FNSS, the joint venture owned 51 percent by Nurol Holding and 49 percent by BAE Systems Inc., has confirmed that it will hand over the Pars 4×4 anti-tank vehicle (ATV) prototype to the Turkish Land Forces Command (TLFC) for qualification once company trials have been completed. Developed under a contract from the Turkish Land Forces that ordered 260 vehicles, this number also including a tracked vehicle, the Kaplan-ATV, also under development by FNSS; the actual split will see 76 wheeled and 184 tracked produced. The company has built an additional example of each vehicle as part of its risk reduction programme in addition to the initial prototype, with these available for company demonstrations.
FNSS being mostly in charge of turret and systems integration; Nurol Makina, a specialist in 4×4 vehicles, will also be the one producing the vehicle. The wheeled and tracked vehicles as well as the Remote Controlled Anti-Tank Turret (RCAT), also designed and produced by FNSS, were presented to the customer in early 2018, according to scheduling, the turret being the same for both vehicles. Long lead items have already been ordered to enable production of the Pars 4×4 ATV to commence in 2019 with final deliveries to the TLFC expected in late 2021.
The FNSS Anti-Tank Remote Controlled Turret (ARCT) armed with two anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) that are mounted either side of the sighting system. The turret also carries a coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun provided with 500 rounds of ready-use ammunition. The ARCT can be equipped with both KORNET-E and OMTAS ATGM missiles. Once the two missiles have been launched the vehicle will relocate to new firing positions. Missile reloads are performed manually via the oblong roof hatch. The stabilised sighting system includes a TV camera, thermal camera, and laser rangefinder with a maximum range of 10,000 m to ensure that targets are engaged within the effective range of the ATGM. Traverse of the ARCT is all electric through 360° with elevation from -25° to +25°. Elevation and traverse is performed at a maximum speed of 60°/s.
The FNSS PARS 4X4 has a power-to-weight ratio of 25 Hp/ton, a low silhouette and amphibious capabilities. The vehicle with its crew of 4 can operate in water that is deep and fast-flowing without any preliminary preparation. The vehicle’s enhanced maneuverability in the water is provided by two propellers located at the rear. The vehicle is especially noteworthy due to its load carrying capacity, its open architecture features and the way it was designed to accommodate the equipment that is used in the vehicle in order to carry out different missions and meet user requirements. The PARS 4X4 can be transported using any kind of military transport aircraft including the CH-47 Chinook heavy load helicopter.
