Technically, the vehicle’s official name should be AB9C5 MBT Falcon II, which is a development program initiated by the King Abdullah II Design & Development Bureau (KADDB).
The gunner’s primary sighting system of AB9C5 Falcon II can be traced back to the AB9C4 Falcon I (based on a upgraded Centurion, called Tariq) rolled out in 2002, , which was developed by South African company 4-Sight for Thales Optronics.
↑ Note that the gunner’s EO/IR sight is mounted on the left side of the gun.
The Falcon II turret was originally designed to have an gunner EO sight, designed by 4-Sight, mounted on the left side of the gun. The turret roof turret has a panoramic sight the the commander.
But for unknown reasons, the prototype of Al-Hussein Falcon II built in 2003 was only equipped with a panoramic sight for the commander, and the gunner only had a Thales’ DNGS-B day/night gunnery sight mounted on his hatch roof.
↑ The Falcon II was originally equipped with the same CS2000 roof-mounted panoramic sight as the Falcon I
↑ The gunner of the Falcon II turret initially had only a DNGS-B sight available, with x6 magnification and Image intensifier (II)
↑ The first prototype of Al-Hussein Falcon II was on display at IDEX 2003
In August 2004, the Falcon II was upgraded with new electro-optical sensor system developed by 4-Sight/IST Dynamics, consisting of the commander’s CS2001 and the gunner’s GS2000, based on a KENIS third-generation thermal imager.
↑ Falcon II turret upgraded with IST’s Fire Directing System exhibited at SOFEX 2006
Regarding the Falcon II’s autoloader, it was actually developed in the UK by the FHL Division of Claverham Ltd (formerly Fairey Hydraulics). Including a round in the transfer tube the total number of rounds in the autoloader is 11. The 11 ready-use rounds are stored in turret bustle with a blowout plate, while remaining 17 rounds are stored inside the hull.
The nominal rate of fire is 8 rounds per minute, but the autoloader cycle is 4.5 seconds, with one round in the chamber and another in the transfer tube the two could be fired in 3 seconds. According to KADDB, the first 3 rounds can be fired in 10 seconds, and the average rate of fire is up to 10 rounds per minute.
The Falcon II turret weighs 17.5 tonnes, while the Challenger 1 hull weighs 41.7 tonnes, so the Al-Hussein Falcon II prototype weighs about 59 tonnes.