Defence Industry of Pakistan HIT will unveiled the new MRAP Burraq in the next few months 2003133

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Defence News - Pakistan
 
 
Wednesday, March 20, 2013, 11:25 AM
 
Defence Industry of Pakistan HIT will unveiled the new MRAP Burraq in the next few months.
A spokesperson for Pakistan’s state-owned vehicle manufacturer, Heavy Industries Taxila (HIT), has confirmed that its Burraq mine-resistant, ambush-protected (MRAP) vehicle is nearing the end of its prototype phase and will be unveiled in “three to four months.” The announcement comes after years of development and failed efforts to acquire such a vehicle from other sources.
     

Burraq MRAP Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle is designed and developed by the Heavy Industries Taxila of Pakistan.
     

Initial efforts to counter the IED threat by acquiring MRAP vehicles from the U.S. were unsuccessful because of the high cost of overseas options, said Haris Khan of the Pakistan Military Consortium. Therefore, during the initial anti-Taliban operations, troop movements were carried out in soft-skinned vehicles (trucks and pick-ups), which offered no protection against small-arms, sniper, mine, IED and RPG-7 attacks.

To counter the IED/mine menace, HIT developed the Burraq, a four-wheel-drive MRAP first seen on state media briefly in February 2010.

Heavy Industries Taxila (abbreviated HIT) is the backbone of Pakistan's engineering industry for the Pakistan Armed Forces, being a combination of multiple industries that has grown into a large military complex since 1980. It consists of six major production units and their support facilities.

The new Burraq MRAP is based on a commercial truck chassis ISUZU NPS-75 to reduce the cost of the vehicle production and facilitates the delivery of spare parts.

To improve the mine protection, the Burraq MRAP uses a V-shaped hull to increase vehicle and crew survivability by deflecting an upward directed blast from a landmine (or Improvised Explosive Device) away from the vehicle. The troop's compartment provides a protection against ballistic threats up to 12.7mm caliber. The vehicle can be fitted with add-on armour to withstand 14.5mm or even RPG-7 rounds.

For its self-protection, the Burraq MRAP is equipped with a remote-controlled weapon station armed with a 12.7mm machine gun.