Turkish company Aselsan unveils its Alkar 81 mm mortar weapon system (MWS), a weapon system integrating into a turret an 81 mm mortar system, an automatic barrel guidance system, an automatic ammunition loading system, a recoil mechanism and a fire control system. The mortar weapon system has completed development using internal research and development funding. The Alkar 81 mm MWS leverages on experience gained from the development of the earlier Alkar 120 mm rifled MWS, which is already in service with the Turkish Gendarmerie, integrated into the rear of the locally produced 4×4 BMC Vuran mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) vehicle.
The Alkar 81 mm comprises the automatic barrel laying system (ABLS), recoil mechanism, and computerised fire-control system (FCS). The accurate position and barrel orientation detection is ensured by the Ateletsel Positioning System that uses a mission-oriented, colorful, graphical user interface. Alkar offers fast and precise ballistic calculation with NATO Armaments Ballistic Kernel (NABK). Meteorological information can be received by digital communication. The system can display battlefield elements/information on a digital map. It can be integrated with a forward observer, target detection radars and TOMES meteorology systems.
It is fitted with an 81 mm smoothbore mortar barrel with a length of 1.6 m, with a minimum range of 100 m and a maximum range of 6,400 m depending on the projectile/charge combination. Alkar, which can fire any kind of Turkish or foreign production 81 mm mortar barrels with or without grooves, can be integrated into tracked or wheeled vehicles and fixed platforms thanks to its modular system architecture. Firing can be done in manual or automatic mode. The mortar system has an overall footprint of 1.85×0.85×1.02 m and can be installed on armoured and soft-skinned platforms.
The mortar system has an overall footprint of 1.85×0.85×1.02 m and can be installed on armoured and soft-skinned platforms. It was integrated onto the rear of an unarmoured long-wheelbase 4×4 Land Rover Defender for trials, although comparable platforms such as the 4×4 Toyota Land Cruiser could also be used. The turntable-mounted 81 mm mortar features an electrically powered traverse of 180° in azimuth with elevation limits from 45° to 85°. It can be traversed manually if power fails. The Alkar 81 mm can come into action and fire its first 81 mm mortar bomb within one minute and can come out of action within 10 seconds to escape counter-battery fire.
