Defense Minister Ehud Barak allowed the Merkava-4 tank to be declassified and displayed at the Eurosatori 2010 tenth international exhibition of arms and military equipment of the ground forces and air defense systems opened in Paris. This exhibition is considered one of the most prestigious and important in the international market for modern weapons, according to ZMAN.com.
The main reason for this decision of the Minister of Defense is the search for strategic partners for the further modernization of the tank.
Until now, the project to create a tank "Merkava-4" was considered one of the most secret in Israel. But a high-ranking official of the Ministry of Defense said that in the case of an acceptable proposal for the purchase of a new tank, it will be considered positively.
“Israel is ready for a deal with a strategic partner that will further modernize the best tank in the world,” he said.
The design of the tank, which received the designation "Merkava" (Divine Chariot), began in 1967. The designation was used as a temporary name for the project, which was later assigned to the tank. The first prototype was built in 1974. In May 1977, the development of a new tank was announced. The production of 40 pre-production vehicles was planned, the first of which were delivered to the 7th armored brigade, in 1979. The first use in combat was carried out in the summer of 1982.
The Merkava 4 is the most advanced modification of the Israeli main battle tank. In terms of its qualities, it is not similar to the three previous modifications of the "Merkava" series. Improvements have been made to the Merkava-4 tank, making it, on the one hand, more deadly, and on the other, more reliable for its crew. The tank is equipped with modern protection to prevent the penetration of shells and anti-tank missiles into the tank turret and into the fighting compartment where the crew members are sitting. The soldiers are protected by sensors that must detect in advance the launch of anti-tank missiles, including those with laser guidance.
The Merkava-4 is one of the first in the world capable of firing guided projectiles. Projectiles are fired through a tank barrel, but can, like missiles, change the direction of flight in the air. The target detection and fire control system allows you to detect long-range targets and "close" a 120 mm cannon to them. Thus, the tank can continue to move at speed, while the cannon remains "locked" on the target until fired. In addition to this, the fire control system allows soldiers to receive information from helicopters and UAVs, which significantly expands the target detection range.
