At the National Day military parade in 2019, the domestically produced Type 15 light tank was officially unveiled. Although the official has confirmed the Type 15 column unit in December 2018, the light tanks that have appeared in the formation on this occasion still bring great shock to the outside world. But after the surprise, many people are also wondering, the global main battle tank is increasingly heavyweight development, the domestic 99A main battle tank has reached 55 tons, why the Army still needs a large number of such 35 tons of light tanks. After all, in the ground attack and defense, the "thick skin" heavy tank seems to have an innate advantage, so it has become the army's most important "iron fist".
Type 15 light tank phalanx at the parade
The first thing to be clear is that although 99A is often compared to the 15 type, the official code names of the two are actually somewhat different. The official number given to 99A is ZTZ-99A, of which "ZTZ" is the initial of Hanyu Pinyin for armored troops, tanks, and main battles. In contrast, the full name of the Type 15 light tank is ZTQ-15, and the last Q stands for "light tank". It is clear that the positioning of the two tanks in the official plan is fundamentally different, and arbitrary judgments cannot be made because of the similarity of the appearance of the two tanks. For now, the positioning of the Type 15 light tank can be roughly understood from two angles: one far and one near.
The Type 99A is the same tank as the Type 15 but very different
The short-term strategic positioning of the Type 15 light tank is mainly focused on digitalization and plateau combat capabilities. On these two points, various types of materials are described more, but there is often no real systematic narrative, especially in the field of plateau operations. On the surface, when modern tanks operate in the plateau area, they will be affected by low oxygen, low pressure and low temperature environment, making the main battle tanks that originally ran across the plains inevitably have some inadequacies in the plateau, but the impact of the plateau environment on the main battle tanks is far more than this.
In the harsh environment of the plateau, power has become the biggest hidden danger
According to the data of the public paper, the maximum speed of the test tank in the plain area can reach 58.4 kilometers per hour, but it is reduced by 13% in the plateau area, only 50.8 kilometers; the average speed of the cross-country in the plain is 36.7 kilometers per hour, and it drops by 14.4% on the plateau, only 31.4 kilometers; in the plain, it can climb a longitudinal slope of about 35 degrees, and in the plateau area it plummets by 19.1%, only 28 degrees. It can be said that in addition to the increase in acceleration (0 to 32 km / h), the main maneuverability of the tank is significantly reduced, which is caused by the harsh environment of the plateau.
The 96B, which went abroad to participate in the tank competition, suffered a power failure
First, in the highland area above 4,000 meters, the winter temperature is generally around minus 30 degrees Celsius, and such a low temperature is obviously not within the standard operating conditions of the tank engine. In general, in this case, the tank takes 10 to 12 minutes of heating to start properly. At the same time, in the lower temperature environment, the state of the tank engine material is also significantly affected, and the service life is often significantly lower than in the plain area. In addition, the standard working condition of the tank battery is generally between 20 and 40 degrees Celsius, with the decrease of temperature, the output capacity of the battery will gradually decline, and the battery plate will even bend and deform due to large temperature changes, or even damage. According to domestic related research, the output capacity of the battery is about minus 30 degrees Celsius, generally only about 1/3 of the rated power. And at this time, the charging time is greatly increased, and the discharge will be very fast, which will seriously affect the normal use of the tank.
The Type 15 tank with desert livery is muscular
Second, the plateau area has long sunshine hours, strong ultraviolet rays, and the temperature difference between day and night can reach more than 20 degrees Celsius, which is a severe test for the materials used in tanks, especially non-metallic material parts. Such a drastic temperature change in such a short period of time will significantly shorten the service life of non-metallic parts, lead to damage to external protective coatings and internal structures, aggravate mechanical wear and aging of seals (such as rubber products). In addition to increasing the maintenance and maintenance costs of equipment, it also greatly reduces the service life of the tank.
Third, and most importantly, the plateau areas have low air pressure and low oxygen levels. Generally speaking, in areas with an altitude of about 5000 meters, the air oxygen content is often only about 50% of the plain area, so the difference between the cylinder is reduced, the excess air coefficient decreases, the combustible gas mixture is too concentrated, the combustion lag lags and extends to the expansion process, which eventually leads to a decrease in the pressure and temperature at the end of the compression, an increase in heat transfer loss, an increase in exhaust temperature, and a decrease in power and thermal efficiency. From the external performance, it is that the exhaust smoke of the engine becomes thicker and the heat load becomes larger, in other words, the tank engine is already overwhelmed at this time, and the working sound sounds like a "powerless" feeling.
Type 15 light tan has been evolving, with the complete body on the left and the early type on the right
In addition, plateaus and alpine environments are exposed to lower atmospheric pressures than plains. In general, for every 1,000 meters of elevation increase, atmospheric pressure drops by 9 percent and air density drops by 6 to 10 percent. This means that when the tank operates in the plateau area, the first difficulty to overcome is the power output of the power system due to insufficient atmospheric pressure, resulting in a decrease in output power. For ordinary diesel engines, when starting normally, it is necessary to work through the compression in the cylinder, so that the diesel fuel reaches the ignition point, and the piston is pushed to do work after combustion expansion. Therefore, the engine can only function properly if the gas pressure and temperature in the cylinder reach the set standard. This is why in the highland environment, it is often necessary to add a turbocharger to the engine to meet the piston workmanship needs, so that the engine can run effectively, but in fact, only one turbocharger can not meet all the needs.
The Type 15 tank's one-piece power pack can be loaded and unloaded as a whole
In the actual use process, the common turbocharged engine of the tank is often in a low-speed, low-load working condition, but due to the reduction of the exhaust gas flow through the turbine at a low speed, the power provided by the turbine at low speed is reduced, and the turbocharger device cannot be promoted to operate normally (the turbocharger is essentially an air pump that uses the remaining energy in the engine exhaust to work). Therefore, it is often only possible to increase the exhaust gas volume by increasing the engine speed to meet the demand. This working mode will not only affect the service life of the engine, but also waste a lot of fuel. Therefore, the use of a single-wheel turbocharged engine in a highland environment will not solve the problem fundamentally. At the current level of science and technology, the use of multi-stage compressor for hierarchical pressurization, the use of different air intake and gas replenishment methods in the start-up and low-load state, is a more stable solution, and it is also the technology applied by the Type 15 light tank.
Advanced power support Type 15 surge
In addition, the transmission system of the tank itself is also highly susceptible to the impact of the highland environment. To put it simply, tanks such as the 99A and 96B that use hydraulic transmission, due to the small output torque in the plateau environment, the engine power output cannot overcome the role of the torque converter, so that the start, acceleration and uphill of the tank will be insufficient power. Therefore, tanks active in the plateau environment should choose engines with larger horsepower and less torque, and then cooperate with hydraulic rangechangers with less control to obtain better operation and maneuverability. Of course, in this case, the entire power and transmission system can not drive the overweight armored vehicle, and its full weight must be reduced to a certain extent to ensure maneuverability. This is the fundamental reason why light armored vehicles tend to perform better in highland areas.
The performance of the 99A plateau is still not comparable to that of the light tank
In addition, there are air filtration systems, static electricity, air density, humidity changes, etc., which will affect the tank's various systems, including electronic equipment, and are all things that need to be considered. Therefore, if you want an armored vehicle to be able to operate effectively in highland areas, you need to be fully prepared for all aspects from use to maintenance. Therefore, although the 99A is a very good main battle tank, it can be seen from the special environment of the above plateau area that even if the 99A is improved to a certain extent, it is only an improvement, or a partial improvement of its plateau combat performance, but there are still significant deficiencies in fact. Only a light tank like the Type 15, which is fundamentally prepared for plateau use, is the best equipment that can run across the plateau area, which is the fundamental reason for the domestic development and large-scale equipment of the Type 15 light tank.
The Type 15 was fundamentally designed for altitude operations
In addition, China's territory is vast and the terrain is complex, of which 60% of the land area is plateau and mountainous terrain, and the average altitude is above 2000 meters, accounting for 1/3 of the total land area of China. Among them, the total area of the three plateaus of Yunnan-Guizhou, Qinghai-Tibet and Pamir is as high as 2.7 million square kilometers, especially in Tibet, with an area of more than 1.22 million square kilometers, accounting for about 1/8 of the total land area, and its average altitude is above 4,000 meters. With such a vast plateau territory, the Army is destined to need a key equipment that can be mass-produced and meets the needs of plateau combat, and for now, the most urgent is still the Type 15 light tank.
From the rear of the turret is the Type 15 supplementary armor-piercing shell
As for the Type 15 digital combat capability, it complements its mobility in the highland area. With the comprehensive progress of various types of domestic vehicle-mounted electronic equipment and the entire intelligence, combat, and command systems in recent years, the Type 15 light tank, in fact, is a front-end high-mobility combat unit as a battlefield network node, relying on good firepower and certain protective capabilities, using its maneuverability to perform forward reconnaissance and side cover tasks in the special environment of the plateau, and provide ground information support for long-range precision firepower, aerial unmanned aerial vehicles, and even helicopter gunships in the rear, which is the most meaningful positioning of the Type 15. In this case, armor and firepower only guarantee the survivability of the Type 15 battlefield, and there is no need to face the opponent's heavily armored combat units.
Joint operations with other firepower are key
Therefore, some information from the outside world claims that the maximum weight of the Type 15 light tank can reach 45 tons, which can be improved by adding reactive armor, and then have the strength to fight with the main battle tank, which is obviously debatable. Regardless of the Type 15 light tank, after its self-weight rises to more than 40 tons, its mobility will be left. Even if it is equipped with explosive reactive armor, the weight gap of more than 10 tons between itself and the typical main battle tank, as well as the inferiority of the caliber of the gun, makes it doomed to be in a comprehensive disadvantage in firepower and protection. This is not a problem that a small amount of reactive armor can compensate for, and even the most important mobility advantage will be lost because of weight gain, which is tantamount to using one's own shortness and attacking the other's strength. In fact, giving full play to its own mobility advantages and maneuvering with the opponent through rear fire support is where the real advantage of the Type 15 lies.
Head-on combat against the main battle tank was not the type 15's main form of combat
After the near-term targets are finished, let's take a look at the 15-type long-term goals. The U.S. Army has developed an M-8 light tank (known to the U.S. Military as the M-8 armored artillery system), which aims to quickly reach the combat area through medium transport aircraft with low weight and strong maneuverability and information advantages, so as to achieve strategic coverage of the corresponding area. But this model, which was too advanced at the time, was eventually discontinued for various reasons. For now, the domestic Type 15 light tank can be considered to have a similar positioning with the American M-8 to some extent.
American M-8 armored artillery system on display
At present, the maximum load of the domestic Y-20 strategic transport aircraft is close to 60 tons (it is expected to reach 66 tons after the replacement of the engine in the future), theoretically speaking, it has the ability to carry a 99A for strategic maneuvering, and the cabin space can also meet the loading needs. However, due to the 99A's 55-ton weight, it is close to the current carrying limit of the Y-20, and the main battle tank itself is a small size and extremely dense equipment. Therefore, the transport 99A has a great impact on the flight altitude, flight distance and safety of the Y-20, and it is difficult to achieve take-off and landing at the field airport. In fact, lighter tanks such as the 96B and Type 15 are the armored forces that can really carry out strategic maneuvers through the Y-20.
The Y-20 gave the heavily armed forces strategic mobility
In fact, not long ago, the government also reported that three Y-20 strategic transport aircraft completed the strategic operation from loading goods in the eastern region to delivering 160,000 sets of quilts to the hands of the western border guards in 24 hours. If the transport quilt suit is replaced by a Type 15 or 96B tank, there is no essential difference, which is the combination of advanced tanks and air transport forces, which shows the strong charm. What's more, the Type 15 light tank theoretically has a brighter future.
The domestic Y-8 and Y-9 series medium-sized transport aircraft have a load capacity of only more than 20 tons, and it is impossible to transport type 15 light tanks at present and in the future. According to media sources, China is developing a Y-30 with a maximum transport weight of more than 30 tons, which is often referred to as "new transport". Its maximum take-off weight is enough to carry the Type 15 tank, although the range and speed cannot reach the level of the Y-20, but after the Y-30 is entered into service in batches in the future, with the larger scale of equipment that can be achieved at a lower cost, and the performance that can take off and land at the field airport, it is bound to be able to transport the Type 15 tank to an area closer to the front line, which is difficult for the Y-20 to do.
The Y-9 to 15 type is powerless
From this point of view, if the country wants to organize a fleet of 30 to 40 or so Y-20 aircraft to transport a batch of Type 15 and maintenance facilities and personnel to the front line, the pressure on airport scheduling is very strong, and the time and cost required to mobilize such a large-scale strategic transport fleet are also very high. However, if the Y-20 is replaced by a smaller Y-30 with significantly lower costs for use, maintenance and operation, the cost is easy to bear. Of course, the Y-30 has not yet progressed to the first flight stage, which can only be said to be a plan for the future development of the Type 15 light tank. In fact, there is a more ideal and distant plan for the future development of the Type 15 light tank.
The new C-YCO model at the air show
At present, with the development of unmanned aerial vehicles and new air strike forces, the defense of heavy main battle tank units, especially the lack of top protection, is becoming more and more obvious. In the previous military conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia, although the military strength of the two countries was low, there were also cases where the main battle tanks were destroyed by the long-range fire of the opponent before they were facing the direct barrier. In this situation, where is the future way out for heavy tanks such as the American M1A2 and the domestic 99A, whether it is still worth paying a high price for heavy armor, or whether the combat effectiveness played and the huge resources paid are worth pondering.
The total weight of the US military M1A2SEP has reached 67 tons, and many roads and bridges cannot be carried
Just as the battleships that pursued large ships and cannons, high armor and high protection during World War II were replaced by aircraft carriers that were basically unarmored but had aviation combat power, the main battle tank, which pursues high-end protective power, will be gradually replaced in the future. The only question is how long it will take to actually achieve this and whether the tasks currently shouldered by the main battle tank can be taken over by light tanks. It should be said that this is just a more distant plan, the current 99A in the land heavy armament battle, still has an irreplaceable position, the Type 15 light tank really become the main force is still a little far away.
Battleships give way to aircraft carriers because of the trend of scientific and technological development
In addition, although the Type 15 light tank cannot be applied to actual combat to test combat effectiveness, in recent years, the VT-5 main battle tank with similar positioning to the Type 15 has also been introduced. It should be noted that the VT-5 is a lightweight main battle tank, which is not the same as the Type 15. In a sense, the VT-5 was developed to cater to the needs of the international market and incorporated some Type 15 light tank technology. It can also be regarded as an evolution of the Type 15 light tank in line with the export positioning of the equipment. It is believed that the export and actual combat performance of VT-5 in the future will be of great significance to the development of the domestic 15-type light tank.
The VT-4 has been exported to many countries in bulk
At present, the large-scale equipment of type 15 tanks in China is to support plateau operations as the core, taking into account the needs of mountain, hilly and landing operations. At the same time, it is also a forward-looking equipment prepared in advance for the future under the current trend of the army moving toward informationization and digitization. If the 99A main battle tank is the core of the current domestic land combat armored force, then the Type 15 light tank, as a "plateau Panther", is the army's key equipment to cope with the special situation and future development. The two work closely together and complement each other, showing that the domestic advanced tank field has reached the world's top level, enough to develop the corresponding equipment according to their own needs, which was once the dream of the Chinese Army and the Chinese military industry, and now it has been quietly realized.