Otokar Cobra-II'ye 25mm toplu taret yerleştirmiş!
Turkish vehicle manufacturer Otokar debuted an air defence variant of its Cobra II 4x4 light armoured vehicle (LAV), equipped with an Aselsan Pedestal Mounted Air Defence System (PMADS), at the Defence Services Asia (DSA) 2014 exhibition in Kuala Lumpur.
The Cobra II LAV - which made its first public appearance at the International Defence Industry Fair (IDEF) in May 2013 - is larger and much heavier than its predecessor at 5.61 m long, 2.5 m wide, and 2.2 m high with a 12 ton gross vehicle weight (GVW), compared with the original Cobra, which is 5.22 m long, 2.2 m wide, and 2.1 m high with a 6.3 ton GVW.
An Otokar spokesperson told IHS Jane's that increased modularity and greater payload capacity are two key enhancements over the previous model, based on feedback from current operators of the Cobra, which he described as about 30 users in 20 countries.
Cobra II features a 281 hp Cummins 6.7-litre turbodiesel engine driving through a more robust Allison six-speed automatic transmission. The spokesperson said other engine options are available for the Cobra II, while its predecessor was built to accommodate only the General Motors 6.5-litre V8 engine.
The new vehicle has a 'significantly' larger crew compartment and refined seating arrangements, which offers the crew improved comfort and greater shock protection. Increased armour protection can also be installed through the gain in payload capacity.
Current Cobra II variants include the standard troop-carrier, with seating for up to nine, as well as a gun platform equipped with either a manned turret or remote weapons system (RWS). The spokesperson revealed that the company had successfully installed an RWS with a 25 mm machine gun (MG) on the Cobra II and is now exploring larger calibre gun systems.
Otokar's very short range air defence (VSHORAD) variant featured the Igla surface to air missile (SAM)-equipped version of Aselsan's stabilised PMADS system. However, with the installation of the PMADS system and its associated command and control equipment, the crew complement has been reduced to four.
An amphibious variant of the Cobra II has also been developed, which features a twin hydraulic thruster system similar to the ones used on the Cobra, albeit larger and more powerful to account for the increased mass. While no official specifications of the amphibious Cobra II were revealed at DSA 2014, the spokesperson said the vehicle can reach speeds of about 8 km/h in the water, as required by the Turkish Army for its amphibious vehicles.
