the armour.

 

[eckherl]

Israel helped a lot with the turret launched missile (lahat)....the KE rounds and the gun itself were developed inhouse by DRDO.
However i heard romours about israel helping with the Arjun mk2 ....especially on the armour.

The emphasis for projectile information sharing seems to be in regards to 125mm mainguns equipping the T-90S on down to T-72 series tanks, apparently there may be some show of concern with current performance levels of KE projectiles currently being used in Indian service.

As far as Arjun 2 project yes, I have a feeling that the turret armor layout on this tank will place great emphasis on modular armor, something that Israel and France have had great success in emplementing.

 

[kay_man]

The emphasis for projectile information sharing seems to be in regards to 125mm mainguns equipping the T-90S on down to T-72 series tanks, apparently there may be some show of concern with current performance levels of KE projectiles currently being used in Indian service.
.

Yes. There was some concern about the KE projectiles of the T-72 (not the T-90 and neither the Arjun ) but that seems to have ben solved by DRDO with Russian help.
Apperently it had something to do with the Indian Ke projectile being underpowered or something....so it was solved by adding more bang behing the same projectile ( magnum effect )

 

[dragonfire]

Arjun Mk II - some specs & updates

The Arjun Mk II is getting ready for trials by the Indian Army in the summer of 2012. In 2010 the Arjun Mk I shone in performance Trails by the Army when it compared to its mainstay MBT the T-90S. The Arjun Mk I was accepted and further orders given, however the Army also gave a long list of modifications they demanded from the Arjun Mk II - 93 in total of which 19 were major modifications.

A few of the major modifications have already been tested and they are

• Modified Transmission System - improvement in performance, acceleration, torque, working temperature & fuel consumption

• Modified Hydro-pneumatic suspension - Capable of 70 ton load, improvement in performance issues

• Commander Thermal Imaging - Added NV capability and Electronic assignment of Targets

• Driver's Night Vision Device - Ambient light not required

• Ammunition Containerisation System

• ERA Protection Tiles - increasing the weight by 1.5 tons

The Arjun Mk II would weigh 4 tons more than the Mk I, however the tank is able to have better on-road performance than the Mk I in all matters other than top speed. While the Mk I has a top speed of 70 kms/hr the Mk II has a top speed of 60 kms/hr - this however has apparently been accepted as a trade off considering the advantages that the Mk II brings to the table.

Based on on-road trials with the load increased to 65.5 tons it was found that the the Mk II has better performance

 

[Twinblade]

Arjun Mk2 poster

First credible images of Arjun Mk2's appearance. Notice the addition on sloped modular armour on turret and additional ERA tiles.