Type 05 amphibious fighting vehicle

Type 05 Amphibious Fighting Vehicle
ZBD-05 / ZTD-05
A ZBD-05 in Beijing, practicing for a parade.
Type Amphibious Fighting Vehicle
Place of origin China
Service history
Used by See Operators
Production history
Manufacturer Norinco
Produced 2006
Specifications
Weight 26.5 t3.04 metres (10.0 ft)[1]
Length Hull: 9.5 metres (31 ft)[1]
Width Hull: 3.36 metres (11.0 ft)[1]
Height Hull: 3.04 metres (10.0 ft)[1]
Crew 3 (IFV), 4 (Light Tank)
Passengers 8
Armor Aluminium
Main
armament
 IFV 30mm ZPT-99 (2A72) cannon turret
105mm L7 rifled gun
Remote controlled weapon station featuring 12.7 mm MG with HJ-8 missiles
Secondary
armament
 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine gun, 7.62mm coaxial machine gun
Engine diesel
550 hp (land), 1475 hp (water)
Suspension torsion bar, retractable suspension units
Operational
range
 500 km
Speed 65 km/h on land
28km/h (ZBD-05) on water[2][3]

The Type 05 armored fighting vehicle is a family of dedicated designed amphibious infantry fighting vehicle developed by Norinco for People's Liberation Army. The family includes ZBD-05 amphibious infantry fighting vehicle and ZTD-05 amphibious tank (assault gun) as well as several other variants including command vehicle and recovery vehicle. The vehicle could be launched at sea, from an amphibious assault ship over the horizon. It features a hydroplane, and a design concept that has been compared to the US cancelled Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) program.

As a dedicated amphibious vehicle developed for the PLA Marine Corps, the Type 05 is aiming to provide unique amphibious capability that emphasizes speed. The Assault Vehicle is a mixture of amphibious tank and assault gun, replacing the Type 63A amphibious tank introduced in the late 1990s that is becoming obsolete.

Development

The Type 05 amphibious infantry fighting vehicle uses a planing hull propelled by two water jets achieving water travelling speed much greater than any current amphibious armored vehicle in the PLA Marine Corps which is a considerable improvement over similar type of vehicle like AAV7A1 amphibious assault vehicle (AAV). On top of its enhanced speed, it has increased range of 500 km, allowing it to launch over-the-horizon assaults.

The vehicle is designed with a hydraulic-actuated bow with transom flaps, designed to aid hull skimming across the surface of the water. When activated the bow and transom flaps form a planing surface with the bottom of the hull, allowing the vehicle to go faster because hydrodynamic drag is reduced on the vehicle's hull. The ZBD2000 features a flat, boat-like hull, with 6 retractable road wheels and front/rear rollers. A welded turret is mounted in the center of the hull, with the powerpack positioned in the front and the passenger compartment in the rear.

ZBD05 vehicles appeared in military parade in 2009 and 2015. Chief designer is Chen Peng Fei from Norinco group.

Design

Armament

The Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) variant of the ZBD2000 was built to accompany the light tank variant in the battlefield in amphibious operations. The vehicle shares the same hull, but replaces the 3-man 105mm rifled gun with a 2-man 30mm cannon turret with a HJ-73C ATGM rail launcher positioned on the roof of the turret, and a 7.62mm coxial mounted machine gun. The vehicle has a crew of 3 and can carry 7-8 (Squad) armed soldiers in its passenger compartment in the rear. The 30mm cannon isn't present in any armoured vehicles within the PLA Marine Corps, indicating a possible brand new 30mm cannon design. [4]

The Assault Vehicle (light tank) variant is armed with a fully stabilised 105mm rifled gun. The 105mm rounds carried consist of armour piercing fin stabilised discarding sabot (APFSDS), high explosive (HE), and high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) rounds, and Chinese 105mm laser beam riding guidance anti-tank guided missiles (ATGM). The 105mm missile offers the capability to engage shore targets whilst still swimming at sea, where conventional ammunition would perform poorly due to the motion of sea waves. Secondary weapons for both variants include a 7.62mm coxial mounted machine gun, a 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine gun mounted on the roof of the turret near the loader, and 2 sets of 4-barrel smoke grenade launchers mounted on either side of the turret. The rear part of the turret has a storage rack for additional equipment which also provides additional protection against HEAT rounds.

Fire accuracy is attained by a computerised fire-control system (FCS), including a fire-control computer, light spot commander sight with laser rangefinder input, and light spot gunner sight with passive night vision. For all-weather amphibious assault operations, the vehicle is equipped with GPS navigation and thermal imaging system. The assault vehicle variant is operated by a crew of 4, with the driver positioned front-left of the turret, and loader, gunner, and commander occupying the turret.[1]

Protection

The vehicle has GPS, NBC protection system, day/night thermal vision for crew. The hull and the turret of the ZTD-05 are of all-welded steel armour construction, which give protection against fire of small arms and shell splinters. The upper part of the suspension is protected by armor plates.[1]

Mobility

The ZBD-05 is fully amphibious, and the vehicle is propelled by two large water jets mounted to the rear side of the hull. In the water, the engine is able to generate 1475 horsepower as well as switching to land mode with only 550 horsepower. The vehicle can run at a maximum road speed of 65 km/h and 45km/h in the water. It has a maximum cruising range of 500 km and can negotiate a gradient of 60 % and side slope of 30%. It can cross a vertical obstacle of 0.7 m and trench of 2 m. [1]

Variants

ZBD-05 Infantry Fighting Vehicle
Type 05 Infantry Fighting Vehicle (ZBD-05)
Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) variant.
Type 05 Assault Vehicle (ZTD-05)
Assault Vehicle variant.
Type 05 Command Vehicle
Equipped with communication and battle management system.
Type 05 Amphibious Recovery Vehicle
Equipped with a crane for emergency vehicle service.
VN16
Modified export variants of the ZTD-05.[5]
VN18
Modified export variants of the ZBD-05.

Operators

  •  China: Used by the PLA Marine Corp.[6]
  •  Venezuela: Adopted the VN16/18 for the Venezuelan Marines.[7]

See also

Related development
  • ZBD-03 - airborne combat vehicle developed by China
  • ZBD-04 - tracked infantry fighting vehicle developed by China
  • ZBL-08 - wheeled infantry fighting vehicle developed by China
Comparable ground systems

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Army Recognition".
  2. ↑ IHS Janes 360 - Amphibious assault http://www.janes.com/article/39536/amphibious-assault-es14e3
  3. ↑ 20180917 军工记忆Ⅱ 第三集 05式两栖装甲车族 http://tv.cctv.com/2018/09/18/VIDEJsy3rKqLA6RDvfzZr27g180918.shtml
  4. ↑ "ZBD-05 infantry fighting vehicle". AirForceWorld.com. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
  5. ↑ IHS Janes 360 - Amphibious assault http://www.janes.com/article/39536/amphibious-assault-es14e3
  6. ↑ http://www.military-today.com/tanks/zbd_2000_light_tank.htm
  7. ↑ https://plsadaptive.s3.amazonaws.com/gfiles/_6HNWEarmoured_vehicles_latin_america_market_report_2017_0.pdf?response-content-type=application/pdf&AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAICW5IOYOPOZOU3TQ&Expires=1504089371&Signature=WgNTm2ttNeK%2BLvnoltUxzMa%2BqQk%3D%5Bpermanent+dead+link%5D

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