ASCOD PT-2

ChieftainWarrior · September 30, 2024, 6:20pm

Would you like to see this in-game?

Yes
No

0 voters

ASCOD (PT-2)

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎

TL;DR: Second prototype of the joint Austro-Spanish ASCOD program, resulting in the Spanish Pizarro and Austrian Ulan IFVs. Equipped with 30mm Mauser auto-cannon. Features worse armour than production vehicles.

History
In the late 1970s, Spain and Austria were equipped with rapidly-aging APCs – the M113 in Spain, and the 4K 7FA in Austria. Both countries sought a modern AFV to complement heavy armour (in Austria, the Leopard 2A4, and in Spain, the AMX-30Es, M48s and M60s [and only later Leopard 2A4s in 1998]).

In 1982, Steyr-Daimler-Puch began the process of development of a new AFV. They contacted Greece, Norway and Switzerland to discuss the requirements. In 1985, Austria’s Bundesheer revealed their requirements for a new IFV, named the Kampfschützenpanzer 90 (KSPz 90). This led to Steyr progressing further with development, but it became clear to them that Austria would not purchase any new IFVs soon, and that development costs would exceed Steyr’s budget.

This led to the formation of ASCOD (Austrian Spanish Cooperative Development) – a merger of Steyr-Daimler-Puch and Santa Bárbara Sistemas. Soon after, the ‘Alexandros’ IFV was proposed by the combined effort of ASCOD and the Greek ELVO (formerly Steyr-Hellas). However, after a change in the Greek government and realising the Alexandros would be too expensive for Greece, ELVO dropped out, but not before handing over documents and design plans they had drawn up. ELVO would then go on to design the Kentaurus, which only saw a single prototype produced.

ASCOD then progressed rapidly in designing a prototype. The hull was produced in Spain, and the turret in Austria. The turret was a further development of the SP 30 turret already used on the Austrian Pandur II IFV in service with Portugal. The first prototype was demonstrated in 1991. The original prototype weighed 18.8t, but over the course of development, this soared to 28.3t (Pizarro Fase 1 combat weight).

pt-1

PT-1 (left) and PT-2 (right). The first two prototypes, and the only ones to have six road-wheels; PT-3 onwards had seven.

While PT-1 was sent to Norway to compete against other IFVs, and eventually was refurbished by GDSBS, PT-2 was delivered to the Toledo Infantry Academy. Here, it underwent a tough evaluation, primarily of its armour. Shots were fired at the vehicle’s hull and armoured glass viewpoints, and the vehicle was put up against landmines (which destroyed its tracks and some wheels). The vehicle was repaired, and since then has been preserved at the Museum of Armoured Vehicles in El Goloso, Madrid.

8617081450_506f06c033_z

PT-2’s lower hull after firing tests

In 1994, Spain ordered four pre-production vehicles for further testing, and in 1996, placed an order for a first batch of 144 vehicles. These were called the Pizarro. Austria placed their order in 1999, for what they designated the Ulan. While the two vehicles are very similar, the Ulan has a few noteworthy changes over the Pizarro, notably a more powerful powerpack, and different armour composition.

A second production batch of the Pizarro was also ordered later, with the first Pizarro Fase IIs arriving in the Spanish Army in 2016. Originally 212 vehicles (both VCI/C and engineering variants) were ordered, but this was cut down to 117, 83 of which are the VCI/Cs. The Fase IIs incorporate a number of upgrades, not least of all being a larger hull. These vehicles are identifiable easily by their sideskirts being straighter.

Pizarro Fase II (left) and Ulan (right)

Characteristics

Note: Details regarding the specifications of the ASCOD prototypes are not clear, but most can be reasonably inferred from the information we do have

The ASCOD PT-2 is armed with a two-plane stabilised German 30mm Mauser MK30-2 autocannon. The cannon fires standard 30x173mm ammunition at 200 rounds per minute. It can use a variety of APDS, APFSDS and HE rounds – PMC287 APFSDS has 121mm of penetration at 10m at 0°, firing at 1480m/s, and the more recent PMC359 weighs 40% more and is fired at the same velocity, likely increasing its penetration. It’s worth noting however that PMC359 is a modern round, and if the production Pizarro/Ulan variants were to also be added, it makes sense for the PT-2 to only have APDS rounds. 300 rounds of 30mm ammunition are carried on the production vehicles, likely similar here. The PT-2 also has a coaxial 7.62mm.

The fire control system of the PT-2 is not clear. The Pizarro uses the Mk-10 fire control system produced by Spanish company Indra, consisting of fully stabilised first-generation thermal sights for the gunner and commander and a laser rangefinder. The Ulan has a Kollsman FCS derived from the SK105, with very similar capabilities. The PT-1 had no fire control system, but the PT-2 had ‘systems integration’ take place in Spain, potentially meaning the Mk-10 was integrated.

The cannon has elevation of -10°/+50° on the production vehicles, and is probably the same for PT-2. The PT-2 has six smoke grenade launchers along the turret sides, for a total of 12.

Turret diagram for production Pizarro. Appears to be near identical to that of PT-2.

While the production Pizarro and Ulan have steel armour capable of resisting 14.5mm rounds all-around, and 30mm rounds across the frontal arc, the PT-2 weighs a number of tons less than the production vehicles and presumably has slightly thinner armour, although likely still resistant to 14.5mm rounds at least. The PT-2 has no ERA fitted, unlike the production Pizarro.

The production Pizarro and Ulan are fitted with spall liners in both the hull and turret, as seen below, but no information is available on whether these were included in the prototypes.

Screenshot 2024-09-23 at 14.27.14
Screenshot 2024-09-23 at 14.28.14

The PT-2 is fitted with an MTU 8V183 TE22 engine, providing 600hp at 2300rpm. This is connected to an automatic RENK HSWL 106 C transmission, with 6 forward and 4 reverse gears. With a weight of 25.2t, this gives the PT-2 a power-to-weight ratio of 23.8hp/t. It has a top speed of 70km/h.

Conclusion
The ASCOD PT-2 would be a great option for a premium/event IFV for a future Iberian tree, complementing the production VCI/C Pizarro. It could alternatively be placed in the tech tree, as it would probably sit at one BR step lower, at around 8.7.

Specifications
Armament

30mm Mauser MK30-2
- 200rpm
- Ammunition
  - MK238 HEI-T
  - APDS
    - 87mm at 0° at 10m
  - PMC287 APFSDS-T
    - 121mm at 0° at 10m
7.62mm MG-3S coaxial
- 3,800 rounds
Vertical guidance
- +50°/-10°
Laser rangefinder
Gunner and commander thermals
- First-generation