The Mark II version of Arjun main battle tank (MBT) will undergo field trials in January and June next year at the Pokhran field firing range.
In March 2010, after the Arjun outperformed the Russian T-90S in performance trials in Rajasthan, the Army inducted 124 Arjun tanks into service. But the army has made a follow-on order on the condition that 93 improvements shall be made in the Mark II version, including 19 major modifications, said Col S D Goswami, defence spokesperson.
The Arjun Mark II's most remarkable feature is its extra weight – 3 to 4 tonnes more than the earlier 62-tonne Arjun. For years, the army criticised the Arjun as too heavy for India's road and rail infrastructure. But now it wants modifications that will make the Arjun heavier.
Fitting Explosive Reactive Armour (ERA) plates on the tank has boosted crew protection, but it also increases the weight by one-and-a-half tonnes. An equivalent increase comes from the added mine ploughs, which churn up the ground ahead of the tank, uprooting explosive mines that would otherwise blow up the tank. During trials this summer, the Arjun had demonstrated a crucial modification in the transmission system that makes the 65-66 tonne Arjun Mark II more agile than the lighter, 62-tonne Arjun Mark I.
"We ran the modified Arjun for 1,300 kilometres, gradually loading dead weight until it was 65.5 tonnes. We demonstrated that its performance, acceleration, torque, working temperature and fuel consumption were better than the Arjun Mark I," said DRDO spokesperson Ravi Gupta. The Arjun Mark II does just 60 kmph, compared with the 70 kmph top speed of the Arjun Mark.
Earlier, the army was criticizing Arjun for its heavy weight. But its cross-country performance was commendable, said the spokesman and same was endorsed by Israel Military Industries, which did a third-party evaluation of the Arjun. Another crucial improvement in the Mark II is the tank commander's thermal imaging (TI) night sight, which replaces the day-only sight of the earlier Arjun. Now, the Arjun can operate at night in "hunter-killer" mode – the commander as hunter and the gunner as killer. The commander scans the battlefield through his new TI sight; the targets that he spotted are electronically allocated to the gunner to destroy, while he returns to hunting for more targets. The Mark II also equips the driver with a new night vision device based on "un-cooled thermal imaging," allowing him to clearly see 300-500 metres, even on a pitch-dark night.
"Four major modifications – the mobility performance at 65.5 tonnes; the commander's night sight; the driver's night vision device, and ammunition containerisation – were validated this summer," said an official.
In the coming January a new capability will be tested-missile firing through the Arjun Mark II's main gun. A "laser warning counter measure system" will be integrated in June user trials at Pokhran field firing range next year. This senses the laser beam that incoming missiles ride, giving just 10-15 seconds of reaction time. Within milliseconds, the system automatically launches smoke grenades, creating a smokescreen around one's own tank that leaves the missile operator without a target to aim at, said a DRDO official.