According to news published by the Daily Sabah website on June 23, 2020, the Turkish company FNSS has delivered 26 Kaplan tracked armored tank destroyer vehicles fitted with UMTAS turret to the Turkish army. This is the first combat vehicle that will be equipped with the UMTAS anti-tank guided missile turret designed developed by the local company Roketsan.
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FNSS Kaplan anti-tank tracked armored vehicle fitted with the Roketsan UMTAS anti-tank guided missile turret. (Picture source FNSS)
Citing Daily Sabah, the FNSS Chairman Nail Kurt said that those 26 vehicles have been delivered to date within the scope of the weapon carrier vehicles project previously inked between the Turkish Defense Industries Presidency (SSB) and the FNSS.
FNSS Chairman Nail Kurt added, that Pars 4x4 vehicles, which have also been developed under the scope of the same project are expected to be delivered with OMTAS missiles.
The Kaplan is a tracked armored vehicle fully designed and developed by the Turkish Company FNSS. The KAPLAN is a new generation of armored fighting vehicle that has the ability to move together with main battle tanks, and has a 23 hp/ton power-to-weight ratio, taking into account the weight of the communication system and the automatic transmission.
The Kaplan is motorized with a diesel engine coupled to a fully-automatic transmission system. It can run at a maximum road speed of 70 km/h with a maximum cruising range of 650 km. The vehicle is fully amphibious without any preparation and propelled in the water thanks to two rear-mounted water propulsion systems.
The Kaplan ATVS (Anti-Tank Vehicle System) has been developed specifically to be used anti-tank armored vehicle and has successfully completed firing tests performed using KORNET and UMTAS anti-tank guided missiles launched from the FNSS’ Anti-Tank Remote Controlled Turret (ARCT).
The UMTAS is an anti-tank missile developed ad manufactured by the Turkish Company Roketsan. It was primarily designed to be used on attack helicopters. The missile’s Imaging Infrared Seeker permits its use at day or night, and in adverse weather conditions, and its RF data link provides it with flexible operational capabilities. The missile can be used in fire-and-forget or fire-and-update mode with lock-on before launch or lock-on after launch capabilities.
The UMTAS turret mounted on the Kaplan armored vehicle is fitted with two ready to launch UMTAS missile launcher container. The UMTAS is an anti-tank guided missile that has a length of 1.8 m and a diameter of 160 mm and weighs 37.5 kg.
The missile has the ability to operate in both fire-and-forget and fire-and-update operation modes. The fire-and-forget mode enables the weapon to travel on its own path after illumination of the target. The noose of the missile is equipped with imaging infrared (IIR) seeker or laser seeker providing high-target accuracy.
Powered by an HTPB-based smokeless composite solid propellant, the UMTAS anti-tank missile has a firing range from 0.5 km to 8 km.
