M-95 Degman
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The M-95 ''Degman'' is a prototype
Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...
n
main battle tank A main battle tank (MBT), also known as a battle tank or universal tank or simply tank,Ogorkiewicz 2018 p222 is a tank that fills the role of armour-protected direct fire and maneuver in many modern armies. Cold War-era development of more po ...
, developed in 2003 by the ''
Äuro Äaković Äuro Äaković (30 November 1886 – 25 April 1929) was a Yugoslav metal worker, communism, communist and revolutionary. Äaković was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia, organizational secretary of the Central Commit ...
'' company and is largely based on the older M-91 Vihor tank that was based in the
M-84 The M-84 is a Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav main battle tank based on the Soviet T-72. It is still in service with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia and Kuwait. Development and production Development The ...
tank. The Äuro Äaković factory is best known for its principal role in the production of the
M-84 The M-84 is a Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav main battle tank based on the Soviet T-72. It is still in service with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia and Kuwait. Development and production Development The ...
in the Yugoslav era. The principal improvement over its predecessor M-84 is the application of spaced composite/laminate armor on top of which explosive reactive armor was added, hull front and side skirts are covered giving extra protection against
HEAT In thermodynamics, heat is energy in transfer between a thermodynamic system and its surroundings by such mechanisms as thermal conduction, electromagnetic radiation, and friction, which are microscopic in nature, involving sub-atomic, ato ...
shaped-charge munitions. A separate ammunition bustle compartment at the back of the turret adds protection for the crew if tank is hit from behind, and added protection is given by additional slat armor in form of wire mesh with chains, main purpose being to prevent any rocket propelled grenades that might be used to penetrate weakest points at the back of the tank. Äuro Äaković
thermal imaging Infrared thermography (IRT), thermal video or thermal imaging, is a process where a thermal camera captures and creates an image of an object by using infrared radiation emitted from the object in a process, which are examples of infrared im ...
allows enhanced night activity and optional engine, which increases the
power-to-weight ratio Power-to-weight ratio (PWR, also called specific power, or power-to-mass ratio) is a calculation commonly applied to engines and mobile power sources to enable the comparison of one unit or design to another. Power-to-weight ratio is a measurement ...
to approximately 27 hp/t. There are numerous smaller changes in
fire control Fire control is the practice of reducing the heat output of a fire, reducing the area over which the fire exists, or suppressing or extinguishing the fire by depriving it of fuel, oxygen, or heat (see fire triangle). Fire prevention and control ...
, communications equipment, track etc. The Degman's autoloader is 15% faster meaning 9 shells can be fired in a single minute instead of 8 shells, which is M84 norm. The Degman M-95 has not entered serial production. Two prototypes were ordered by the
Croatian Government The Government of Croatia (), formally the Government of the Republic of Croatia (), commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government (), is the main executive branch of government in Croatia. It is led by the president of the Government (), infor ...
, a M-95 model and the other M-84D sample (for export).


History, production and modernization

The M-95 Degman tank was largely based on the older M-91 Vihor tank. A full working prototype of the Vihor tank completed basic testing at the Äuro Äaković factory but due to the hostilities in mid-1991 this tank was never delivered to JNA. Äuro Äaković was already working on a second prototype (at this point the hull had been completed) but due to the hostilities work on the second Vihor prototype stalled until 1994 when it was completed with the new turret. Meanwhile, the first prototype was upgraded and modernized, a more powerful 1200 hp engine was installed which provided a higher power-to-weight ratio. A storage basket and slat armor at the back of the turret were added, increasing armour protection. A
Racal Racal Electronics plc was a British electronics company that was founded in 1950. Listed on the London Stock Exchange and once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index, Racal was a diversified company, offering products including voice recorders and ...
communication Communication is commonly defined as the transmission of information. Its precise definition is disputed and there are disagreements about whether Intention, unintentional or failed transmissions are included and whether communication not onl ...
suite was installed to improve communications range and
digital Digital usually refers to something using discrete digits, often binary digits. Businesses *Digital bank, a form of financial institution *Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) or Digital, a computer company *Digital Research (DR or DRI), a software ...
battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...
field compatibility and a new
CBRN Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear defense (CBRN defense) or Nuclear, biological, and chemical protection (NBC protection) is a class of protective measures taken in situations where chemical, biological, radiological, or nucl ...
suite was also added, the SZ 2000
CBRN Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear defense (CBRN defense) or Nuclear, biological, and chemical protection (NBC protection) is a class of protective measures taken in situations where chemical, biological, radiological, or nucl ...
suite giving substantially superior performance over the older NBC suite used on M-84 tank; for example, in nuclear or chemical/biological warfare situations, SZ-2000 shuts the engines down and automatically filters fresh air into the tank. The
optics Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of optical instruments, instruments that use or Photodetector, detect it. Optics usually describes t ...
and
fire control system A fire-control system (FCS) is a number of components working together, usually a gun data computer, a Director (military), director and radar, which is designed to assist a ranged weapon system to target, track, and hit a target. It performs th ...
was developed by Fotona, a
Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...
n company, and now comes as standard on all current Croatian and Slovene M-84 tanks. The Vihor/M95 tank received new laser range finder, LIRD-4B - a laser irradiation warning system. A Fotona/ KonÄar/Äuro Äaković digital battlefield computer has also been added to improve battlefield performance. Diehl provided new tracks giving the tank better performance both on and off-road. This project received considerable assistance from Elbit of
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
.
Explosive Reactive Armor Reactive armour is a type of vehicle armour used in protecting vehicles, especially modern tanks, against shaped charges and hardened kinetic energy penetrators. The most common type is ''explosive reactive armour'' (ERA), but variants includ ...
developed by
Elbit Elbit Systems Ltd. is an Israel-based international military technology company and defense contractor. Founded in 1966 by Elron Electronic Industries, Elron, Elbit Systems is the primary provider of the Israeli military's land-based equipme ...
is one major upgrade and gives a distinctive look to the M95 tank. Rafael -
Samson Remote Controlled Weapon Station The Samson Remote Controlled Weapon Station (RCWS), also known as Katlanit (קטלנית in Hebrew language, Hebrew: "lethal") is a remote weapon system (RWS) that enables a variety of devices to be operated automatically or by remote control, ...
which consist of a 12.7mm calibre heavy machine gun and 40 mm grenade launcher is another upgrade. This Remote Controlled Weapon Station acts also as the commander's independent thermal viewer. Additional upgrades are planned, including a new 120mm compact gun developed by RUAG Defence of
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and few additional defensive and ECM systems including
LAHAT The LAHAT (laser homing attack or laser homing anti-tank, also a Hebrew word for ''incandescence'') is a third generation semi-active laser homing low-weight anti-tank guided missile developed since 1991 and manufactured by Israel Aerospace In ...
anti tank missiles.


Deployment

Tanks are stored and not operational. There's no intention to reactivate this program.


See also

*
List of equipment of the Croatian Army This is a list of equipment in active service with the Croatian Army. Infantry Weapons Handguns Submachine guns Assault rifles Machine guns The Croatian Army selected the FN Minimi, FN Minimi Mk3 as the platoon support weapon in 7.62x51 ...
*
List of main battle tanks by generation Main battle tanks are often classified as belonging to a particular generation, although the actual definition and membership in these generations are not defined. Soviet military planners organize tanks with the first generation of tanks up to ...


References


External links

* Degman (M-95) tank video ** ** ** {{T-64_navigation, style=wide Post–Cold War main battle tanks Main battle tanks of Croatia Tanks with autoloaders Äuro Äaković (company)