The Republic of Korea Army (ROKA) K2 Black Panther tank are crossing a river depth of 4.1 meters using snorkel system. The vehicle can cross rivers which also serves as a conning tower for the tank commander. The system takes approximately 20~30 minutes to prepare. The turret becomes watertight while fording, but the chassis can take in 500 gallons of water to prevent excessive buoyancy from air inside the vehicle and keep the tracks planted firmly on the ground. Furthermore, the main battle tank can enter combat-ready status as soon as it resurfaces. The South Korean-made K2 Black Panthers can cross a river as deep as 4.1 meters without the help of an engineering team, so they can carry out river-crossing operations in almost all areas of South Korea.
The K2 Black Panther is a next generation South Korean main battle tank designed by the South Korean Agency for Defense Development and manufactured by Hyundai Rotem. Developed as a modern main battle tank that will replace most of the remaining M48 Patton tanks and complement the K1 series of main battle tanks currently fielded by the South Korean military, the K2 Black Panther combines an auto-loaded 55 calibre 120 mm main gun, advanced composite armour along with hard and soft-kill active protection systems. Mass production commenced in 2013 and the first K2s were deployed with the armed forces in June 2014. The K2 Black Panther costs over US$8.5 million per unit, making it one of the most expensive main battle tanks in service, of any nation.
