- Yes
- No
In 1958, as the cold war grew more and more cold, the Swedish defence ministry had started to realize that the risk of a global conflict between superpowers was now more than just speculation. And with the soviet union practically on their doorstep they felt that the threat of an invasion was too high to do nothing about. This sparked a surge in military investment for the Swedish army, and it is this military surge that gave way for the creation of the world famous S-tank, Strv 103. It was however not only the army that was in need of new equipment and parallel with the development of the S-tank the Swedish Government approved the development of a new artillery vehicle.
As luck would have it a project fitting this role had been started nine years prior by Bofors AB and the company Landsverk now got the assignment of finishing this prototype using the hull from the cancelled Emil project. And that is just what they did. Just two years later the prototype stood finished, it was named the Artillerikanonvagn 151. (Please imagine some Doom music here or something)
(The Akv 151 prototype artillery vehicle)
At first glance the Akv 151 is very similar to the later production varian Bkan 1. There are however some major differences between the two.
The first one is the chassis. While they look very similar, under the hood they are completely different vehicles. While the Bkan is based on a modified S-tank chassis, the Akv is built on one of the Strv KRV chassis from the cancelled project EMIL.
The turret of the vehicle may look strange if one has only seen the Bkan 1C variant we have in game but this tower is actually identical to the Bkan 1A variants turret. The differences between the A and C variants is the removal of the crane seen mounted on top and a change of navigation and fire control systems. So in game apart from some visual differences the turrets would be practically the same, sans the camo net.
(The loading crane on the Akv 151)
When it comes to statistics you will notice that most are shared with the Bkan since they use essentially the same turret.
Weight would probably land around the same area as the Bkan. Around 50 tonnes. If not slightly lower since the hull likely had its armour stripped. One of the sources does mention that the frontal armour was going to be 20mm. Though this was referencing the final Bkan and not this prototype.
The engine in this vehicle is the engine that was going to be used for the Strv KRV. It has 800 horsepower. 200 more than the Bkan in game. Although it is very possible that the horsepower of 600 seen in the game is inaccurate. This number assumes that both of the engines would be used at the same time but there is no evidence of this. Additionally, the low speed is specifically because of the weak engine and 600 horsepower for 50 tonnes is not bad. I therefore believe that the Bkan we have in game should have around 300 horsepower. The power of the gas turbine engine. The Akv on the other hand only has one engine. So it would definitely have 800 horsepower.
The Akan also uses the KRV transmission. The KRV would have had a top speed of 56 kph though the Akv is quite a bit heavier so expect a lower value. Still way faster than the sluggish Bkan. I would expect the top speed to be around 50kph.
The reload and ammo is all the same as the Bkan in game. 3.2 second reload and the sgr m/60 shell, including the proxy fuze.
Same goes for turret traverse. 15 degrees to the side, -2 and 40 degrees vertical.
The armour of the vehicle is obviously quite unsubstantial. The turret is like previously mentioned the same as in game. The hull on the other hand had armour before modification. The Strv KRV was a heavy tank after all. There is no information about the removal of the armour but one can assume it was done since the chassis was used in reverse and the front plate armour would be positioned in the back which would be practically useless and impractically heavy. The order specification for the Bkan says 20mm in the front but it is unlikely that this applies to the Akv. Since the KRV chassis was used it is most likely that the armour values still apply. This would mean the Akv would have 30mm of frontal hull armour. The turret armour is the same as the Bkan in game, except for the extra crane on top of the turret.
So apart from mobility differences and some cosmetic ones they are practically the same vehicle. It just so happens however that mobility is one of the biggest downsides of the Bkan and with this much better mobility i have no doubt it would be much more effective in game. In my mind it would fit snuggly after the Bkan and before the Pvrbv in the 7.3 range. This because of its enhanced capability of getting into downright scandalous spots and mowing down enemies with its amazing reload.
Lastly here is a list of all stats previously mentioned:
Top speed: Theoretically 56kph/probably around 50
The reverse speed of the KRV chassis is unknown
Horsepower: 800
HP/tonne ~16
It is unknown if the strv KRV chassis has neutral steering but it is very likely.
Weight: Around 50 tonnes
Gun traverse: -2/40 vertical/±15 horizontal
Reload speed: 3.2 seconds
Ammunition: HE only/with and without proxy fuze
(The Akv 151)
(The Bkan 1C, as seen in game, now you can correct people who incorrectly label the Akv as a Bkan, notice the flatter hull roof.)
Sourcies:
https://www.ointres.se/bkan_1.htm
https://tanks.mod16.org/2014/02/19/akv-1949-prototype-construction-program/
https://tanks.mod16.org/2013/12/07/project-emil-a-summary/
https://forum.warthunder.com/t/strv-krv-the-swedish-heavy-to-rival-the-is-3/70864/93