Otokar has received its first two orders for its Cobra II 4x4 armoured tactical vehicle, the company has announced.
At the end of December 2015 Otokar announced that it had received a contract for the Cobra II; a vehicle first revealed at the May 2013 International Defence Industry Fair (IDEF) in Istanbul.
However, speaking to IHS Jane's on 5 January, the company revealed that this was actually its second order for the vehicle - having received another undisclosed order slightly earlier from the Turkish Ministry of Defence (MoD).
While the company was unable to discuss its debut order, a spokesperson said that the second one is worth some EUR47.5 million (USD51 million) and includes the delivery of 82 Cobra II 4x4s, plus related systems, maintenance and support. Deliveries of the first order of vehicles have yet to begin, while delivery of the vehicles from the second order should be completed in the first half of 2017.
Although the Turkish user for the first order is undisclosed, the vehicles from the second order are destined for security forces within the Turkish Armed Forces, according to Otokar.
The Cobra II is a more heavily armoured successor to Otokar's successful Cobra 4x4, which Otokar states is now operated by 15 countries. At 12,000 kg the Cobra II has a combat weight that is roughly double that of its predecessor (6,900 kg), and is slightly wider, longer and taller - offering greater internal volume.
In an armoured personnel carrier (APC) configuration the vehicle can carry nine personnel (2 + 7), and the vehicle can be armed with a number of different weapons, including crew operated machine guns (MGs), and remote weapon stations armed with anything from MGs to short-range surface-to-air missiles. Unlike the Cobra, the Cobra II is not amphibious as standard, although an amphibious version fitted with propellers and a different hull shape is also available.
http://www.janes.com/article/57021/otokar-s-cobra-ii-4x4-receives-its-first-orders
