A45 Torka

A45
The Aqqar 45 armored car
Type	Reconnaissance vehicle
Place of origin	Charnea
Service history
In service	1945 - Present
Used by	Imperial Charnean Army
Wars	Agala War Ninvite War Fahrani Civil War
Production history
Designed	1945
Manufacturer	Ikyan Corporation
Produced	1945-1990
No. built	5,000
Specifications
Weight	4,500 kg (9,900 lb)
Length	5.620 m (18 ft 5.3 in)
Width	2.260 m (7 ft 5.0 in)
Height	1.800 m (5 ft 10.9 in)
Crew	5
Armour	17mm steel on all sides 12mm balistic glass (windshield)
Main armament	see Armament
Engine	5,000 cc 6-cylinder engine 100 hp (75 kW)
Transmission	6 forward 1 reverse
Operational range	300 km (190 mi), with spare cans 1,500 km (930 mi)
Speed	84 km/h (52 mph)

The A45 (Tamashek: ⴰⵇⵇⴰⵔ 45, Aqqar 45) is an armored reconnaissance vehicle designed and built by the Ikyan Corporation to the specifications of the Imperial Charnean Army. The vehicle model has the distinction of being the first military vehicle to be domestically produced in Charnea for the ICA, comissioned and introduced into service during the Agala War. The A45 is also known as the workhorse of the ICA due to its good preformance in desert warfare, for which the vehicle has earned the informal nickname of "Dromedary" in reference to early modern camel-mounted Zamburak guns. Attempts in 1984 and in 2015 to replace the vehicle with a more modern type of armored car have failed with the A45 remaining in active service with the high mobility units of the Imperial Charnean Army including the military border guard.

Design

The A45 was initially proposed as an unarmored recon vehicle intended to increase the motorization of the ICA by replacing the use of cavalry and camelry in the reconaissance elements of army formations. The chassis, transmission and engine of the vehicle were based on the A41 armored car, a foreign design submitted for testing to fill the same role in 1941 but which was ultimatley rejected. The new vehicle would do away with the enclosed armored compartment and turret in favor of a simpler open topped design with a boat hull design. The initial recon vehicle design would be modified by request of the military to be armed and armored, leading to the addition of 17mm of armor protection to the hull capable of stopping small arms fire and rounds from automatic canons up to 20mm in caliber. For ease of manufacture and in order to maintaign the vehicle's low profile, the open topped design was maintaigned with only a collapsable canopy of waterproof canvas to protect the crew from the elements. The windshield was also equipped with ballistic glass. The fuel capacity of the vehicle was also upgraded through the addition of external racks on the hull to carry jerry cans filled with extra fuel to increase the range of the vehicle, as well as further cans filled with water to increase the range of the crew. With the added capacity, the A45 and its crew would be able to travel 1,500 kilometers before refueling and resupplying. Subsequent versions of the A45 would redesign the hull to place the water and fuel cans inside the armor protection of the hull and prevent the cans from being perforated by small arms fire. The A45 was designed to house a crew of 5, with four people seated in folding chairs attached to the hull and the driver sitting in a driver's seat on the right side of the vehicle. However, the vehicle would typically be operated by a minimal crew of 3 or 4 in order to extend the time the vehicle crew could operate on limited rations of food and especially water.

Armament

All A45 armored cars are armed with one 8mm machinegun on a raised mount in the rear of the vehicle, with an optional additional machinegun which could be mounted on a more limited swivel mount at the front of the car to the left of the driver. The main function of these weapons is to protect the vehicle by suppressing and fending off enemy infantry. These serve as the A45s secondary weapons. The primary weapon mount of the vehicle can carry either a 20mm anti-aircraft autocanon, a 20mm anti-tank rifle or a 47mm canon.

Service History

An A45 during the Agala war in southern Charnea, armed with the 47mm canon.

The A45 entered service two months into the Agala War