Stridsvagn 103
Turretless main battle tank / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Stridsvagn 103 (Strv 103), also known as the Alternative S and S-tank,[3] is a Swedish Cold War-era main battle tank, designed and manufactured in Sweden.[4] "Strv" is the Swedish military abbreviation of stridsvagn, Swedish for chariot and tank (literally combat wagon), while the 103 comes from being the third tank in Swedish service to be equipped with a 10.5 cm gun.
Stridsvagn 103 | |
---|---|
Type | Turretless main battle tank |
Place of origin | Sweden |
Service history | |
In service | 1967–1997 |
Used by | Swedish Army |
Production history | |
Designer | Sven Berge |
Designed | 1956; 68 years ago (1956) |
Manufacturer | Bofors AB |
Produced | 1967–1971 |
No. built | 290 |
Variants | A, B, C, D |
Specifications (Strv 103C) | |
Mass | 42.5 t (46.8 short tons; 41.8 long tons) |
Length | 9 m (29 ft 6 in) incl. gun |
Width | 3.80 m (12 ft 6 in) |
Height | With topmounted MG: 2.43 m (8 ft 0 in) To cupola: 2.14 m (7 ft 0 in) To vehicle roof: 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) To barrel centre when horizontal: 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) |
Crew | 3 (Commander, gunner/driver, rear driver)[1] |
Armor | LOS: ≈192–337 mm Actual: 40–70 mm |
Main armament | Bofors L74 10.5 cm L/62 rifled gun with autoloader and 50 rounds |
Secondary armament | Two fixed 7.62 mm KSP 58 machine guns one anti-aircraft 7.62 mm KSP 58 machine gun two 71 mm Lyran mortars |
Engine | Detroit diesel 6V53T, 216 kW (290 hp) and Caterpillar 553 gas turbine, 365 kW (489 hp) |
Power/weight | 13.6 kW/t (18.3 hp/t) |
Transmission | 2 forward and 2 reverse speeds |
Suspension | Gas-hydraulic hydropneumatic suspension |
Operational range | 390 km (240 mi) |
Maximum speed | 60 km/h (37 mph) maximum road speed forwards or reverse[2] |
Developed in the 1950s, it was the first main battle tank to use a gas turbine engine and the only mass-produced tank since World War II to not use a turret besides the German Kanonenjagdpanzer.[5] It has an unconventional design with a unique gun laying process:[6][7][8] it is turretless with a fixed gun traversed by engaging the tracks and elevated by adjusting the hull suspension.[5] The result was a very low-profile design with an emphasis on survivability and heightened crew protection level.
Strv 103s formed a major portion of the Swedish armoured forces from the 1960s to the 1990s, when, along with the Centurions, it was replaced by the Leopard 2 variants Stridsvagn 121 and Stridsvagn 122.[9]
While most turretless armoured fighting vehicles are classified as assault guns or tank destroyers, the Strv 103 is considered a tank since its designated combat role matched those of other tanks within contemporary Swedish doctrine.