Indonesian defense company PT Pindad has completed sea firing trails of its Tank Boat, an armored fast-attack catamaran armed with a 30mm cannon and smaller weapons. The project was implemented by a consortium led by PT Pindad. The other companies involved are PT Lundin Industry Invest, PT Len Industri (Persero), and PT Hariff. The ‘Tank Boat’ was conceptualized by the Indonesian Armed Forces for close-in and long-range direct fire support in normally inaccessible to carry out swamp, sea, river and coastal operations.
The tank boat test-fired its 30 mm automatic cannon at the Indonesian Navy’s Paiton weapons range after having travelled there from Banyuwangi. The Tank Boat launched by PT Pindad is armed with a CPWS weapon station armed with one 30 mm automatic cannon which is mounted on the crew cabin. The second armament of the ship includes two heavy 12.7mm machine guns. After the shooting, the Tank Boat continued the Sea Trial activity by returning to the Banyuwangi pier on Saturday, 22 May 2021. The total distance traveled was 170 Nautical miles, the manufacturer said in a statement.
The Tank Boat can also be armed with a John Cockerill 3105 weapon station armed with a Cockerill 105mm HP Gun. This system is based on a versatile and powerful high-pressure low recoil-force 105mm gun. Fully stabilised, accurate by day or night, and able to use a wide range of NATO standard 105mm ammunition, this weapon system directly engages a broad spectrum of targets at up to 5,000m range, and indirectly engages targets to 10,000m range. The 105mm is also capable of firing the Cockerill Falarick 105 Gun Launched Anti-Tank Guided Missile (GLATGM).
The tank boat can carry 60 personnel and 5 crew, has a maximum speed of 40 knots and a cruising range of up to 600 Nautical miles. Fitted with high performance diesel engines and water jet propulsion, the twin hull configuration has excellent sea keeping properties and the added advantage of shallow draft. Giving it the ability to execute beach and river landings and insert or extract squads of up to 20 Special Forces or Marines. The X18 Tank Boat has a crew of 6, and will also carry a High-speed Interdiction RIB for boarding and SEAL insertion.
The tank boat is derived from the platform X18 of Indonesian boatbuilder PT Lundin Industry Invest. In 2014, PT Lundin unveiled a design for the 18-meter vessel, and it has joined forces with state owned defense corporation PT Pindad, electronics group PT Len and engineering firm PT Hariff to develop the concept. At the Indo Defense 2016 exhibition in Jakarta, a full-scale mock-up of the tank boat with high-pressure low recoil-force 105mm gun was first made public. The prototype augmented with a Bofors LEMUR Remote Weapons Systems incorporating 7.62 – 30 mm GPMG/ Cannon.
