K1E2 – The Future of the K1

ChieftainWarrior · October 12, 2024, 6:37pm

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K1E2

TL;DR: South Korea’s latest upgrade to the K1. Features an improved gunners sight/thermals (3rd gen), an APU, and overpressure for CBRN protection. Retains the 105mm, but is equipped with much better rounds.

History
Following the end of WWII, occupied Korea was liberated. After a brief period of self-governance, both the USA and USSR occupied the South and North respectively. The Republic of Korea (South Korea) was officially established in August of 1948, 3 weeks before the establishment of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea). The two states went to war in 1950, lasting until 1953, when Korea was split along the 38th parallel.

The South Korean army was initially armed with American vehicles, such as the M24, M4A3, and M46. These vehicles were eventually replaced by the M48, of which hundreds were acquired. In the mid-to-late 1970s, North Korea began domestic production of the T-62, which they named the Ch’ŏnma. South Korea saw this and realised their tank forces were rapidly becoming inadequate. They first sought to acquire the M60A1, but it wasn’t determined to be good enough against the Ch’ŏnma. Then, they looked at domestic production of the German Leopard 1.

chonma1exer

North Korean Ch’ŏnma – the most advanced tank in North Korea’s arsenal in the 1970s and 80s.

As the Vietnam War intensified, the US withdrew the 7th division from South Korea in 1971, leaving only 43,000 American troops in the country. South Korea believed this would create a serious security vacuum, and in 1976, the government began a program to begin full-scale development and production of a domestic tank. The initial plan was to upgrade the existing M48s to M48A3K and M48A5K standards, then begin license production of the M60A1, building up the capabilities to develop a domestic vehicle. The US did not approve the production of the M60A1 however, and Germany’s policies at the time prevented license production outside of NATO member states.

The South Korean government reached out to various defence companies to develop a tank on par with the Leopard 2 and M1 Abrams. Chrysler Defense in the USA responded to this, and submitted a proposal based on the XM-1 – this was viewed favourably by the South Korean government and development began.

Development began under the name ROKIT (Republic of Korea Indigenous Tank). The first prototype was built in 1983 as an automative test rig (ATR), and was named PV-1. PV-2 was built later that year as a fire control test rig (FCTR). Issues quickly emerged, primarily regarding the engine. They were using the Continental AVCR-1790, producing 1200hp, which was found to be too unreliable. Thus, they opted to replace it with the German MTU MB 871 1200hp engine. A total of five prototypes were constructed, but they retained the Continental engine – only the production tanks would receive the MTU engine.

PV-1 undergoing suspension tests

Production of the K1, then nicknamed ‘88 Tank’, began in 1987, carried out by Hyundai. A total of 1,511 tanks were produced, with production only ending in 2011. The prototypes and initial production batch up to vehicle #477 (or #445) were fitted with the Gunner’s Primary Sight System (GPSS) from Hughes, while the remaining vehicles were fitted with the improved Gunner’s Primary Tank Thermal Sight (GPTTS).

K1s during their official reveal in 1987

When, in the early 1990s, intelligence began to emerge that North Korea had 125mm-armed tanks (referring to inaccurate reports of T-72s and prototype Ch’ŏnma’s fitted with 125mm cannons), South Korea realised the K1 needed better firepower and protection. This led to the K1A1, a radically altered version of the K1 featuring a 120mm cannon, improved armour and a redesigned turret, as well as a variety of system upgrades. The K1A1 entered production in 1999, and lasted until 2011. 484 were built altogether. In 2012, after development from 2008-2010, the K1A1s began an upgrade program to apply technology from the K2 ‘Black Panther’. This lasted until 2024, when all 484 K1A1s had been upgraded.

In 2013, the K1s began to go through a very similar upgrade (applying K2 technology to the K1), named the K1E1. Unlike the K1A1 → K1A2 program, the K1E1 also includes an upgrade to the commander’s sight. Previously, the K1s used the French SFIM VS-580-13 sight – the same as fitted to tanks like the OF-40 and Challenger 2. This has been replaced with a domestic Korean sight, which is arguably better than the sight fitted to the K2 ‘Black Panther’.

The first vehicle was rolled out in July of 2014, and all K1s are planned to be upgraded to K1E1 standard by 2026.

K1E1

The K1E1s are also planned to undergo further modernisation, to K1E2 standard. There are 3 main upgrades:

An improved gunner’s sight
An auxiliary power unit (APU)
Overpressure system for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear protection (CBRN)

The initial proposal was much more comprehensive, with consideration of:

Improved base armour
Urban warfare additional armour kit
Active protection system (APS)
Remote weapon system (RWS)
Uprated engine (1320hp) or a new engine (1500hp)

Upgraded protection was widely seen as necessary, given the increased threat North Korean weapons pose (such as their domestic production of the 9M133 Kornet [Bulsae-5] and its mounting on both tank destroyers and MBTs), but these were ultimately not chosen. A 12.7mm RWS was not chosen in order to avoid increasing the stress on the turret roof, which a 7.62mm would not cause, but that was deemed too weak and ultimately not worth it.

The first K1E2 was revealed on February 7th, 2024. The upgrade program has been slated to commence in 2026, for all K1E1s.

K1E2 modifications

Characteristics
The K1E2 is armed with a two-plane stabilised 105mm KM68A1, a license-produced M68A1. The tank can fire a variety of 105mm ammunition – including a number of South Korean designs. While it could certainly fire American APFSDS rounds like M735 and M774, the K1s are equipped with rounds like K270, K273 and K274. K270 is said to have 152mm penetration at 60° at 3000m, and calculations that give similar values at that range and angle give it a penetration of 292mm at 0° at 0m (the exact same as M735 in-game *currently), and 171mm at 60° at 0m. I couldn’t find any information on K273 but it supposedly has a higher length-diameter ratio than K270. K274 penetrations 225mm of armour at 60° at 2000m, and K274N penetrates 250mm of armour at 60° at 2000m. Both rounds are on par with DM63 and M428 SWORD respectively. The K1E2 can also fire license-produced M456 HEAT-FS (KM456A1) with 400mm of penetration, as well as M393 HESH and KM1 HE rounds. 47 rounds of ammunition are carried.
(Thanks to @Laurelix for the K274/K274N info)

The main cannon can elevate/depress +20°/-10° without using its hydro-pneumatic suspension. When using it, the gun can elevate/depress +23°/-14°. The turret rotates 360° at a speed of 40°/second. Secondary armament consists of a 12.7mm K6 HMG for the commander, and two 7.62mm M60s – one for the loader and one coaxial. The 12.7mm K6 has been slightly modified, and hangs over the side of the turret, instead of mounted to the left of the commander sight. The tank has six smoke grenade launchers on either side of the turret cheeks, for a total of 12.

The K1E2 replaces the Gunner’s Primary Tank Thermal Sight (GPTTS) of the K1 and K1E1 with a new sight, fitted with 3rd generation thermals. It appears to be a further development of the KGPS-II that’s fitted to the K2, which has 2nd generation thermals.

Gunner’s sight on K1E2

The commander has the Korean Commander’s Panoramic Sight A1 (KCPSA1, alternately called CPSA1 or CPTS [Commander Panoramic Tank Sight]), which has 3rd generation thermals. This sight gives the vehicle hunter-killer capabilities. The driver also has a thermal camera.

The KCPSA1 (as fitted on K1E1)

The K1E2 is fitted with a Special Armour Package (SAP), the same as on the base K1s. This is an American composite armour package, using the same technology as Chobham composite armour as on the the base M1 Abrams. The actual protection values as fitted to the K1 are strictly kept secret, but can be reasonably assumed to be equal to or slightly less than the base M1 Abrams. The composite is fitted on the hull front and turret front and sides. The front hull is said to provide ~400-500mm armour against KE projectiles, and the turret front is likely similar.

The K1E2 is fitted with an MTU MB871 Ka-501 engine, which provides 1200hp. This is connected to a ZF LSG 3000 transmission, which gives the tank 4 forward gears and 2 reverse gears. The K1E2 weighs around 53t, giving it a power-to-weight ratio of 22.6hp/t. It has a top speed of 65km/h, with a reverse speed of around 34km/h. The tank is also fitted with a hybrid suspension, with hydropneumatic suspension only on wheels 1, 2 and 6, with torsion bar suspension on the others. As mentioned earlier this gives it an extra +3°/-4° gun elevation. The suspension can only ‘lean’ up or down, it has no side control.

Conclusion
The K1E2 is, as it stands, the best 105mm-armed K1 variant, and would be perfect to cap off that branch of tanks in a future United Korean tech tree. It has great optics, and with improved ammunition like K274N, would fit well at around 11.0.

Specifications
Armament

105mm KM68A1
- 9-12rpm
- Ammunition
  - M735 APFSDS
    - 292mm at 0° at 10m
  - K270 APFSDS
    - 292mm at 0° at 10m
  - K273 APFSDS
    - Unknown, higher length-diameter ratio than KM270
  - K274 APFSDS
    - 225mm at 60° at 2000m
  - K274N APFSDS
    - 250mm at 60° at 2000m
  - KM456A1 HEAT-FS
    - 400mm at 0° at 10m
  - M393 HESH
    - 127mm at 0° at 10m
  - KM1 HE
1x 12.7mm K6
2x 7.62mm M60
Vertical guidance
- +20°/-10°
- +23°/-14° (while ‘kneeling’)
Laser rangefinder
Gunner thermals
- Third-generation
Commander thermals
- Third-generation
Driver thermals
- Unknown generation