Eitan AFV

Last updated
Eitan
Eytan -- Our-IDF-2018-IZE-200 (43053775600) (cropped).jpg
Type Armoured fighting vehicle
Place of originFlag of Israel.svg  Israel
Flag of the United States.svg  USA [1]
Service history
In serviceSince May 2023 [2]
Used by Flag of Israel.svg Israel Defense Forces
Wars 2023 Israel-Hamas war
Production history
DesignerMinistry’s Tank Development Program Directorate (Mantak)
Designed2016
Manufacturer Flag of the United States.svg 60 % Oshkosh, Allison

Flag of Israel.svg Elbit, Plasan, Rafael

Flag of Germany.svg MTU
Unit costUSD $3 million [3]
ProducedSince 2020 (serial production) [4]
Variants Armoured personnel carrier  ;
Infantry fighting vehicle
Specifications
Mass30–35 tonnes
Length8.0 m (26.2 ft)
Width3.0 m (9.8 ft)
Height3.0 m (9.8 ft)
Crew3 (commander, driver, RCWS operator) [5]
Passengers9 troops

Armor Iron Fist Light Decoupled APS
Main
armament
Samson RCWS (Katlanit) with a M2 machine gun (APC variant)
Secondary
armament
Pintle-mounted 7.62mm NATO machine gun (APC variant)
Engine MTU 6V890 diesel engine [6] 6.67-litre
750  PS (552  kW)
TransmissionAllison 4800 SP
Suspension8x8
Operational
range
1,000 km (620 mi)
Maximum speed 90 km/h (56 mph)

Eitan (Hebrew for "steadfast", "firm" or "strong") is an armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) developed by the Merkava and Armoured Vehicles Directorate in the IMOD to replace the ageing M113 armoured personnel carrier in use by the Israel Defense Forces. [7] Its armored personnel carrier (APC) variant lacks the Iron Fist APS, due to the fact those are not the serial production Eitan vehicles yet. The infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) variant is still not in service.

Contents

Overview

An Eitan of the Nahal Brigade in 2020 Nahal Brigade, 2020. XIII.jpg
An Eitan of the Nahal Brigade in 2020

The Eitan is an 8-wheeled vehicle much lighter than the Namer, weighing less than 35 tons, [8] fitted with the Iron Fist Light Decoupled active protection system. [9] The AFV has a top speed of 90 km/h and can carry up to 12 soldiers including 3 crew. The Eitan can be equipped with a 30–40 mm gun and a missile firing position with 2 Spike missiles. [10] The armour is rated to the standard STANAG 4569 level 4.

The Eitan will replace hundreds of M113 APC currently in service. [11] According to Brigadier General Baruch Matzliah, the vehicle will complement, not replace, the Namer tracked APC; [12] as a wheeled vehicle, it will cost half as much as the Namer ($3 million) and, unlike tracked vehicles, can transport infantry squads on roads without relying on tank transporters.

The Eitan has the capability to use run-flat tires and is designed with a NERA composite armour and high floor to protect from landmine and IED blast effects. [11] The first Eitan AFV was unveiled on August 1, 2016. [13]

Serial production started in 2022, and the Nahal Brigade became the first Israeli infantry unit to receive the Eitan in May 2023. [14] The brigade first used the Eitan during the Battle of Zikim on 7 October 2023, and there were plans to use the vehicle in the subsequent invasion of the Gaza Strip. [15]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M113 armored personnel carrier</span> Armored personnel carrier

The M113 is a fully tracked armored personnel carrier (APC) that was developed and produced by the FMC Corporation. The M113 was sent to United States Army Europe in 1961 to replace the mechanized infantry's M59 APCs. The M113 was first used in combat in April 1962 after the United States provided the South Vietnamese army (ARVN) with heavy weaponry such as the M113, under the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) program. Eventually, the M113 was the most widely used armored vehicle of the U.S. Army in the Vietnam War and was used to break through heavy thickets in the midst of the jungle to attack and overrun enemy positions. It was largely known as an "APC" or an "ACAV" by the allied forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mowag Piranha</span> Swiss armoured fighting vehicle

The Mowag Piranha is a family of armoured fighting vehicles designed by the Swiss company Mowag.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AVGP</span> Armoured fighting vehicle

The AVGP, later known as the LAV I, is a series of three amphibious armoured fighting vehicles ordered by the Canadian military in the 1970s. The vehicles, named Grizzly, Cougar and Husky respectively, were based on the six-wheeled version of the Swiss Mowag Piranha I, and became the first generation Light Armoured Vehicle produced by General Motors Diesel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VBCI</span> French wheeled infantry fighting vehicle

The véhicule blindé de combat d'infanterie or VBCI is a French Infantry fighting vehicle designed and manufactured by GIAT Industries and Renault Trucks Defense to replace the AMX-10P. The first units entered active service with the French Army in 2008. 630 units were ordered and full delivery was completed in 2018. They are available in two core variants, the VCI infantry fighting vehicle and the VPC command post vehicle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iron Fist (countermeasure)</span> Israeli active protection system for armored fighting vehicles

Iron Fist is a hard-kill active protection system (APS) designed by Israel Military Industries (IMI), with a modular design allowing adaptation to a range of platforms ranging from light utility vehicles to heavy armoured fighting vehicles. The concept was revealed by IMI in 2006 and was expected to enter Israel Defense Forces tests by mid-2007. The system has been successfully tested against a wide variety of threats including rocket-propelled grenades, anti-tank guided missiles and tank-fired high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) ammunition and kinetic energy penetrators.

Plasan is an Israeli-based company that now specializes in survivability solutions for all domains, the design, development and manufacture of protected vehicles, and most recently maneuvering robotics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saur 1</span> Romanian wheeled armoured vehicle

The Saur 1 is an armoured personnel carrier developed by the Romanian company ROMARM in 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armoured personnel carrier</span> Transport vehicle for combat zones

An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Namer</span> Israeli heavy armoured personnel carrier

Namer is an Israeli armoured personnel carrier based on a Merkava Mark IV tank chassis. Namer was developed by and is being assembled by the Israeli Ordnance Corps. It has entered service in limited numbers with the Israel Defense Forces since the end of 2008. Due to budgetary constraints, the introduction of the Namer into the IDF has been slow, leaving the ground forces dependent on the M113 until 2027.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mowag Piranha V</span> Infantry Fighting Vehicle

The Piranha V infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) is the fifth generation variant of the Mowag Piranha family of vehicles. It was designed by General Dynamics European Land Systems - Mowag GmbH. The first prototype was completed in 2008. It was first introduced during the Eurosatory exhibition in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Win</span> Infantry mobility vehicle

First Win is a mine-resistant ambush protected infantry mobility vehicle with an all-welded steel monocoque V-hull that provides high level protection against a variety of battlefield threats, including mines and improvised explosive devices. Gross vehicle weight is about nine tonnes and it can carry up to 10 troops plus driver.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Freccia IFV</span> Italian wheeled infantry fighting vehicle

The VBM – Freccia is a family of 8x8 armoured vehicles that was designed and manufactured for the Italian Army by IVECO for the hull, the engine and the suspension, and OTO Melara for the armament. The first variant to be developed was the IFV, the Freccia being equipped with a Hitfist turret, the same as the one installed on the Dardo IFV.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Typhoon (armored fighting vehicles family)</span> Russian family of MRAP armored fighting vehicles

Typhoon is a Russian family of Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) armored fighting vehicles (AFVs) in service since 2014. Around 120 Russian companies including KamAZ, Gaz-Group, and Bauman University, etc. are taking part in Typhoon program. The main aim of the program is to design a unified platform for all Russian armored wheeled vehicles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TATA Kestrel</span> Wheeled armored personnel carrier

The TATA Kestrel, also known as the IPMV , a variant of DRDO developed WhAP, is a family of armoured personnel carriers developed by Tata Advanced Systems and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). It was developed to replace Soviet-era BMP-1 and BMP-2 and APCs in service with the Indian Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dawsar</span> Jordanian heavy armored personnel carrier

Dawsar or MAP II is a heavily armored personnel carrier developed by King Abdullah Design and Development Bureau. It is based on Tariq main battle tank, an upgraded version of Centurion. The Jordanian Army received four of these vehicles in 2014.

The Light Armoured Vehicle (LAV) is a series of armoured vehicles built by General Dynamics Land Systems – Canada (GDLS-C), a London, Ontario-based subsidiary of General Dynamics. It is a license-produced version of the Mowag Piranha. The first generation of LAV was created by Mowag for the Armoured Vehicle General Purpose (AVGP) requirement of the Canadian Army. This was a 6x6 variant of the Piranha I produced by General Motors Diesel in London, Ontario. Since entering service in 1976, it has undergone a number of upgrades. The LAV II introduced the now-familiar 8x8 configuration. The LAV continues to form the backbone of the Canadian Army's combat vehicle fleet. The LAV series of vehicles exist in a number of different variants and are used in a number of different roles such as armoured personnel carriers, engineering vehicles, command posts, ambulances and armoured recovery vehicles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mildef Tarantula HMAV</span> Armoured personnel carrier / Mine-resistant ambush protected

The Mildef Tarantula HMAV is a Malaysian 4×4 V-hull mine-resistant infantry mobility vehicle that provides high level protection against a variety of battlefield threats such as mines and improvised explosive devices. The vehicle was designed and manufactured by Mildef International Technologies alongside Science Technology Research Institute for Defense (STRIDE) and the Malaysian Armed Forces. It was first launched on 11 February 2021.

General Dynamics European Land Systems (GDLS) is an automotive and arms manufacturer spread across Europe, with a headquarter in Madrid, Spain. It is a business unit of General Dynamics which consolidated in one structure all European subsidiaries of GDLS.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BOV 8x8 Patria</span> Infantry fighting vehicle

The BOV 8x8 Patria is an 8×8 multi-role military vehicle produced by Patria Land oy., a Konštrukta – Defence company, in Dubnica nad Váhom with cooperation with DMD group and ZTS špeciál. The vehicle is a licensed variant of the Finnish Patria AMVxp.

References

  1. "Israel announces serial production of new advanced 'Eitan' APC". The Times of Israel.
  2. "Israel Defense Forces Takes Delivery of Eitan Armored Fighting Vehicles". militaryleak .
  3. "Eitan". militarytoday.
  4. "Defense Ministry begins serial production of the IDF's Eitan APC". The Jerusalem Post.
  5. BECKHUSEN, Robert (6 August 2016). "Israel's Next Troop Taxi Is a Giant, Armored Carapace". War Is Boring. Archived from the original on 25 August 2016. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
  6. "Oshkosh Defense to Produce Hundreds of Eitan Armored Vehicles for Israel". Defense Update.
  7. Fabian, Emanuel. "Defense Ministry to deliver first new advanced 'Eitan' APC to IDF". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  8. Opall, Barbara (4 August 2016). "Israel Unveils Wheeled, Actively Protected Armored Carrier". Defense News. Retrieved 4 August 2016.[ dead link ]
  9. Israeli Ministry of Defense Selects Elbit Systems' Iron Fist Light Decoupled Active Protection System for the Eitan AFV. PRNewswire. 20 August 2019.
  10. "Israel unveils its first wheeled APC". Globes. 8 January 2016.
  11. 1 2 Eshel, Tamir (1 August 2016). "Israel Develops a Highly Protected APC to Replace Thousands of M-113 'Tin Cans'". Defense Update. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
  12. Lappin, Yaakov (4 August 2016). "Israel unveils first wheeled APC". IHS Janes. Archived from the original on 2016-08-04. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
  13. Lapin, Yaakov (1 August 2016). "The Eitan APC will come with an active protection system, and its high speed will enable rapid deployment of forces between North and South. armor STANAG 4569 level 4". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
  14. First Eitan wheeled APCs delivered to Israel’s IDF. Breaking Defense. 31 May 2023.
  15. "טבילת האש הראשונה: נגמ"ש "האיתן" חיסל מחבלים בחוף זיקים" (in Hebrew). Walla! News. October 18, 2023.