ZTA-1
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| ZTA Light Tank | |
|---|---|
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| Type | Light tank |
| Place of origin |  Zacapican |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1970 |
| Used by | Zacapican |
| Production history | |
| Designer | NTT 114 |
| Manufacturer | Cuauhquetztia |
| Unit cost | 1.5 million. |
| Produced | 1970-2020 |
| No. built | 1500 |
| Variants | See Variants |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 30.5 t (30.0 long tons; 33.6 short tons) |
| Length | 6.75 m (22 ft 2 in) |
| Width | 3.25 m (10 ft 8 in) |
| Height | 2.42 m (7 ft 11 in) |
| Crew | 4 |
Main armament | 105 mm (4.13 in) NM O4 canon |
Secondary armament | 2×7.62 mm (0.30 in) machine gun |
| Engine | Ci-500 6-cylinder 22.4 L (1,370 cu in) diesel 540 kW (720 hp) |
| Power/weight | 24 hp/tonne |
| Suspension | Torsion-bar |
Operational range | 590 km (370 mi), 800 km (500 mi) with auxiliary fuel tanks |
| Speed | 75 km/h (47 mph) |
The Light Armored Vehicle (Nahuatl Zazatepoztli Acocqui) better known as the ZTA Light Tank is a Zacapine light tank design which serves as the basis for a family of armoured fighting vehicles in service with the Zacapine Armed Forces in a variety of roles. The light tank and its variants were introduced in the early 1970s as a compliment to the heavier O74 main battle tank and its derivatives. Both families of vehicles were the products of the major military modernization efforts of the mid to late 1960s which saw all aspects of the Zacapine military and its equipment revisited. As with the O74, the ZTA tank and the many vehicles based on its chassis remain in active military service in Zacapican and a number of nations around the world. The ZTA platform remained in production for 50 years before the Cuauhquetztia factories allocated to ZTA production were diverted to produce the ZTA and O74's replacement, the O17 and its new variants. Components for maintenance and sustainment will continue to be produced until such time as the Zacapine military retires its fleet of venerable ZTA vehicles.
The ZTA light tank was designed by NTT 114, the same design bureau responsible for the O17 family which is planned to replace it. At the time of the commissioning of the project by the Zacapine government in 1965, the ZTA represented the first fully indigenous design for an armored vehicle in Zacapine history. Before 1965, Zacapican had first imported the early generation of armored vehicles, then established domestic production of foreign designs, and even established semi-indigenous modifications and derivatives of foreign designs such as the O43 Nahua, but had never created a fully indigenously designed and manufactured vehicle type. The ZTA was one of many projects designed to foster autarky in the arms industry and defense-related sectors, whilst bolstering the credibility and standing of the Zacapine arms industries on the world market.
Development
Design
The hull and turret of the ZTA are made of a nickel-chromium-molybdenum steel alloy chosen for its favorable material characteristics, such as corrosion resistance and tensile strength. The turret was one of the most complicated components of the ZTA tank, taking up more development time than any other single section of the vehicle. This long development time was caused by numerous reworks and rejected proposals for the shape of the turret, which was the subject of contention within the design unit as not all the engineers could agree whether to prioritize ballistic protection or other characteristics. In the end, while ballistic protection was deemed a significant factor, the generally lightly armored concept of the ZTA merited the prioritization of other favorable qualities over maximizing protection. The frustum-shaped final design maximizes internal space allowing more room for equipment and the crew, while minimizing the profile of the turret and by extension the tank. The whole of the turret assembly would be rear mounted on the hull and occupy the rear two thirds of the vehicle.
Variants
- ZTA-O2
- O2 is a full overhaul modernization of the ZTA light tank, designed to increase its service life and postpone the obsolescence of the aging design. The ZTA-O2 could be built new from the factory, but was primarily designed as an upgrade kit that could be used to retrofit the existing fleet of ZTA tanks and bring them up to par with the contemporary technology of the O2's development, the early 2000s. The most significant components of the O2 upgrade are in the spotting and fire control systems of the vehicle. Modern thermal sights would replace the infrared spot-light system and the commander would receive a separate thermal sight to facilitate his role in spotting targets during night operations. The main gun would also receive a new stabilizer that would enable the tank to fire more accurately while in motion, where the original design had opted for a simpler stabilizer system in order to cut down on costs. The exterior of the O2 is also fitted with explosive reactive armor in order to help degrade the penetration of anti-tank weapons and augment the ZTA's relatively light armor protection.
- ZTATZ
- The ZTA Tlacazazaca personnel transporter is an infantry fighting vehicle built on the ZTA chassis, armed with a 20mm automatic canon. The significantly modified hull incorporates a passenger compartment with a capacity for 10 dismounts, as well as a rear door and collapsible ramp for the quick deployment of the passengers. ZTATZ was introduced alongside the main ZTA light tank model in 1970 and has received significant retrofit and modernization, particularly in the turret and weapon systems. Sights and thermal imagers have been added, alongside a total turret refit adding a second 20mm canon, an automatic grenade launcher and two anti-tank guided missiles to dramatically increase the firepower of the ZTATZ and improve its ability to provide fire support to its disembarked troops.
- ZTA-PT
- The Parapotlatopon ("Parabolic Canon") variant of the ZTA is a self-propelled gun armed with a powerful 155mm howitzer. This primary weapon required a total redesign of the turret and some components of the chassis and suspension to tolerate the weight and recoil of the howitzer, as well as to carry a sufficient number of artillery shells. The fully enclosed turret and the howitzer, as well as the other modifications to the ZTA chassis necessary add an additional 10 metric tons to the vehicle, resulting in a total weight of 40 tonnes compared to the original tank's 30 tonnes. It is roughly comparable to the O74's HT variant, which is armed with the same 155mm howitzer albeit with greater armor protection and shell storage space. However, it is significantly cheaper than the O74 HT and has been manufactured in larger numbers as a more economical self-propelled gun.
- ZTA-MT
- The Mimina-Tlemitl ("Rocket Launcher") variant is a multiple rocket launcher built on the ZTA chassis, serving as the rocket artillery counterpart to the ZTA-PT and being roughly comparable to the formidable O74 Tzitzimitl. Its main armament is a set of two launchers, each containing 18 160mm rockets with a range of 12km minimum and 45km maximum. A turret variant fitted with two hexagonal 6 rocket cells enables the ZTA-MT to fire 220mm rockets of the type used by the Tzitzimitl, including those armed with a thermobaric warhead.