Swedish Strv 122 main battle tank gets Israeli M339 120mm ammo
STOCKHOL, ($1=9.45 Swedish Kronas) — The Swedish Ministry of Defense will pay approximately $27 million to arm its main battle tank Stridsvagn 122 [Strv 122] with Israeli M339 projectiles manufactured by Elbit Systems. The news was announced by the Israeli company, and the deal includes Data Setting Units [DSU]. Elbit Systems is expected to deliver what was ordered by the Swedish Ministry of Defense by the end of this year, by January 2023 at the most.
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M339 is a 120mm ammunition made to the standard of the US Army and NATO forces. The ammunition is designed for smoothbore guns and artillery, which are made to the same standards. According to Yehuda [Woody] Vered, the general manager of Elbit Systems Land M339 not only meets the requirements of the Swedish army but will significantly improve the accuracy and firepower of the Swedish main battle tank Strv 122 when operating on the battlefield and hit different types enemy targets.
Yehuda Vered also said that the choice of M339 is another proof of the quality of Israeli products and specifically those of the portfolio of Elbit Systems.
Stridsvagn 122 or Strv 122
Stridsvagn 122 [Strv 122] is a 120mm main battle tank of the Swedish Armed Forces, which is designed by the German battle tank Leopard 2A5. It can be said that the Strv 122 is a budget tank, as its unit price is within $5.7 million – a value that makes it cheaper than the American M1A2 Abrams, the German Leopard 2A5, and the British Challenger 2. Only the Russian tank in the same category T-90 costs a little over a million USD cheaper.
Strv 122 weighs 62.5 tons and is nearly 10 meters long. It is 3 meters high and is managed by a crew of 3 people. The bumper of the tank is a third-generation composite, including high-hardness steel, tungsten, and plastic filler with a ceramic component. The tank is powered by the German MTU MB 873 Ka-501 liquid-cooled V-12 Twin-turbo diesel engine, which provides 1,500 hp, top speed of 68 km / h, and a range of 550 km.
The main gun of the Strv 122 is the German 120 mm Rheinmetall L / 44 smoothbore gun. In addition, there are two 7.62mm machine guns attached to the tank turret. The tank has a total of four GALIX smoke grenade launchers – two on each side.
Main characteristics
The third-generation composite reinforced armor provides the tank with protection from portable anti-tank weapons. Strv 122 also has protection systems against chemical, biological and radioactive weapons.
The tank can wade through water up to 1.4 meters deep. The laser rangefinder integrated into the command unit allows the crew to quickly detect, identify, track, and lock on enemy targets in a very short time.
In addition to a laser rangefinder, integrated systems are providing a thermographic camera and a speed/distance/accuracy calculator.
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