One of the most interesting domestic developments of military equipment of recent times is the promising Typhoon-VDV armored vehicle. This armored vehicle is created specifically for the airborne troops and in accordance with their requirements. To date, the combat vehicle has entered trials, including with the use of new types of weapons. Until recently, the amount of information available about the project left much to be desired. A few days ago, new information about promising development appeared in the public domain.
New information about the Typhoon-VDV armored car appeared thanks to the latest publications of the blog of the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, as well as the business electronic newspaper of Tatarstan "Business-Online". In their latest articles, some details of the development and technical appearance of promising technology are mentioned. In addition, other information is provided about the new development, its prospects, etc. The published data make it possible to significantly update the existing picture and supplement it with new details.
General view of the K4386 Typhoon-VDV armored car. Photo Bmpd.livejournal.com
It is reported that the Typhoon-VDV armored car received the designation K4386. Earlier, armored cars from Naberezhnye Chelny had in their designations the name of the automobile plant "KamAZ", but now it is being replaced by a single letter "K". It is assumed that such a change in designation is due to the desire of the Kama Automobile Plant to distance itself from military projects. In addition, in fact, work on the new project is being carried out by the Plant of Special Vehicles, which is directly related to the subsidiary of KamAZ, OJSC Remdizel.
The development of a new project of an armored car for the Airborne Forces began at the end of last year and was completed in record time. In November 2015, the customer and the contractor signed a contract to create a promising machine, and just five months later, the first prototype was released for testing. The project had special requirements directly related to the intended operation of the equipment. So, it was necessary to ensure the possibility of parachute landing, as well as provide for protection against small arms and mines. In addition, requirements were made regarding the comfort of the crew and the landing force.
Some technical details of the project have become known. The promising K4386 Typhoon-VDV armored car, unlike the previous vehicles of its family, is not equipped with a frame for installing the main units. In connection with the requirements regarding the possibility of landing, it was decided to use a carrying armored body with the installation of all units on its mounts. Among other things, this architecture made it possible to achieve a noticeable weight reduction: the Typhoon-VDV is about 2 tons lighter than the K53949 two-axle armored car.
The first known image of an armored car with a promising combat module. Photo Otvaga2004.mybb.ru
The armored hull is built according to the bonnet layout and has a common habitable compartment, which unites the command and control compartments. The level of protection of the reservation was not specified. Judging by individual references by officials, we are talking about the fifth class of protection according to domestic standards. This will provide protection against most types of small arms used by a conventional enemy. Measures have also been taken to improve the protection against explosive devices. In the corresponding openings of the hull, armored glasses of the required shapes and sizes are installed, allowing you to observe the road and the surrounding area without the risk of injury.
The already developed shape of the body is used, modified in accordance with the application of the supporting structure. To protect the engine, a faceted hood with a front radiator grill is used. The side of the engine is protected by inclined armor plates, with which the wheel arches are connected. The project provides for a habitable compartment with a complex hull. Its front part is distinguished by side compartments with door openings, while the central and aft ones have large niches for mounting wheel arches and fuel tanks. Above the tanks and arches, respectively, niches are placed that are available for placing certain units, including for transporting a payload. In the aft part of these niches, there are volumes for additional cargo. The aft cargo compartments extend beyond the armored hull, forming a corridor for the landing of troops.
A diesel engine with a capacity of 350 hp is placed under the protected hood of the hull. According to the latest data, a Cummins engine manufactured under license in Russia is used as the basis of the power plant. A two-axle all-wheel drive chassis is used. The existing engine allows an 11-ton armored vehicle to reach speeds of up to 105 km / h and cover up to 1200 km at one refueling.
The armored car is being tested. Photo Bmpd.livejournal.com
Existing samples of the Typhoon-VDV armored car are equipped with a set of hatches and doors for embarkation and disembarkation. The front workplaces of the habitable compartment, intended for the driver and commander, have their own side doors of the automobile type. The troop compartment is equipped with a single stern door that opens to the left in the direction of travel. Coming out of the door, the paratrooper remains under the protection of the onboard units, after which he can descend to the ground. There is a hatch in the aft part of the roof.
The volumes of the habitable compartment behind the driver's and commander's seats are given for the placement of weapons and troops. A combat module support device is installed in the central part of the vehicle. It is a complex-shaped structure that occupies the space from the floor to the ceiling of the compartment. There are hatches on the casing of the unit for access to the indoor units. In addition, a screen and a combat module control panel are installed on it.
A vertical support inside the hull is used to install a promising combat module. A remotely controlled combat module with cannon and machine gun armament is installed on the K4386 armored vehicles as a weapon system. From the available data, it follows that this is a combat module presented by the Central Research Institute "Petrel" at the recent forum "Army-2016". A swinging installation with a 30-mm automatic cannon is placed inside the body of a characteristic polygonal shape. The coaxial machine gun is placed in a separate casing, hinged on the left side of the module. Also, the combat module is equipped with smoke grenade launchers and a block of optical-electronic equipment.
Places for paratroopers are located behind the support of the combat module. In connection with the requirement to increase the level of protection, the troop compartment of the armored car is equipped with seats that absorb part of the explosion energy under the wheel or the bottom of the hull. The driver and commander should be seated in similar seats. An interesting innovation in the troop compartment is the device for attaching the personal weapons of the fighters. Between the landing seats, special mounts are placed on which machine guns of existing models should be transported. The design of the mounts provides a secure hold of the weapon under various circumstances.
A combat module with a 30-mm cannon, presented at the Army-2016 forum. Photo Defense.ru
According to reports, by the middle of this year, the Special Vehicles Plant has built the first prototype of a promising armored vehicle. Later, new prototypes appeared. Due to the lack of ready-made combat modules, the initially experienced Typhoons-Airborne Forces were equipped with complex-shaped units that performed the functions of weight simulators. In mid-August, photographs appeared showing experimental equipment with standard weapons systems. Already in early June, the experienced equipment was shown to the command of the airborne troops.
As follows from recent publications, the general appearance of a promising armored car for the Airborne Forces has already been formed and is unlikely to undergo major changes. Nevertheless, the project is still being finalized and improved. Some adjustments should be made based on the test results, others - due to the need to change the configuration. Localization of production is of particular importance. It is reported that in the case of experienced equipment, the level of localization has reached 50% in value. At the same time, the level of localization of various aggregates is different. For example, for "mine" seats, this parameter is declared at the level of 80%. When starting serial production, it is planned to increase the overall degree of localization to 70-80% by mastering the production of some new units and replacing certain foreign-made products.
In the context of the localization of production, the Business-Online edition quotes the words of the automotive journalist Alexander Privalov. He notes that the foreign engine was not created to meet the requirements of the Russian Ministry of Defense, and also doubts that 100% localization was achieved in its production. However, this issue can be resolved. Suspension problems are also present. In the previous project K53949 "Typhoonok", an attempt was made to use Dutch-made units due to the absence of domestic ones. The Kama Automobile Plant has already begun work on hydropneumatic suspensions. In addition, KamAZ proposes to start developing automatic manual transmissions. Previously, domestic enterprises did not deal with these topics. “But in the end, we still realized that we would have to do it ourselves, that not a single bourgeois on a silver platter would bring a ready-made solution,” concludes A. Privalov.
View of the aft door, troop compartment and combat module support. Photo Bmpd.livejournal.com
In parallel with the increase in the degree of localization, the authors of the project will have to carry out all the necessary tests of the equipment. The first checks reportedly took place in the spring of this year, shortly after the completion of the assembly of the first prototype. Further, it was planned to conduct new stages of testing. So, in September, they had to undergo pile tests, the purpose of which was to check the machine when dropped from a certain height. With the help of such procedures, the possibility of landing with a parachute without damaging the structure is confirmed. In the future, after the completion of factory tests, state tests will begin. The timing of their launch has not yet been specified.
Assumptions are made about the future fate of the new technology. Sufficiently high characteristics and the possibility of landing with the use of parachute systems makes the K4386 Typhoon-VDV armored car a good combat vehicle for the airborne troops. As a result, after the completion of state tests, an order may appear for the supply of a large number of serial equipment, which will be distributed among a significant number of airborne units.
In its current form, the Typhoon-VDV armored car is a wheeled combat vehicle capable of transporting fighters with weapons, as well as supporting them with cannon and machine gun fire. At the same time, there is reason to believe that in the future, on the basis of the K4386 project, new versions of armored vehicles for the airborne troops can be created. The characteristics and architecture of the armored car allow you to build command and ambulance vehicles, as well as equipment with combat modules of various types, carrying a variety of weapons.
The most important feature of the Typhoon-VDV project, which should be noted, is the development by order of the airborne troops and in accordance with their requirements. Thanks to this, the design of the armored car was adapted to the intended application. In addition, the use of some ready-made ideas and solutions simplified both the development and future production of new equipment.
Commander of the Airborne Forces, Colonel-General V. Shamanov, while familiarizing himself with the newest armored car, June 2, 2016. Photo by Military-informant.com
The latest project of the K4386 Typhoon-VDV armored car was created as part of the ongoing army rearmament program. Earlier, the command of the airborne forces has repeatedly noted that the rearmament of this type of armed forces will be completed in 2018. In addition, last year, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced plans to increase the combat capability of the Airborne Forces and their modernization as a rapid reaction force. In order to increase the combat potential of the troops, serial production of several types of armored vehicles has already begun. As recent events show, the range of new weapons and equipment for the airborne troops will soon be replenished with promising models.
Currently, the basis of the fleet of military equipment of the Airborne Forces is made up of armored vehicles of old types, primarily airborne combat vehicles of the first and second models, as well as armored personnel carriers. The recently begun deliveries of new BMD-4M and BTR-MDM to a certain extent influenced the situation, but the amount of equipment built so far does not allow to radically change the existing state of affairs. The appearance of wheeled combat vehicles with cannon and machine-gun armament can affect the general condition of the fleet, ensuring a higher rate of rearmament.
The program of rearmament of the armed forces in general and the airborne forces in particular continues. To increase the combat capabilities of troops, a large number of new projects of equipment and weapons are being created. In the foreseeable future, the K4386 Typhoon-VDV armored car will have to become the new equipment of the Russian army. In the near future, he must pass all the necessary tests, after which the issue of adopting the equipment for service will be considered. In the meantime, the specialists of the developer organization and the customer need to focus on checking and fine-tuning a promising model.
