Al Hussein Hybrid MBT
In 2004 the King Abdullah II Design and Development Bureau showed the Al Hussein Hybrid MBT with mock-ups of some of the key subsystems.
The Jordanian Armed Forces have now taken delivery of 402 ex-British Army Challenger 1 MBTs armed with a 120 mm L11 rifled tank gun for which there has been no recent ammunition development.
Al Hussein Hybrid is based on a Challenger 1 MBT with many enhancements, especially to the turret system (Christopher F Foss)
The 120 mm L11 gun has been removed and replaced by a Swiss RUAG Land Systems 120 mm smoothbore Compact Tank Gun (CTG), which has already undergone extensive trials for a number of applications in Switzerland and Jordan (including the M60 Phoenix upgrade).
Ammunition for the CTG is available from numerous sources and a number of countries have ongoing development programmes for enhanced types of ammunition.
The existing Marconi fire-control system has been removed and replaced by the latest Raytheon IFCS, which is already used in a large number of Jordanian Army M60A3 MBTs. This includes a day/thermal sight for the gunner with integrated laser range-finder.
Mounted on the left side of the Al Hussein Hybrid turret roof was a mock-up of a Commander's Independent Thermal Viewer (CITV), which could be provided by a number of contractors. If fitted this would enable hunter killer target engagements to be carried out. The commander would first locate the target, track it and then hand over to the gunner who would carry out the target engagement.
Al Hussein retains the Chobham armour but the Al Hussein Hybrid would be fitted with additional armour protection to the turret front and sides for improved battlefield survivability.
The existing gun-control equipment would be replaced by a new Curtiss-Wright all-electric system and a new Raytech Jordan wiring harness would also be installed, as well as a CLS Jordan AB8 auxiliary power unit (APU).
Equipment removed from the turret bustle would have to be restowed and a new air conditioning and NBC system would be fitted.
If fielded, Al Hussein Hybrid would give the JAF a significant short-term capability enhancement with a much lower level of risk when compared to Falcon II.
Many of the subsystems of the Al Hussein Hybrid are already proven and in service with the JAF, for example the Raytheon IFCS.
Mounted in the turret bustle is the new mechanical load-assist system developed by Claverham, which replaces the current bustle-mounted NBC system that is restowed in the hull.
Early in 2005, the King Abdullah II Design and Development Bureau announced that initial firing trials of a RUAG Land Systems 120 mm L50 smoothbore CTG had been completed.
These trials were undertaken at Thun in Switzerland, at the facilities of RUAG Land Systems, and were conducted from a Challenger 1 with an unarmoured or soft-skinned turret supplied by the UK MoD.
In March 2006 it was announced that the Jordanian Armed Forces had placed a contract with KADDB for the supply of four production standard Al Hussein Hybrid MBTs. Funding permitting, all of the current Al Hussein MBTs could be converted to the enhanced Al Hussein Hybrid MBT standard.
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