The first delivery of the MAV (Marine Assault Vehicle, ZAHA) to the Turkish Naval Forces Command, Amphibious Marine Brigade announced on March 25, 2023. MAV is developed within the scope of the Turkish Defence Industry Agency (SSB) program to meet the amphibious armoured vehicle needs of the Turkish Naval Forces Command. FNSS will deliver a total of 27 vehicles, 23 of which are personnel carriers, 2 command and control vehicles and 2 recovery vehicles. FNSS is breaking new ground with MAV which is the first amphibious vehicle in Turkish Armed Forces inventory that is capable of self-righting in case of capsizing and operating at sea in harsh weather conditions. The new MAV’s entering in service will operate within the new landing helicopter dock (LHD) TCG-ANADOLU.
MAV has higher ballistic and mine protection compared to its predecessors and is equipped with today’s most advanced mission equipment. Dual role by definition, the MAV offers high performance both on land and water operations. Very few countries have this capability in inventory and FNSS is the only supplier in NATO within an operating production line to produce type of vehicles. MAV is fitted with CAKA Remote Controlled Turret with the ability to carry a maximum load of ready-to-fire rounds and ballistic protection. FNSS CAKA RWS offers grater advantages with its; light weight, better protection for the gunner, target acquisition, automatic target tracking, stabilisation, reliability, accuracy and increased usable internal volume inside the vehicle.
The MAV is equipped with a diesel engine to power pack mounted on the forward hull. If required the ZAHA can move on the water by spinning its tracks, though at a significantly reduced speed. This amphibious APC is powered by a diesel engine, developing around 500 hp. The engine compartment is located at the front. The engine is mated to an automatic transmission. Propulsion on the water is provided by 2 waterjets located at the rear. The maximum speed on water is 13 km/h. The engine drives a fully-automatic transmission system. In amphibious mode, the vehicle is propelled by two rear-mounted water jets. A unique hull design and powerful water jets make the MAV highly mobile in the water with a speed of 7 knots, as well as on land, at 70 km/h maximum speed.
The MAV was developed by FNSS to meet the requirement of the Turkish Navy. Turkey is one of only a small number of countries to have the capacity and infrastructure to produce this type of combat vehicle. FNSS will deliver a total of 27 vehicles, 23 of which are personnel carriers, 2 of which are command and control vehicles and 2 of which are rescue vehicles. The first vehicle will be delivered within 2021 after completing the qualification tests. The project will be completed in 2022. During the past 2 years, many engineering tests and subsystem qualifications have been successfully completed with the prototype vehicle, such as durability, performance at sea, performance on land, self-righting, which are rehearsals of the qualification tests to be carried out with the Presidency of Defence Industries and Navy.
