@ Damian
Can you make a drawing of what you think would be an ideal MBT? This would be interesting.
Unfortunetly my drawing skills are poor.
However I can describe a perfect MBT in my opinion.
Overall design:
Perfect MBT in my opinion should be a compact vehicle, with compartments (crew, weapons, powerpack) that are isolated from eachother to improve safety and survivability. Crew should sit in a hull so the vehicle size and weight could be reduced. The problem here that's need to be solved is crew situational awareness, for their frontal arc it is not a problem, they can have periscopes, for 360 degrees vision commander should have his own CITV + a good set of very small cameras around the hull.
Protection:
Protection should be modular, the base should be a steel made construction with attachements for modular armor (the base steel construction can also be made from a steel manufactured with nanotechnology, I think there are rumors that Japanese are experimenting with such, and Germans from IBD). If we assume that new materials like fullerene's or ADNR's can be used, then we can have here some interesting possibilities.
The new materials can be encased within a boxy modules made from steel, this still to increase protection can be of types like SHS, HHS, DHS or THS, the internal plates made from materials like ADNR also can be separated in to layers encased inside more steel plates. Now the question is if such armor should be a passive type of a reactive type. The passive type of such armor will more efficently use space inside a module, while reactive type needs some free space to properly work.
However because of characteristics of ADNR like materials, this means things like the fact that ADNR is harder than a diamond, but in the same time it is not brittle like a diamond or ceramics, it is more flexible in the same time, could mean that we can abandone reactive armor... at least for a some time.
Such armor can be also lighter, and with it's characteristics we should remember it can be less bulky providing same or higher protection than currently used, heavier and bulkier armor types.
So if we assume modularity of vehicle, we can gain with such materials a more flexible modularity.
I wrote some time ago that with modularity we can adjust the vehicle protection and weight to the mission needs and most possible threats that can be faced during mission.
If we assume that all of the above requirements are meet, we possibly can achieve a new quality and capabilities within different armor packages.
Let's assume that there will be 4 basic armor packages:
Level 1 - Most lightweight package, designed for assymetrical warfare where enemy have only RPG's and IED's, and the threats are not very advanced. If we assume the new materials will be avaiable, we can assume the weight of vehicle at a 30-40 tons level, perhaps even less.
Level 2 - It is a medium package, designed for most common threats during assymetric operations or conventional warfare with enemy that is not very advanced, projected weight level should be around 40-50 tons.
Level 3 - It is a heavy package, designed for a full scale conventional warfare, or assymetric conflicts where insurgents have capability to obtain more powerfull weapons, it is also more bulky armor package, projected weight level should be around 50-60 tons.
Level 4 - It is a improved heavy package with additional protection in form of any addon armors in form of ERA, NERA or NxRA or even just additional modules with armor made form the same materials like the basic modular armor, the projected weight should be within the limits of 60-65 tons, but if it will be possible to make it lighter, then it should be.
And because such armor can be lighter and stronger than currently used technology, additional protection can be added for both vehicle top and belly, and as well rear.
Additional protection should be gained from the use of:
- Active Protection System, such system should work in to ways, first is a soft kill countermessure that will jamm guidance of any guided ordnance, the second should be a hard kill mechanism that will destroy projectile if it is invurnable to jamming or the soft kill mechanism failed.
- New camouflage means, first the IR camouflage paint that can efficently mask vehicle thermal signature, the second is a camouflage netting that can provide additional camouflage against human eye and day optics, as well as additional thermal signature camouflage and isolation from the outside temperatures for additional interior cooling.
- The engine exhaust can also be provided with additional cooling and sound mufflers.
Automotive systems:
Suspension - if possible it should be a hydrogas type that have advantages as more comfortable ride for crew, more stable platform for a weapon system, lower weight, smaller suspension units, that can be mounted by use of bolts completely outside hull, that saves space inside hull, as well as enables easier maintnance and replacement if needed, also in the field.
Powerpack - modern compact powerpack (integrated engine + transmission in to a single block) that is light, and can be quickly replaced if needed. Because of fuel efficency it should be initially Diesel, and if possible for the long term, a hybrid engine or even fully electric one.
Fuel storage - for safety and additional protection for the hull sides, fuel tanks can be placed inside a cavities formed from welded side hull sponsons, method used also today in some designs.
Armament - the basic question here is if we need to increase calliber, and where are the limits? Perhaps as with the armor the main armament can be also manufactured from materials made with nanotechnology, so we could increase their service life and a pressure limits for the main gun, we could also design a new more efficent propelants for ammunition. This would permitt to stick with smaller calliber, lighter gun and overall bigger ammunition capacity for the autoloader.
In the USA, GDLS with some other companies created an autoloader for a TTB test tank, with a capacity for 44 120mm rounds, which is a good result.
We should think about this because the bigger the gun, the lesser ammunition You can take, and better accuracy does not mean that You will have enough ammunition for the performed task.
In a longer term a rail gun or coil gun designs can be used, there are currently problems with weapon service life, but as in case of classical designs, a new materials and nanotechnology can provide a solution, the more difficult problem is the power source, how a small vehicle like a tank can generate enough power to power up not only it's armament but also all electronics? And how to efficently store this energy in small and light batteries?
The additional armament should be a coaxial machine gun, and additional commander weapon (heavy machine gun or something like Mk19) connected to it's CITV, so the CITV will not only be it's panoramic sight, but also remote weapon station.
What else should be added?
Oh I know, we can actually build two version of such MBT hull.
The specialized MBT hull, and universal hull, such universal hull will be similiar but woth front mounted engine and a space at back, so it can be used as a IFV, APC, SPGH, TD, SPAAGM, ARV, AEV etc.
The advantage of these solutions are also that that we can manufactre 4 of such platforms. The heavy one as descrive above, medium one, and light one.
The heavy and medium should be tracked, while the light platform could be wheeled, or tracked or even both (2 variants, one tacked and one wheeled, maybe something similiar in concept to the Swedish SEP).
That is in what we should aim in a long term, but will not be possible if someone decide to screw R&D funding to research new nanomaterials for armor as well as other solutions.
Of course everyone can add here his own ideas and solutions.
