Arjun MBT: India's Silver Hammer

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Arjun MBT: India’s Silver Hammer

Arjun_MK1A_field_trials.jpg

The Arjun Mk. 1A during field trials.

Arjun-tank.jpg

The Arjun Mk. 1 during a military parade.

  • Basic Description:
    • The Arjun, which means silver, white, or clear, is a series of main battle tanks developed by the Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment/DRDO. After the 1971 Bangladesh War of Independence, the Indian Army realized a need to begin development of its own indigenous tank suited to its own needs. Prior to the Arjun, the Indian Army heavily relied on the United Kingdom and further on the Soviet Union for meeting most of its defense needs. This included main battle tanks, light vehicles, IFV’s, and more. Since the 1970’s, the Indian Army relied on the Vijayanta series tanks which were derived from the Vickers Mk. 1 tank as well as T-72’s imported from the U.S.S.R. As of today, the Indian Army still heavily utilizes Soviet/Russian tanks such as the T-90S “Bhishma”, however, have seen an increasing focus on the development of indigenous vehicle programs which includes the Arjun Main Battle Tank.
    • Development for the Arjun began in the early 1970’s and with a design plan formed in 1983 with the help of Krauss-Maffei, lead to the first prototype being built in 1989. This prototype drew in a lot of similarities of the newly developed Leopard 2 Main Battle Tank. This tank featured several local developments such as Kanchan composite armor with integrated NERA, a rifled 120mm gun, as well as proven technology such as the MTU MB 838 Ka-501 V10 Turbocharged Diesel Engine from Germany. This tank would be later designated as the Arjun Mk. 1. Production of the Arjun Mk. 1 began in 2004 with around 124 delivered to the Indian Army. These Arjun Mk. 1’s have long complimented the T-72 Ajeya and T-90S main battle tanks that are the current mainstay of the Army.
    • In 2010, DRDO offered to upgrade the Arjun to allow it to meet modern defense requirements as the original Arjun Mk. 1 had started to become obsolete. This new Arjun was designated the Mk. 2. Developments continued throughout the 2010’s resulting in many more upgrades. This new vehicle featured 89 improvements over the standard Arjun Mk. 1, including newly integrated NERA/ERA armor in a redesigned turret, a new Commanders’ Independent Thermal Sight, a fully integrated countermeasure system dubbed ALWCS, or Advanced Laser Warning Countermeasure System, new ammunition along with the SAMHO GL-ATGM, Remote Weapon Station, and more. This new variant of Arjun would later be renamed the Arjun Mk. 1A. 2 Arjun Mk.1A have been delivered to the Indian Army for trials with 118 Mk.1A’s on order as of September 2021. The Arjun Mk. 1A is facing considerable criticism due to its immense weight compared to the other tanks fielded by the Indian Army such as the T-72 Ajeya and T-90S, which both weigh 10 or more tons less than the Mk. 1A. Development continues on the Mk. 1A to increase its survivability as well as decrease overall weight. However, due to its suspension, the center mass is more spread out versus other MBT of its class.
  • Specifications:
    • Role: Main Battle Tank
    • Origin/Manufacturer:
      • India - CVRDE/DRDO
    • Armament:
      • Primary: 120mm Rifled Gun (Mk.1 - 42rds/Mk. 1A - 39rds)
        • Ammunition:
          • APFSDS-T (or FSAPDS)
            • FSAPDS Mk. 1
            • FSAPDS Mk. 2
          • HESH
          • HE
            • Penetration-XXX-Blast (PCB) Anti-Bunker
            • Thermobaric (TB)
          • SAMHO GL-ATGM (Mk. 1A only)
          • LAHAT GL-ATGM (Both capable of LAHAT after modifications)
        • Feed System:
          • Manual
      • Coaxial: 7.62mm MAG Machine Gun
      • Roof-mounted: 12.7mm NSV Machine Gun
        • Arjun Mk.1A utilizes 12.7mm NSV Remote Weapon Station
    • Dimensions:
      • Arjun Mk. 1
        • Length: 10.19m
        • Width: 3.85m
        • Height: 2.32m
        • Weight: 64.5t
      • Arjun Mk. 1A
        • Length: 10.64m
        • Width: 3.95m
        • Height: 3.18m
        • Weight: 75t
    • Mobility:
      • Engine: 1,400hp - MTU MB 838 Ka-501 V10 Turbocharged Diesel Engine
      • Max Speed:
        • Arjun Mk. 1: 70km/h
        • Arjun Mk. 1A: 60km.h
      • Transmission: RENK Gearbox (4-Forward, 2-Reverse)
      • Suspension: Hydropneumatic Suspension
  • Crew:
    • Commander
    • Gunner
    • Loader
    • Driver
  • Features:
    • Arjun Mk. 1
      • Laser Rangefinder
      • 12x 81mm Smoke Grenade Launchers
      • Armor:
        • Kanchan Composite Armor
        • Integrated NERA
        • DMR-1700 Steel Alloy
      • Blowout Panels
      • Optics:
        • Gunner: GMS Thermal Sight
        • Commander: CPS Mk. I (NV Camera)
        • Driver: Night Vision Device
    • Arjun Mk. 1A
      • Laser Rangefinder
      • Advanced Laser Warning Countermeasure System (ALWCS)
        • 16x 81mm Smoke Grenade Launchers
          • Can slew Grenade Launchers to incoming missile and automatically discharge Smoke Grenades.
        • Laser Warning Receivers
        • IR Jammers
      • Armor:
        • Kanchan Composite Armor
        • Integrated NERA
        • ERA
        • DMR-1700 Steel Alloy
      • Mine-plow
      • Blowout Panels
      • Optics:
        • Gunner: GMS Thermal Sight
        • Commander: CPS Mk. II (Thermal Camera)
        • Driver: Thermal Sight
  • In-game:
    • The two different Arjun’s are powerful MBT’s that will serve well in Rank VI and Rank VII. The original Arjun Mk. 1 would play very similarly to the Leopard 2A4, featuring high speed and decent maneuverability. This variant would probably sit well at the Battle Rating 9.7-10.0. However, the Mk. 1A variants is an entirely different beast in terms of play style. It features heavy armor at the cost of speed as well as electronic modifications such as LWS and IR Jammers. Player’s would have to adopt to a new play style as both tanks, though built on the same chassis and feature a lot of the same components, feature several different changes that separate each other significantly. The Mk. 1A would sit well at top rank, Battle Rating 11.0. One downside for both vehicles however is the lack of HEAT round found on most other tanks. This can also be seen in the British tree with the Challenger 2-series main battle tanks.
  • Sources:
    1. https://web.archive.org/web/20110809042539/http://drdo.gov.in/drdo/pub/techfocus/2011/tf_june2011.pdf
    2. Explained: What’s new in Arjun Mark-1A, and why is its acquisition significant? | Explained News - The Indian Express
    3. https://www.army-technology.com/news/india-arjun-mk-1a-main-battle-tanks/
    4. https://www.armyrecognition.com/india_indian_army_tanks_heavy_armoured_vehicles_uk/arjun_mk_1a_mk_ii_2_main_battle_tank_technical_data_pictures_video.html
    5. https://www.armyrecognition.com/india_indian_army_tanks_heavy_armoured_vehicles_uk/arjun_mk-i_mbt_main_battle_tank_technical_data_pictures.html
    6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arjun_(tank)
    7. https://defence.pk/pdf/threads/indias-indigenously-designed-arjun-mk-1a-clears-trials-ready-to-go-into-production.645462/
    8. https://www.mod.gov.in/sites/default/files/AR1112.pdf
    9. https://www.mod.gov.in/sites/default/files/AR1617.pdf
    10. ARJUN - MAIN BATTLE TANK | Ordnance Factory Board | Government of India
    11. http://www.military-today.com/tanks/arjun_mk2.htm
    12. DRDO Arjun Main Battle Tank (2006)

Imagery

Arjun Mk. 1

Spoiler

Arjun_Tank.jpg

Side view of the Arjun Mk. 1 Main Battle Tank.

Arjun_Main_Battle_Tank_Exhibition_100th_

Rear view of the Arjun Mk. 1.

New_upgraded_Arjun_Mark_1-A_main_battle_

Mk.1 during exercises.

arjun-tank-ndtv_650x400_41515397955.jpg

Side view of the Mk. 1.

Arjun-Mk1-desert.png

Tanks Encyclopedia artists impression of the Mk. 1.

Arjun Mk. 1A

Spoiler

H2021021495939_(cropped).jpg

Arjun Mk 1A during maneuvers.

800px-Arjun_Mk_II_turrent_front(1).jpg

Closeup of the Mk. 1A’s turret and UFP.

Arjun_Mk_IIRCWS.png

RWS and IR/LWS Receiver of the Mk. 1A.

Arjun_Mk_II_side(cropped1).jpg

Advanced Laser Warning Countermeasure System (ALWCS) receivers and rotatable 81mm Smoke Launchers.

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Arjun Mk. 1A, formally known as Arjun Mk. 2, specifications.

Arjun-Mak1A.png

Early Tanks Encyclopedia artists impression of the Mk. 1A.

2

I foresee the Arjun Mk. 1 being after the Vickers Mk. 7 and following that is the Arjun Mk .1A

4 Likes
3

1+, a interesting vehicle with a sus shell name, I suppose as apart of Britain?

1 Like
4

Lol yeah, but likely part of Britain yes based on the T-90S.

5

That would assume the Arjun is superior to the Mk.7, which if contemporary reports and retrospectives are to be believed, it most certainly is not. The Mk.1A, maybe. The CR2E would have been a good cap to that line but that ship has clearly sailed, my best options for vehicles following the Mk.7 are the Mk.7/2 (even though it would basically be the same), EE-T2 Osorio (provided it had a really good round as it’s worse by most other regards), or Royal Ordnance RO2004, whose chances of being added are slim at best.

1 Like
6

The Arjun isn’t a bad tank. The problem is development delays and everything pushed it into the next-era of main battle tanks. It’s just outdated. Had it come out back when it should have it would’ve been a solid tank. As for in-game if it’s given it’s wide array of munitions it will probably be the exact BR as the Mk. 7. The Arjun Mk1A will probably be 11.0.

1 Like
7

Personally I would have preferred this as the British Squadron vehicle over the T-90.

Then have the Mk. 1A in the tech-tree.

1 Like
8

Tha Arjuns should be in the Israeli tech-tree. It was developed with Israel, and upgraded by Israel. Giving Indian tanks that are not related to Britain into the British tech-tree is stupid. India is related to Israel and Russia, so I suggest giving Indian tanks that were made by Russia to the Soviet tech-tree, and Indian tanks that were upgraded/developed/made in Israel to the Israeli tech-tree.

1 Like
9

yeh why not XD +1

10

Arjun Mk.1A/II upgrade was consulted with Israel … not the base tank I think.
And If Israel and India connection were to be established in War Thunder, then the T-90 Bhishma would’ve faired better in Israeli techtree, bringing in more variety there, than in British tech tree.
But its pretty clear Gaijin has other plans for Indian vehicles with giving Britain the Bhishma

1 Like
11

Just a reminder, even though both British and Indian main guns are rifled 120mm
the British main gun is derivative of the M103/Conqueror’s design, still using two part ammo,
whereas the Indian gun is likely an upscaled 105mm L7, using unique single piece 120mm ammo.

12

the standard Arjun was developed together with germany KMW to be specific, not israel just saying

1 Like
13

Earliest Arjun prototype should be added to Germany

14

I say the should add both at the same Time. I also prefer the Mk 1A over the Mk1