General info
Spoiler
The story of the B2 Centauro would begin around 2010, previous work from OTO Melara, such as the making of the B1 Centauro armed with a 120mm cannon, had lead OTO Melara to gain enough know-how to begin the development of a new and improved version of the B1 Centauro. Eventually on June Eurosatory 2016 the B2 Centauro II MGS was presented to the masses of military vehicle enthusiasts, 2 years later on July of 2018 a contract was signed for the purchase 136 Centauro II’s, for the Italian army, for the sole purpose of putting out of service the older Centauro’s that have served inside of the Italian armed forces since the late stages of the cold war. Each unit is quite expensive, roughly costing 7.5 million each. As of now the Centauro II is right now one of the most technologically advanced vehicle in service inside the Italian army, one of the main changes from previous variants was major improvement to protection, according to Leonardo it has access to a H3 Jammer, made to prevent the activation of IED’s. Its protection has also increased due to a V-shaped chassis that was modified to protect itself better against shrapnel, IED’s and mines. A new engine and upgraded transmission have been also added to the vehicle to drastically increase mobility. The main weapon it has access to is an third generation 120/105mm Oto-Melara smoothbore gun with an semi-automatic loading system, with 12 rounds ready to fire, this means it can provide the same firepower as the majority of NATO main battle tanks, such as the almost NATO standard, Leopard 2, which the B2 Centauro has the edge over in some aspects considering it can be deployed in long distances (800km) due to being wheeled. Lastly it also has access to a remotely-operated Leonardo Hitrole Light turret, although it is said that it could be interchangeable for either a 7.62mm machine-gun or 40mm automatic grenade launcher. It is able to fire all standard 120mm NATO APFSDS which at times, penetrates over 600mm of RMS armor at a range of 3000m. On top of that, it can use a multitude of MP (multi-purpose) munitions depending on the role it is assigned, which if I may add thanks to the turret the munitions can be programmable, making it a very versatile vehicle. It can hold up to 40 rounds, which most are stored inside of the manual rack. The B2 Centauro has access to a auto-loader, with some sources stating it can fire every 3 seconds. In terms of speed, it has a IVECO VECTOR 8V diesel engine with 720hp, allowing it to go 110km an hour on road.What will amaze most of you to know is that even with all of this the vehicle remains light-weight, so such as the 120/105mm cannon does not effect the vehicle’s mobility. It also has access to 81mm smoke grenade discharges which fire over the frontal arc of the vehicle. The crew of 4 will benefit from a Gen 3 Thermal and night vision devices, along with the addition of a laser rangefinder and laser warning system. The vehicle is very survivable, and as mentioned previously, it can also mount extra add on armour in times of need. It has been rated to be able to withstand up to 30mm auto-cannon fire, but most of the info surrounding that is classified. In addition, if something was to damage the ammo compartment, the crew would be safe, thanks to the blow out panels it has access to, the turret rack is actually its own module so if it was to be damaged the main crew would not be affected… The commander’s sight has access to a panoramic type to allow hunter/ killer target engagements to take place. Also the crews who man the ‘’ Freccia ‘’ will benefit from having this vehicle in its arsenal as the previous Centauro wasn’t able to keep up anymore, to be able to effectively work in tandem with, many Italian high command think that way too, here is a quote from Lt. Gen. Francesco Castrataro ‘’ “We need both the Freccia, with its 25mm gun, and the Centauro, with its 120mm gun, working together on the battlefield. The new model allows this,” For now the Italian army has already some in service undergoing the testing phases however, they’ve pretty much finished and all that is left is to appoint the regiments who will have access to them and train the crews. Majority of the ones purchased are still being made. First set of official deliveries are expected to be complete in the first quarter of 2021, while the rest will follow suit shortly in the future. It is also been theorized that some sort of hard kill active protection system will be fitted in the future, to further increase its protection. APS has been said to commence testing for the Freccia IFV, which after that will be moved into the B2 Centauro. This vehicle so far has great export potential too, Brazil has bought it, Qatar and Spain have shown great interest in acquiring them so in the future it’s not out of the realm to see more countries adopting this design.
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