Strv 127
| Stridsvagn 127 Puma II | |
|---|---|
 Acrean Strv 127A | |
| Type | Main Battle Tank |
| Place of origin |  Acrea |
| Service history | |
| In service | 2018-Present |
| Used by | Acrea |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Estocq Systèmes de Défense SARL Landrut Landsystemet GmbH Landsverk AG Kobalt-Zeiss GmbH & Co KG Thyssen AB |
| Designed | 2015-2018 |
| Manufacturer | Estocq Systèmes de Défense SARL Landrut Landsystemet GmbH |
| Produced | 2018-Present |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 55 tonnes |
| Length | 7.7 metres (hull) |
| Width | 4.0 metres |
| Height | 2.55 metres |
| Crew | 3 |
Main armament | KvK M181 120mm smoothbore gun |
Secondary armament | 7.62mm MG 59 Various Top-Mounted 7.62mm and 12.7mm machine guns |
| Engine | Thyssen MTU MFH1-80A hyperbar diesel 1193,12kw (1600 hp) |
| Power/weight | 20.9 kw/t (28 hp/t) |
| Transmission | Thyssen ML500 Automatic Transmission |
| Suspension | Hydropneumatic suspension |
Operational range | 550 km |
| Speed | 75 km/h (Road) ~55 km/h (Cross-Country) |
The Stridsvagn 127 Puma II is a main battle tank developed by Estocq Systèmes de Défense SARL and Landrut Landsystemet GmbH in the late 1980s for the Acrean Armed Forces. Primary design work and production was carried out by Estocq SARL, while Landrut provided technical assistance and tooling. Developed from the limited-production Strv 125, the Puma II was developed out of a requirement for a lighter main battle tank which could supplement the Strv 126 and replace the Strv 125 and Strv 124 in Acrean service.
History
Development
Design
Armament
The Puma II is equipped with a modified M181 smoothbore 120mm cannon functionally identical to that used on the Strv 126. It is equipped with similar fitments to the Strv 125's M165 gun, with a larger diameter magnesium sleeve now widened at the base to accommodate for a new recoil system necessary for the M181. Its compressed air fume extraction system has been improved.
The Strv 127 utilises an autloader fitted with an automatic magazine in the turret bustle, a predecessor to the the automatic magazine fitted to Landrut's proposed compact autoloader which is fitted to "V"-variant Strv 124s and the autoloader equipped on the Strv 126. The autoloader is nearly identical to that on Strv 126, retaining the same design but with a slightly smaller magazine containing 34 rounds due to the smaller turret bustle.
Mobility
The Strv 127 utilises a hyperbar system, in which the primary diesel engine's turbocharger is replaced with a gas turbine which acts both as the engine's supercharger, and also being able to function as an auxiliary power unit. Engine exhaust which is redirected to the top of the vehicle is cooled to reduce the thermal signature, and the hull design integrates other materials to reduce the engine's thermal signature.
The suspension system as originally designed technically allows independent control of each road wheel, however this capability was considered unnecessary and so the final design implemented on Strv 127 is a simplified hydropneumatic suspension system akin to the Strv 124's, and simply allows the tank to change the angle of the hull relative to the terrain. Leaning the hull forward or back to gain gun depression and elevation, or tilting the hull on sloped terrain to level the gun were features well-regarded by crews during testing and so this feature taken from the Strv 124's hyrdopneumatic suspension were maintained. Likewise, the overall height of the tank can be adjusted, although the tank is either limited in movement or forced to be stationary when not at standard ride height depending on the attitude. An automatic track tensioning system was tested and implemented on some early prototypes, however added complexity, cost, and maintenance required by this system was not considered efficient and so the same simple tensioning system of the Strv 124 was retained.
Protection
Variants and upgrades
- Strv 125A: