- Yes
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caid’s suggestion #174
i would like to suggest a swiss armored car, one of the best of the swiss armored car ever built. the mowag Shark with FL-20
The Mowag Shark is a surprisingly large family of armored cars the was designed by Mowag in 1978 and the first prototype was built in 1981. presented as basically an enlarged version of the Mowag Piranha 8X8 with more protection. The shark was intended to be a wheeled tank and not really an IFV or APC like the piranha. more particularly for tank destroying roles but also offer a large versatility of roles due to the many turrets that could be fitted. the chassis alone weight 16 tonnes and if intended to carry a turret up to 6 tonnes gives a weight of 22 tonnes but the weight was carefully studied to give optimal agility with a 5 tonnes turret (the center of gravity would be in the exact center of the vehicle). the Shark features a high-quality suspension and high protection. but this came to a cost which was the price itself. The shark was much more expensive than the Piranha and was often capable of carrying the same turret. despite a high publicity campaign, and trials in different countries including Germany, Canada, Sweden and Switzerland, no order came for the Shark. 3 prototypes were built from 1981 to 1983 and the mass production was ready in July 1983 but this production never took place.
in this suggestion, we will focus more precisely on the Mowag Shark FL-20. this version features a brand new (at his time) FL-20 turret that was intended to replace the FL-12 and FL-15. the turret was mounted on one of the Shark in the 2nd half of 1985 and was one of the last versions created. the turret features a 105mm G1 (same as the AMX 10RC) and a coaxial 20mm. this allows the vehicle to fire APFSDS (which the FL-12 and FL-15 was unable to) which can engage some of the modern MBT that was used in that time. additionally the coaxial could also deal with the lighter armour. the turret was also equiped with night vision for both commander and gunner, laser-rangefinder, ballistic computer, and commander’s priority. all that on a rather light vehicle. it allowed the Shark to have about the same firepower as most MBT of the time (the 120mm MBT wasn’t yet very common)
Firepower
The main armament is a 105mm G1 L/44. this gun is similar to the CN-105-57 previously mounted on the FL-12, in the way it was a gun intended for light vehicles, but also features a muzzle break that allows the gun to fire APFSDS. this gun is well known as it was mounted on the AMX 10RC. the fre-rate reached 12 rounds minutes which is pretty good. the elevation is a bit limited but still acceptable with -8° to +12°. the gun is paired with an auto-loader with at least 12 rounds carried in two revolvers holding 6 rounds each. the rotation speed reaches the fair speed of 36°/sec. the main gun is paired with a 20mm F1 auto-cannon which allows the vehicle to deal with lighter targets and some heaviest with the APDS. the turret includes a 2nd generation Day/Night sight for both commander and gunner, laser-rangefinder, ballistic computer, and commander’s priority control which make this turret quite advanced compared to others.
Mobility
the Shark is powered by a General Motors Detroit Diesel 8V-71 T developing 530 hp at 2500 rpm. this was intended to give a power weight of 25 hp/ton at the weight of 21 tonnes. the shark is designed to offer a high speed on rought terrain with a top speed of 80 km/h off-road and cimb very sharp slope of 70% angle. that means that the Shark was capable of hunting his target on any terrain. the Allison automatic box model HT-750 DRD off a 5 forward speed and 1 backward. it is coupled with an auxiliary two-speed transfer box and four self-locking differentials that can be coupled, two to two or all four, pneumatically by the driver depending on the terrain conditions or driving needs. the center of gravity with a 5-tonne turret was carefully studied to be placed at exactly 1.25m from the ground right between the 2nd and 3rd axes, which is the center of the vehicle. each wheel has an independent suspension. the two middle axes aren’t steerable; their suspension is built with shock absorbers and their wheels are mounted on oscillaing arms connected to a torsion bar. the first and last are steerable and hydraulically assisted. they have suspension by wishbone, oversized helical spring, and hydraulic damper. the prototype was fitting Michelin 13.00 x 20 tubeless tires
Protection
The protection of the Shark was intended to allow it to be used fairly close to the battlefield. but retaining a good weight which was carefully studied to give a perfect balance on the vehicle. the armour was offering a protectiong against 14.5mm KPV armour piercing round or 155mm HE round at 10m on all sides. the armor was built with high-resistance armor plates and sloped on all sides to improve protection while retainign a lightweight. this makes the chassis have protection similar to the Italian Centuro B1 (without add-on armor). this makes this vehicle have protection similar to a light tank exept certain tanks like the Russian BMP have rather terrible armor. in the case of the FL-20 turret being mounted, the crew includes 3 men and 2 of them are in the turret. the turret is also built with the same specification as the chassis and also with HHRhA which makes the protection at the same level. the turret includes 8 smoke launchers who are are placed on the side but a bit on the rear.
- This fallowing armour thickness is estimated based on the protection effiency reported and knowing the armor has been made of HHRhA
https://i.imgur.com/DcCccAF.png
Sources
El MOWAG SHARK 8x8, un tiburón de dientes agudos - Noticias Defensa Ayer Noticia
MOWAG Shark | Secret Projects Forum
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