The public has not yet recovered from the shock of the "double knockout" from the Ministry of Defense of Russia - after reports of the possibility of creating a joint venture in the Russian Federation for the assembly of Italian combat vehicles Centauro / Freccia, as well as after the statement by the chief of general staff, General Makarov that Russia could buy Finnish APC Patria, after evaluation tests.
So - the words of the general were confirmed by the President of Finland himself. And we are talking about the purchase of a batch of as many as 500 cars!
Here's a quick translation of the Finnish original:
"Russia is interested in signing a contract for the purchase of 500 mortar (AMOS or NEMO) Patria combat vehicles," President Sauli Niinistö told MTV3 news.
Russian commander Nikolai Makarov has sparked outrage by visiting Finland to warn NATO, but President Niinistö says the general’s visit was different.
- It looks like he will be interested in buying weapons. Finland received a letter asking about the purchase of five hundred units of combat vehicles, Niinistö said today on a train en route to St. Petersburg.
The President noted that there is still a lot to be clarified in the project before the deal.
- First, Patria will discuss with the Russians the economic feasibility of the deal. She is awaiting prior government approval. Then the actual discussions, if any, will begin.”
And it is also worth adding "Polish rumors" (from the Polish media) a year ago:
Rosja rezygnuje z BTR-90 RAPORT WTO 11/2011 s.74 napisał (a):
Armia FR poszukuje już transporterów opancerzonych za granicą. Pierwsza partia importowa ma sięgać 200 pojazdów. Rosjanie najbardziej zaawansowane rozmowy toczą z fińska Patrią. Chcieliby wraz transporterami (pisownia oryginalna…) AMV (…) uzyskać technologię ich wytwarzania.
They say that Russia wants to buy 200 combat vehicles (as we see, the number has only increased since then) and negotiations have advanced with AMV. In addition to the purchase, technologies are transferred.
That is, we are no longer talking about the CAO directly, we are talking about a wheeled platform in general, whatever it is: an armored personnel carrier, a wheeled infantry fighting vehicle, a tank destroyer, etc.
Well, what else is there to add? Let's take a look at the pros and cons.
Firstly, the Patria AMV is a truly modern combat vehicle with excellent characteristics. She even knows how to swim (albeit in the lightest version with a reduced level of protection). It is not for nothing that the Americans regard Patria as a promising US Marine Corps armored personnel carrier. Lip no fool.
Secondly, along with the chassis, they are going to buy the fighting compartments of the AMOS system (and at least NEMO is essentially a single-barreled AMOS). This is a very powerful weapon, with a high destructive force of a double-barreled 120mm mortar, firing up to 16-12 minutes per minute. Digital OMS with satellite navigation and electronic terrain map provide high accuracy. Tricky functions like MRSI or "flurry of fire", when all the mines in the queue fall on the target at the same time, further adorn the car.
Thirdly, Finland has a long history of commercial, industrial and military-technical relations with the USSR-RF. True, if we bought unarmed ships (remember at least the famous Mir bathyscaphes and the hulls of the Vaigach and Taimyr icebreakers), then they already bought the weapons. Until now, the Finnish army has a "heavy Soviet legacy": T-55, BMP-2, MT-LB, D-30, Gvozdiki, PKM, SVD.. Even their submachine guns go back to the Finnish purchase of a license for AK.
Well, the disadvantages … Of course, it's a shame for the state !. The arms exporting country suddenly became an importer. The glorious history of Russian combatants has been given up. Rejection of the BTR-90, now this … But the average price for one AMV is $ 2 million, a total of 500 cars will cost about a billion dollars …
And if we consider another aspect - how does this compare with "unified combat platforms"? After all, the word unification was used for a reason, we are talking about unification not only within a family, but also as a cross-cutting unification of different families. So, the engine for most platforms is supposed to be from one, again unified, family of turbodiesels of the Yaroslavl Motor Plant. The same combat modules from KBP and KB Burevestnik can just as easily be rearranged from one platform to another. The same is with the rest of the units and elements.
There is no need to remind what positive effect this has on the operation of all platforms.
But the purchase of a foreign car that automatically "knocks out" the middle wheel platform "Boomerang" puts an end to the entire program of unified platforms. What kind of unification can we talk about if the car is made to NATO standards?
That is, on the one hand, they talk pompously about "platforms" - and on the other hand, they buy imports, thereby disavowing the idea of unification. Such is the "split consciousness".
P. S. By the way, an image of a computer model of an unknown combat vehicle, supposedly the Boomerang platform, has appeared on the network (more precisely, in the blog of Aleksey Khlopotov). The truth is that this is the "Boomerang" big doubts, most likely it is still an armored personnel carrier "Sleeve". The great similarity with the BTR-90 "Rostok", down to some borrowed details, indicate this. Presumably (more precisely, according to rumors) "Boomerang" is still noticeably different from previous domestic cars, and will be much more "high-tech".
