The Russian-Ukrainian conflict has made the world economy, which has been tormented by the epidemic, even the arms trade has been blessed, and Ukraine, which is desperate for guns and guns, and Western countries that do not hesitate to empty their stocks for assistance, have brought endless business opportunities to arms dealers, and the most popular buyer in the international arms market at present is Poland.
As one of the most active anti-Russian countries, Poland aided Ukraine with a large number of Soviet tanks, won the appreciation of the West, and took the opportunity to import weapons from abroad to renew its arsenal.
■ On July 27, 2022, Poland's Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Marius Błaszczyak (left) signed a contract for the purchase of fa-50 light attack aircraft with Ann Seol, a representative of the Korea Aerospace Industry Corporation.
In July, the Polish government decided to buy $14.5 billion worth of weapons and equipment from South Korea, or about 19 trillion won, the largest order placed by a South Korean defense company in the European market in recent years! The transaction involved heavy equipment such as the K9 Thunder self-propelled gun and FA-50 fighter jets, of which $8.3 billion was used to purchase 580 K2PL main battle tanks!
It is very puzzling that Poland has purchased a large number of South Korean tanks, so in April Poland just signed a contract with the United States to buy 250 M1A2 SEPV3 main battle tanks, worth $4.75 billion.
Previously, Poland has obtained the German Leopard II main battle tank, counting the original Soviet tank, which means that the Polish Army will be equipped with at least 4 different types of tanks in the future, what is the reason why the Poles chose South Korean tanks?
Optimized upgrades, exclusive customization
In 2017, the Polish Army launched the "Wolf" program, hoping to purchase 800 main battle tanks (later reduced to 500), replace more than 500 T-72 tanks in active service and domestically produced PT-91 tanks, and fully shift the equipment of armored forces to the West.
The arrogant Poles did not take South Korea into account at first, preferring France and Germany to join the Fourth Generation Tank Program in Europe led by France and Germany, but Poland followed the United States closely in its defense policy, so the proposal was rejected by France and Germany.
Subsequently, Poland tried to introduce the German Leopard IIA6/A7 main battle tank, and because the cost was too high, it was abandoned, and after repeatedly hitting the wall, the Korean K2PL tank entered the Polish field of vision.
■ The PT-91 main battle tank equipped by the Polish Army armored forces, as a derivative of the T-72 series of tanks, is quite old at present.
The K2PL main battle tank debuted at the 2020 Poland Kielce Security Defense Exhibition, is a foreign trade tank developed by Romte, a subsidiary of The Korea Hyundai Group, based on the Korean K2 "Panther" main battle tank for deep improvement, is a product customized for Poland, and its suffix letter PL refers to Poland.
■ At the 2020 Poland Kielce Security Defense Exhibition, the booth of the South Korean Romte Company featured K2PL main battle tanks.
In K2PL, the Koreans have built up the technology to the extreme. Compared with the K2 tank, the biggest difference of the K2PL is that the hull is lengthened, the number of load wheels is increased from 6 pairs to 7 pairs, which improves the bearing capacity of the whole vehicle, the total combat weight is also increased from 55 tons of K2 to 60 tons, the increase in weight means that the armor of K2PL is heavier than K2, And Korean media claims that the homogeneous vertical steel armor of K2 tank + explosive reactive armor can reach a defense level of 900 mm, and the armor of K2PL should be higher than K2, but there is a lack of detailed data, but from the appearance of the investigation, The K2PL's composite armor and explosive reactive armor layout are more reasonable, and with the application of soft/hard active protection systems and grille armor, the defense capability has certainly been enhanced.
■ K2PL main battle tank model on display at the Kielce Security Defense Exhibition.
■ K2PL main battle tank hull is equipped with grille armor at the rear, which can improve the ability to resist anti-tank rockets or anti-tank missiles.
According to Romte, the K2PL tank will continue to use the K2's power and transmission system, but in view of the increase in the total weight of the battle to 60 tons, it is bound to lead to a decrease in unit power and weaken mobility.
The K2 powertrain is a German MTU MT-883 Ka500 four-stroke 12-cylinder water-cooled diesel engine with a maximum power of 1103 kW, the transmission system is a German HSWL-295 gearbox, and the K2 has a maximum road speed of 70 km/h and a maximum travel of 450 km.
South Korea has also worked hard to realize the localization of tank power systems, such as the DV27K 12-cylinder water-cooled diesel engine developed by Doosan corporation and the EST15K automatic transmission developed by South Korea Science and Technology Power Company, but the technical level is far less than that of German products, so it can be inferred that K2PL will still be made in Germany, otherwise it is difficult to ensure maneuverability in the case of increased vehicle weight.
■ The K2PL main battle tank model is in the distance and the K2 main battle tank model in the near distance, and the difference between the two can be observed.
In terms of firepower, the K2PL still uses the German RH-120 L55 120 mm smoothbore gun, which is basically the same as the Leopard II and the upcoming M1A2 in service in Poland. South Korea does not yet have the ability to independently develop tank guns, so it can only honestly take the "take-ism" route.
However, thanks to the redesigned turret, the ammunition base of the K2PL may be increased to 40 to 45 rounds. The K2PL is equipped with a 7.62 mm parallel machine gun with an ammunition base of 1250 rounds, and a 12.7 mm NSVT anti-aircraft machine gun on the captain's hatch with an ammunition base of 500 rounds.
Romut has not yet released the details of K2PL's fire control system to the outside world, but according to the temperament of the Polish Army, it will definitely choose Western products and abandon the less than satisfactory Korean goods.
■ The Korean K2 main battle tank is mainly fired, and the K2PL is also equipped with the same German-made 120 mm tank gun.
Russia and Ukraine have made a bitter deal with South Korea
The original purpose of Poland's "Wolf" program was to share a piece of the European defense market, but with the rejection of joining the European fourth-generation main battle tank project, the leopard IIA6/A7 tank procurement cost was too high and other factors, it was finally put into the arms of the United States, decided to purchase 250 M1A2 main battle tanks, its advanced performance is beyond doubt, so it is also regarded as the main equipment of the future by the Polish Army.
According to the transaction process, there was originally no Korean thing, but the outbreak and protracted war between russia and ukraine made it difficult for the American General Dynamics company to deliver spot to Poland in the short term, which was unexpected by the Poles.
■ The U.S.-made M1A2 SEPV3 main battle tank in test, despite its advanced performance, is far from being delivered.
On the other hand, after the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, in order to show its support and sympathy for Ukraine, the Polish government took the lead in assisting 236 T-72M1/MR main battle tanks with a big stroke, which won the applause of the West.
In order to ensure that the combat effectiveness of its armored forces does not decline, Poland and Germany have developed an armament replacement plan, that is, Germany will provide armored vehicles to fill the gap left by the Polish army due to tank assistance.
However, the cautious Germans delivered only a small number of Leopard tanks to Poland, and most of these tanks, except for a few Leopard II, were long outdated Leopard I, which greatly ignited the Poles, and the two governments began to talk about it, accusing each other of having no spirit of contract.
■ The German Leopard 2A7 main battle tank painted in desert camouflage is expensive to purchase, which is prohibitive for the Polish government.
Germany's promised replacement equipment was delayed, and Poland was eager to fill the gap in armored forces and ensure national security, which allowed the South Koreans to successfully pick up the leak and take the big order.
In addition, the good cooperative relations between Poland and South Korea in the field of arms procurement are also important factors in promoting this transaction. In 2015, Poland purchased 24 K9 self-propelled guns from South Korea, and the following year introduced 90 K9 self-propelled guns chassis for the mass production of its own "Crab" self-propelled guns, the above business exchanges made the Polish government leave a good impression on South Korean equipment, coupled with the excellent technical integration ability of South Korean defense companies, relatively low prices and successful export strategies, and finally let this windfall fall into the pockets of Koreans.
According to the usage practice of the Polish Army, the South Korean K2PL main battle tank will form a high and low match with the AMERICAN M1A2 tank in the future.
■ The Korean K9 self-propelled gun located at the booth, Poland has established a good arms sales relationship with South Korea through the purchase of the K9 self-propelled gun.
epilogue
Just as the so-called plan can not catch up with the changes, after the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the Polish government intends to maximize its interests through "fishing in muddy waters", adhering to the Western intention to vigorously aid Ukraine, but it is played by the Western powers with deep calculations, and the wishful thinking is almost frustrated, forced to accept the olive branch thrown by the South Koreans, and use the K2PL main battle tank as the future main battle equipment.
It should be pointed out that whether the actual performance of the K2PL main battle tank can be as powerful as ROMT claims is still unknown. If the South Koreans hadn't bragged (which is unlikely), the Poles hadn't spent money in vain, and if K2PL had no paper data and no real combat power, it would have been the beginning of a disaster for the Polish Army...
■ It remains to be seen whether the South Korean K2PL main battle tank can become the main combat vehicle of the Polish Army.