Paramount Group Machine Families
The South African company Paramount Group has firmly established itself in the competitive wheeled armored combat vehicles (AFV) market over the past few years.
This success is based not only on export deliveries, but also on the development of machines at our own expense in order to obtain a line of ready-to-sell products with good adaptability, rather than designed for a specific customer.
The company's vehicles are currently in service with Azerbaijan and several other countries, including Congo and Gabon. The company also announces strategic agreements with a number of other countries and further expansion of the sales market, but does not disclose where these customers are located.
Patrol version of the Marauder Patrol from the South African company Paramount Group
The newest vehicle in this growing family is the Marauder Patrol, first shown in September 2012. Designed and manufactured at Paramount's Midrand Land Systems plant, the project is targeted at the low-end rugged vehicle market. The first Marauder Patrol vehicles are based on the Toyota Land Cruiser chassis, but can also be manufactured on the Nissan Patrol platform.
At the moment, two cars have been made (photo above), one in a four-door pickup configuration, the second belongs to the class of "off-road vehicles" (English term SUV - Sport Utility Vehicle) with a protected crew compartment extended to the entire stern. Both vehicles are mainly intended for internal security tasks, but their compact size expands the possibilities of their combat use in urban environments.
The pickup version has a total weight of 3.5 tons (including a payload of 550 kg) with a central crew capsule with basic STANAG 4569 Level 1 protection. The cargo compartment has no protection, unlike the engine compartment, which has some initial protection level.
The SUV variant has a total weight of 4.8 tons, but can carry up to 9 people, four more than the patrol variant.
Standard production vehicles will have a 128 kW (172 hp) four-wheel drive turbo diesel engine plus a five-speed manual transmission. This is enough to reach a top speed of 120 km / h and have a cruising range of up to 800 km. The air conditioning system is installed as standard.
Customers can also specify the number of transmission gears, the level of protection, and rooftop weapon options. According to Paramount, the booking kit, for example, can be upgraded to STANAG 4569 Level 2 without degrading vehicle performance.
Paramount has yet to receive orders for the Patrol variant, but a spokesman said that once the contract was signed, the company could deliver the vehicles in four to six months.
The new patrol variant expands the company's product line and joins the earlier Matador and Marauder MPV (Mine Protected Vehicle) variants. Along with the assembly on the territory of South Africa, these machines are also being assembled in Azerbaijan in accordance with the contract issued by the Ministry of Defense of this country in 2009.
In accordance with the agreement, an initial batch of 30 MPVs, 15 Matador and 15 Marauder machines was produced under license at a plant in Baku. The local Department of Defense was responsible for the final assembly, and Paramount supplied the major subsystems such as the hull, power pack, suspension and wheel drive.
In mid-2011, the Ministry of Defense issued a second order for 60 vehicles, again divided equally into these two options, their deliveries are expected at the end of 2013. The share of locally produced components in cars grows with each batch.
Marauder 4x4 MPV with a 20 mm Valor single tower layout installed
In September 2012, the South African company Comenius also showed a prototype of its Valor 20 single-seat turret in a Marauder.
Paramount, meanwhile, has confirmed that it has begun manufacturing thirty of its largest machines for its first customer, the well-protected Mbombe 6x6. Negotiations are underway with at least two potential buyers who can purchase a total of 150 vehicles. However, as usual, the company refused to name these customers.
The first Mbombe vehicle in the BMP version was shown in 2010 with a locally developed single turret armed with the widespread Russian 30mm 2A42 cannon and a coaxial 7.62mm machine gun (photo above).
In this configuration, the Mbombe typically has a crew commander, gunner, and driver plus room for eight paratroopers seated facing each other in explosion-proof aft seats.
At the initial display, the Mbombe vehicle had a declared total weight of 27 tons, the base weight was 16 tons and 11 tons were allocated for weapons systems, booking, crew and equipment. However, in the process of refinement (including an increase in the height of the vehicle), the total weight was 24 tons with the same base weight of 16 tons.
Mbombe variant designated Vesuvius
Paramount has also developed a variant of the Mbombe, a tank destroyer named Vesuvius. It has a fully stabilized weapon platform jointly developed by Paramount, Denel Dynamics and Reunert Defense Logistics and is armed with four Ingwe laser-guided ATGMs from Denel Dynamics.
A 12, 7-mm machine gun with a ready-made ammunition load of 100 rounds is installed between two launchers directly above the day / night optoelectronic monitoring system of the entire set of weapons. The latter also includes an automatic target tracking station. The tower can be rotated 360 degrees with elevation angles from -10 to +35 degrees.
Tested in real combat conditions, the Ingwe missile is equipped with a nose lead fuse, which activates the ERA on the tank, and thus allows the main HEAT HEAT warhead to penetrate the main armor. According to Denel Dynamics, the HEAT warhead of the Ingwe missile can penetrate up to 1,000 mm of conventional steel armor.
Maverick ISV Machine
The latest member of the company's current product line is the Maverick ISV (Internal Security Vehicle). It was first shown in 2008 and is currently in service with its first customer, Gabon, which received 10 vehicles in early 2012 for operation during the African Cup of Nations football tournament. Another customer (again unknown) also ordered this car.
Like the Matador, Marauder MPV and Mbombe machines, the Maverick ISV has a double monocoque welded steel hull that provides STANAG 4569 Level 3 protection.
Standard equipment includes an air conditioning system and an auxiliary power unit, a set of resilient wheels and a central wheel inflation system, as well as fire detection and extinguishing systems. In addition, a dozer blade and front fenders can be installed to clear obstacles, and a public address system is common on an ISV mission vehicle.
While the base Maverick typically has a crew of two (commander and driver) and accommodates ten paratroopers, this vehicle can be modified for other tasks, such as a command post with advanced communications, video surveillance and flat panel displays.
The newest version of the Mbombe 6x6 is equipped with a turret armed with four Denel Dynamics Ingwe ATGMs with laser guidance and a 12, 7-mm machine gun
Matador
