Merkava IV unveiled today

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

Actually, the Merkava mk 4 is a little bit larger then the previous one.

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

Some more high-quality pics. Enjoy them.

http://web.referent.ru:2003/nvk/forum/files/Bob/Merkava-4.1.jpg

http://web.referent.ru:2003/nvk/forum/files/Bob/Merkava-4.2.jpg

http://web.referent.ru:2003/nvk/forum/files/Bob/Merkava-4.3.jpg

Shalom,

Jonathan

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

The engine is indeed still in the front, as you can read in the links I provided. I don’t know if they shortened the tank though, it could be that because it’s higher, it looks shorter.

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

The MerkavaIV looks more compact than earlier merkavas. Is the engine still in the front? The front part of the tank looks shorter. Could be that its taller which would make it look shorter.

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

There ‘s nothing really new in this so call Merkava 4-basicly it a revamped version of their not so succesfull Merkava 3 BAZ.note that the suspension,side armour and back are very similar to the previous generation Merkava.But of course the shapely top and side turret armour were designed to defeat stuffs like the top attack BILL.

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

Two more photos, from the IDF’s official website.

both captions read : ” The Merkava Mk.4 tank was today presented to the public at a ceremony attended by Defence Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, IDF Chief-of-Staff Lieutenant General Shaul Mofaz, Commander of IDF Logistics, General Udi Adam, Commander of IDF Ground Forces, General Iftah Ron-Tal, and the mastermind behind the Merkava, Reserve General Israel Tal. The tank is among the most advanced in the world and was developed in Israel.”

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U.N. Representative: So, Mr. Evil –
Dr. Evil: It’s Dr. Evil, I didn’t spend six years in Evil Medical School to be called “mister,” thank you very much.

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RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 27-06-02 AT 05:22 AM (GMT)]Actually it is the other way around.
Shaped charge warhead work by focusing the blast of HE into a beam like torch which is enhanced by having a liner of metal which give the torch more substance. This torch is of course disipated and weakened if the projectile was spinning at high speed when it detonated. HEAT rounds prefer smoothbore guns. The only gun round that likes to be spun… in fact needs to be spun is the British HESH or High Explosive Squash Head. This is like a big soft round of HE with the fuse in the tail. When it hits a target it splats out flat like putty. The tail mounted fuse means it detonates when the tail hits. This huge surface area of explosive on the surface of armour creates shockwaves that will travel through any thickness of armour and destroy the tank by the shockwaves flakeing off armour on the inside of the tank which travels at high speed and kills crew and sets of ammo. Of course the simplist defence for this type of round is to use spaced armour. Shockwaves travel very well through metal and solid materials but are greatly weakened by having to travel through empty space. During the Gulf War the Armour of the British Warrior was hearalded as impressive when one was accidently struck by a 120mm HESH round. (It wasn’t just the US making errors.).
Of course what really save the Warrior was the addon spaced armour that was light and easy to fit to an MICV let alone a tank.
For secondary use against bunkers or buildings HESH is excellent.
Against tanks with spaced armour and anti spall liners (spall is what the flaking armour is called) it is not that useful.
The British stick with Rifled guns for the HESH round.
The APFSDS rounds used in most guns while they penetrate less armour than HEAT rounds are more accurate in that they have a very high velocity and very low drag. (HEAT travels at about 900-1,000 metres per second, they are usually the full bore of the gun as the width of a HEAT is a major determining factor in its armour penetration capability, and weight 15-20kgs. APFSDS rounds are generally about 40mm in calibre, travel at up to 1,800metres per second and weight 7-12kgs.)

Regarding Smoothbore guns:Disadvantages: They can be less accurate, they are not effective for firing HESH rounds.
Advantages: They are shorter and lighter than an equivelent rifled gun. For the same barrel length they have higher muzzle velocities than rifled guns. They can fire HEAT rounds without slip rings.

Rifled guns: Disadvantages: Can’t fire standard HEAT rounds. Have lower velocity and are heavier than equivelent smoothbore.

Advantages: more accurate.

Longer heavier guns reduce speed of aiming and elevating the gun. They increase the trunnion forces in the turret which need to be balanced.

There is not a problem with guided munitions. The Russians have developed guided ATGMs that can be launched from all of the guns of their tank fleet and towed anti tank guns. This means they have missiles that can fire from 100mm rifled gun of the T-55, the different 100mm rifled gun of the BMP-3, the Russian towed 100mm anti tank gun which is a smoothbore, the 115mm smoothbore gun of the T-62, and the 125mm smoothbore guns of the T-64/-72/-80/-90.
The west has the copperhead round which is also fired from a rifled gun (155mm).

Mixtec
you are quite right to say that artillery uses rifled guns. This is because although range is important it is not very useful if it comes at the expense of accuracy. Firing shells 40-50km requires as much accuracy as you can get… though there may come a time where that accuracy comes from terminal guidance as the standard round so smoothbores may be introduced there too.
With anti tank guns penetration is just as impotant as accuracy as most guns are accurate enough to hit another tank from 2-3km these days. Most improvements are found in updated FCS with wind, temperature data, plus information about the state of the barrel (ie hot or cold) and the ammo making guns more accurate because the inaccuracies were not due to the gun itself but aiming errors.

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

Ive wondered that myself Garry, dont artillery all use rifled barrels? You would think that most countrys would stick with shaped charge warheads, especially since you have all these muliple charge rounds to deactivate active armour. I would think that high velocity saboted rounds lose their effectiveness at greater range in both velocity and accuraccy.

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

It is quite interesting that most western nations have gone from the british 105mm rifled gun (which would still be a very good tank gun to use against any but the most powerful opponent) to the German 120mm smoothbore. The only western country to stick with a British rifled gun is the British.
Challanger 2 crews have said they could hit a helmet at 3km.
Why do you guys think everyone has followed the Soviet lead to smoothbores?

Opinions please not glib answers like they want to hit tanks not helmets… 🙂

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

JJ, very nice images.I’m a very keen observer of the world armoured forces(Also built merkava 3 from Academy).The MERKAVA 4 -looks like an upgraded MERKAVA 3 BAZ-Any comment?

Merkava 4 ,M1A2SEP ,LEOPARD 2A6-who’s the best-well that depends on the operators + what type of projectiles you use to use to kill it.My personal fav would be the Leo-even the M1 guns and certain vetronics were borrowed from the German tank.2A6 got a newer gun with extra range and accuracy compared to the M1A2SEP .

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

Did you scan that picture, Skythe? It’s the clearest Merkava IV picture I’ve seen so far.

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

Another photo.

—————————————-
U.N. Representative: So, Mr. Evil –
Dr. Evil: It’s Dr. Evil, I didn’t spend six years in Evil Medical School to be called “mister,” thank you very much.

Attachments:

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

simple the mekreva is great for israel but is not meant to be like all other tanks out there. the israelis designed it so.

i think in a normal tank operating conditions the mekreva would be at a disadvantage but on home soil it would ahve the upper hand.

rabie :9

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

As I´m no tank expert can someone compare the Mk. IV with an M1A2 and the Leo 2A6 ??

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

Well, untill very recently the MoD was very reluctant to sell the Merkava to other countries. Selling this system could compromise security. However, a few years ago the MoD marketed the tank in Turkey. Unfortunately, IMI did not win the tender. I don’t know if the MoD tries to sell the Merkava III to other countries though, but since one of the Merks flies all over the world (it as at Eurosatory now), this could certainly be the case.

About the Merkava being optimized for Israel’s conditions: I believe that this is true. The entire system is developed so that it performs best in the desert and on the Golan. It could very well be that the system fares worse in different conditions. But I don’t know if this has ever been tested.

Shalom,

Jonathan

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

Why is it that Merkavas haven’t been exported? In my opinion this is one of the best tanks out there and surely the Israelis could do with unit prices going down a little.

Also, I’ve heard a criticism of the Merkava that its optimised for desert operations and would flounder in Central Europe or a tropical clime. Does anyone know why this might be? I can’t seem to figure it out.

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 25-06-02 AT 09:01 AM (GMT)]This report comes from [link:www.jpost.com|The Jerusalem Post]:

IDF unveils next generation Merkava tank
By ARIEH O’SULLIVAN

The IDF yesterday unveiled what it called the safest tank in the world: its next generation, Israeli-built Merkava IV, which has been nine years in development.

IDF generals said the improved, larger tank will digitalize the modern battlefield, and Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer said it will boost deterrence.

The first of the 65-ton tanks is expected to be deployed next year, with the first full battalion planned for 2004. It will replace the aging, US-made M-60 “Patton” tanks.

It was a special day for the IDF yesterday, as three of the new tanks were rolled out in a ceremony at the army’s logistics and technology base at Tel Hashomer.

“This is a strategic event,” said OC Armored Corps Brig.-Gen. Avigdor Klein. “This tank has significant improvements [over the Merkava III] in its armored protection and its battle management systems.”

According to specifications released by the IDF, the new Merkava has a smooth-bore 120mm cannon capable of firing a variety of shells and rockets. The tank is slightly larger than its predecessor. A significant change is that there is only one hatch on the turret, used by the commander. The rest of the crew uses a rear door. Designers said it was built specifically with the rocky Golan Heights in mind.

The Merkava IV, like its predecessor the Merkava III, has the ability to shoot down helicopters. Its 1,500-horsepower diesel engine is an improvement over the previous version’s 1,300 HP. It also has a newly designed transmission, and a number of electronic improvements, such as a camera mounted in the back to help the crew drive backward.

It has improved laser range finders and thermal night-vision capabilities, and is capable of detecting a target, locking on to it, and destroying it while in motion, day or night.

Klein said the tank was not only designed to fight in conventional battles, but is also built to take part in low-intensity conflicts such as the one being fought now with the Palestinians. After hesitating to do so for the first year of the current conflict with the Palestinians, the IDF has since more liberally deployed tanks in the territories.

Palestinians have managed to destroy two Merkava III tanks, using huge mines, in recent months. Regarding the new model’s protective measures, Maj.-Gen. Yiftach Ron-Tal said the tank’s vulnerable underbelly has been given increased protection, and it was also given improved protection from overhead attacks. The tank’s modular protection is purportedly the best in the world.

Defense Ministry Director-General Amos Yaron declined to divulge the cost per tank, saying the figures have not yet been worked out. But the Merkava III costs about $3 million each, and Yaron said the new tank is “economically competitive.” He said several tanks will be produced each year.

Yaron dismissed problems caused by embargoes such as the recent engine parts delay from Germany saying such problems will be worked out and alternative suppliers found.

Some 200 companies participate in producing the Merkava IV.

The rollout of the Merkava IV attracted intense interest from local and foreign defense officials. Attending the ceremony yesterday were most military attaches posted to Israel, and a who’s-who of Israel’s past and present Armored Corps officers. Among the dignitaries present was US Secretary of the Navy Gordon England.

The ceremony was to have taken place two months ago, but was postponed due to Operation Defensive Shield.

“This tank strengthens our will and our deterrence; it will make our enemies think twice before moving against us,” Ben-Eliezer said.

The army went all-out in the gala rollout ceremony, including flag and standard bearers, singers, and a military band.

“Just as the there is no land a Jew can call home other than Israel, there is no tank that the nation of Israel can appreciate other than the Merkava,” said Brig.-Gen. David Engel, head of the Merkava project.

Special praise and a standing ovation were given to Maj.-Gen. (res.) Yisrael Tal, the father of the Merkava tank project. Israel embarked on its own tank production in 1970, after the entire world refused to sell Israel new tanks. The first Merkava became operational in time to participate in the 1982 Lebanon War, and improved designs followed.

“We have faced embargoes time and again,” said Maj.-Gen. (res.) Yossi Ben-Hanan, head of the Defense Ministry’s Export and Foreign Assistance Branch.

“Our requirements were that we would not pay more for a tank than for one we could buy abroad, and secondly that it should have superior capabilities, and we met these two criteria,” Ben-Hanan said.

“This will only be the last Merkava if the Messiah comes soon. But it will never be the last one, because victory on the battlefield requires a ground operation based on mobile platforms. Maybe they will look different, but there will always be platforms that will give people the ability to move on the battlefield,” he said.

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

From what I understand the Merkava IV is indeed better protected from top attack missiles. If you look at the photos I provided, you can see some heavy armor on top of the turret. I believe it is also beter protected against mines.

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

Unfortunately every tank manufacturer seems to have the best protected and most powerful tank in the world… of course in the case of the Israelis I tend to agree that it is probably the best protected.

When they say vertical protection does that mean top attack and mine attack?

Its all round protection and ammo stowage is probably much better than the T-90, and it would probably have the huge advantage over the M1 in that it won’t need to be flown or transported by ship any great distance. (70-80 ton tanks are a B!tch to move around).

I had heard that the latest Leopards also use modular armour packages that allow armour levels and weight to be optimised for a particular job as well as easier upgrades of armour modules. (Leopard 2A5 or 2A6 or something…)

RE: Merkava IV unveiled today

Interesting stuff JJ. I have a flight sim called Jane’s Israeli Air Force and as with all Jane’s games there is an extensive reference for all the aircraft, ground vehicles, ships, and weapons in the game. I read with great interest the info about the Merkava and I must say I’m impressed with what I read. Sounds to me like the Merkava is definitely the equal of the my country’s M1 Abrams as well as Russia’s T-90 and all the other front-line tanks of the world. With the new Merkava IV, the IDF is sure to more potent than ever. Thanks for the info!