As you know, a number of the latest Russian-designed armored combat vehicles - including the T-14 Armata main tank - are equipped with the latest Afghanit active protection system or its individual elements. Armored vehicles of older models may also need similar means of enhancing protection, but not in all cases the newest complex should be used. Moreover, complexes of the Arena family have already been created for use on tanks and other combat vehicles of existing types.
In the distant past, some domestic tanks were equipped with active protection systems, but later they were abandoned. Later, the opinion of the military changed, and in the technical specifications for promising models of armored vehicles, a clause on the use of KAZ appeared again. According to some reports, discussions are continuing on the introduction of such means of protection in existing projects of armored vehicles. At the same time, the industry will not have to create completely new complexes, since it is already able to offer ready-made samples.
Tank T-80U with the "Arena" complex of the first version. A characteristic radar unit is installed on the roof of the tower, and launchers for protective ammunition are installed on the forehead and cheekbones. Photo KBM / kbm.ru
We are talking about the active protection complexes of the "Arena" family, offered by the Kolomna Machine-Building Design Bureau. Starting in the eighties, working within this family, KBM has created three options for the protection of armored vehicles. Initially, the KAZ was developed for the Soviet / Russian ground forces. Later, due to the lack of orders from his army, the developer tried to find foreign customers. Several years ago, the first demonstration of the improved "Arena" took place, capable of solving basic problems, but at the same time devoid of the characteristic shortcomings of its predecessors.
We would like to remind you that all Arena vehicles are built according to a similar principle. The complex includes a special radar station to search for potentially dangerous objects flying up to the tank, control equipment, a set of launchers for protective ammunition and the actual ammunition. During operation, the radar of the complex continuously monitors the situation around its carrier within a radius of 50 m. When an object is detected approaching an armored vehicle at a certain speed, a command is issued to shoot protective ammunition. He leaves the launcher and is blown up, covering the threatening object with a large number of fragments.
The composition of the "Arena" of the very first version included devices that gave the host machine a recognizable appearance. On the roof of the tower, it was proposed to mount a radar in a characteristic multifaceted casing, and oblique launchers of protective ammunition, which had a simple box-shaped shape, should be mounted along the perimeter of the dome. The control systems of the complex were proposed to be installed in the fighting compartment of the tank, under the protection of armor.
The first version of the "Arena" assembly weighed up to 1, 3 tons and could include at least 22 launchers with their own ammunition on each. When installed on existing domestically produced tanks, the complex could cover a sector up to 270 ° wide. Targets flying at a speed of 70 to 700 m / h were detected at a distance of 50 m. The reaction time was only 0.07 s. Protection was provided against anti-tank rocket grenades, guided missiles and some types of artillery shells. However, such a KAZ was not devoid of serious shortcomings. First of all, a directed stream of fragments from a protective ammunition threatened people and equipment within a radius of 20-30 m.
Another major drawback was associated with the design of the radar. Its antenna had insufficient combat survivability. A large block on the roof of the tower, which received the disrespectful nickname "birdhouse", did not have serious protection, and therefore even small damage to it could become a real blow to the survivability of the tank as a whole.
Due to the lack of an order for the "Arena" from the Russian army, KBM was forced to bring its development to the international market. The export modification of such a KAZ, called "Arena-E", attracted the attention of visitors to various military-technical events, but could not become the subject of a contract. Apparently, this was due precisely to the not very successful layout of the radar station and the risks associated with it.
The tower of the tank with the "Arena", a view from a different angle. Photo of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
However, at the turn of the last decades, the situation has changed. Seeing the problems of the complex in its current form, the authors of the project developed a new modification of it. The principles of operation of the revised KAZ have not changed, however, a completely new layout was used. Instead of one large casing with radar equipment, it was proposed to use several compact devices that track different directions. They also changed the design of the launchers. Previously, there was a "belt" of installations along the perimeter of the tower, but in the new project they are combined into several compact blocks.
For the first time, a new version of the KAZ "Arena-E" with an optimized layout of the units was presented in 2012 at the exhibition "Technologies in Mechanical Engineering". At the stand of the Instrument-Making Design Bureau, there was a mock-up of the main T-90 tank equipped with dynamic and active protection. At the same time, instead of the usual large and noticeable devices, it had a larger number of blocks of a new type.
The layout clearly demonstrated that in the new project, one large radar in a characteristic casing can be divided into several separate elements with similar functions. Each of them is placed in a small-sized casing, and all of them are installed on the tower dome with expansion in different directions. Due to this, the overall dimensions and, as a consequence, the likelihood of being hit by fire or shrapnel are reduced, but the radar retains the ability to track the situation in almost all directions.
Instead of the "belt" from the launchers, the mock-up of the tank received other means of shooting protective ammunition. Relatively compact box-shaped launchers appeared on the sides and aft of the turret. Each of these devices contained three dummies of protective ammunition with their inclined arrangement. Two onboard installations were supposed to ensure the launch of ammunition into the front hemisphere, two aft ones - to the sides and back relative to the axis of the tower.
The redesigned launchers had obvious advantages over the basic design, which were demonstrated right on the mock-up. Having collected several ammunition in one installation, the designers were able to free up space in the frontal part of the turret, which was used for the installation of reactive armor. Thus, the tank not only received active protection, but also retained the full-fledged means of enhancing the tower's armor, provided for in the original project.
Subsequently, the mock-up of the T-90 tank with the modernized Arena-E KAZ was repeatedly demonstrated at new exhibitions. In addition, from a certain time at military-technical events, they began to show a full-fledged experimental tank equipped with new active protection. At the same time, before being installed on an armored vehicle of the T-90 type, the complex underwent further changes. The main provisions of the updated project remained the same, but new layout solutions were used again.
A mock-up of a tank with a revised Arena-E KAZ. Photo Gurkhan.blogspot.com
For the first time, a full-fledged T-90 tank with an experimental Arena-E complex in a modernized version was shown at the Russian Arms Expo 2013 in Nizhny Tagil. As well as on the model, separate blocks of the radar station were located along the perimeter of the tower, capable of providing an almost all-round view of the terrain. Four launchers were also retained, each with several defensive ammunition. At the same time, their location has changed, and in addition, new casings have appeared, covering part of the elements of the complex.
Four launchers with several ammunition on each were now proposed to be mounted on the sides of the tower in pairs, at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle. The front installations were located with a turn forward and to the sides, the rear ones - back and to the sides. Due to this, it was possible to shoot ammunition in any direction, both "from the spot" and with a preliminary turn of the tower.
According to the information of 2013, the updated version of the Arena-E KAZ, despite the radical change in the layout, retained all the main characteristics of the predecessor complexes. The radar, divided into blocks, provided threat detection at a range of up to 50 m. Due to the short reaction time, a target with a speed of 70-700 m / s could be destroyed at ranges of less than 20-30 m from the tank. Despite the new placement of protective ammunition, the possibility of two consecutive launchers in the same sector was guaranteed.
Subsequently, the T-90 tank with an updated active protection system several times became an exhibit of various military-technical exhibitions. As far as can be judged from the available data, during this period the complex did not undergo radical changes and, as a result, the appearance of the elements installed outside the tower remained the same.
Later, information appeared about the possible carriers of the updated KAZ. In particular, it was argued that in the event of a corresponding order, "Arena-E" could be mounted not only on T-90 tanks, but also on modernized T-72B3 tanks. However, the potential customer in the person of the Russian military department has not yet taken advantage of this offer.
In January last year, there were new reports on the progress of work within the Arena family. It became known about the existence of a new KAZ, which received the designation "Arena-M". As the management of KBM reported, at that time the new complex was undergoing the necessary tests. Also, the official representative of the developer organization raised the topic of the level of protection. It was argued that the data available to designers make it possible to see in the "Arena-M" an effective means of protection against American TOW anti-tank missiles.
Exhibition model T-90 with the newly modernized Arena-E complex. Photo Mark Nicht / Otvaga2004.mybb.ru
It should be noted that this was hardly the only mention of the Arena-M project in open sources. In the future, new messages about this version of the complex did not appear. And since the management of KBM did not disclose technical details, limiting itself to the most general information, while the project with the letter "M" remains a real mystery.
To date, a curious situation has developed in the field of domestic active protection systems for armored combat vehicles. From the end of the eighties to the present time, three KAZs of the "Arena" family were created. All of them are based on the same ideas, and are also similar in terms of operating principles and are partially unified in terms of components. According to information from the development organization, such complexes can be used on any tanks in service with the Russian army. It is also possible to use the complexes on infantry fighting vehicles or, after some refinement, on other equipment.
However, despite all the progress in this area, the Arena line systems were not put into series, were not purchased by the Russian army and are not used on domestic combat vehicles. Over the past few decades, the reasons for the refusal to purchase domestic KAZ have been repeatedly named. First of all, the army was hampered by financial problems. In addition, the survivability of the outside radar left much to be desired. Also, the command was not satisfied with the risks for the infantry accompanying the tanks.
As the events of recent years show, the army has nevertheless changed its attitude towards active defense complexes. New samples of armored vehicles were developed, and especially for them, the industry created promising KAZ. According to known data, the newest complex "Afganit" includes a large number of various means, due to which it is possible to change the configuration of the protection of the combat vehicle. On one technique, all components should be installed, while on the other it is proposed to use the complex in a reduced composition.
As far as we know, KAZ "Afganit" is intended only for new types of vehicles built on the platforms "Armata", "Kurganets-25", etc. Tanks of the T-72, T-80 or T-90 families, most likely, will not receive such equipment. At the same time, the existing equipment will have to remain in service, for which it will undergo modernization. Actual projects for updating armored vehicles, currently being implemented or planned for the near future, do not provide for equipping tanks with active protection complexes. Combat vehicles will have to rely on their own armor, reactive armor of modern types and hinged screens of one kind or another.
The technical requirements for modernized and completely new tanks for the Russian army are somewhat different: the command believes that the updated equipment can do without active protection. This circumstance can lead to pessimistic conclusions. Apparently, domestic developments of the Arena family will never be able to reach mass production and operation in the army. However, if the army changes its mind and intends to strengthen the protection of the "old" armored combat vehicles, then the industry will be able to offer a solution to this issue in the shortest possible time, without wasting time designing new systems.
