New ZTL-11 105mm 8x8 wheeled armored assault gun vehicle is now in service with the Chinese army, according to pictures released on the Chinese MoD Ministry of Defense website, May 16, 2020. The ZTL-11 is based on type 08 8x8 wheeled armored vehicles family. It is the export variant of the vehicle is the ST1.
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ZTL-11 105mm 8x8 wheeled assault gun armored vehicle. (Picture source China MoD)
The ZTL-11 8x8 105mm assault gun armored vehicle is already in service with the Chinese Marine Corps and was first shown to the public in September 2015 during a military parade in Beijing to commemorate the end of the World War II in Asia.
The ZTL-11 is a new generation of assault gun produced in China army after the PTL-02 that entered in service with the Chinese army in 2002. The vehicle was designed to provide a fire support vehicle with high mobility and firepower based on Type 08 8x8 wheeled armored chassis. The ZTL-11 is armed with a 105 cannon while the main armament of the PTL-02 is a 100 mm cannon.
The design of the ZTL-11 is very similar to the Italian-made Centauro. It has a crew of four, with the driver seated at the front left of the hull. The turret is mounted in the middle of the chassis with commander, gunner and loader. The powerpack is located at the rear of the vehicle.
The hull and turret of the ZTL-11 are of all-welded steel armour construction, which provides protection for the crew against the firing of small arms fire and artillery shell splinters. Over the frontal arc, protection is provided against penetration from 20 mm projectiles and against 12.7 mm attack all round.
The turret of the ZTL-11 looks very similar to the turret mounted on the amphibious light tank ZTD-05/VN16. The main armament consists of one 105mm rifle gun fitted with a multi-purpose muzzle brake. It can fire the armour piercing fin stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS), high explosive (HE), and high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) rounds, and the Chinese indigenous 105mm gun-fired laser beam riding guidance anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) derived from the Russian 9M117 Bastion technology. The second armament includes one 7.62mm machine gun mounted coaxially to the right of the 105mm cannon. A 12.7mm machine can be mounted on the loader hatch.
The 105 mm gun is fully stabilized 105 mm gun which is used in conjunction with a computerized fire-control system, with the commander and gunner having day/night sights and the latter also having a laser range-finder. The ZTL-11 is fully amphibious and propelled in the water thanks to two waterjets mounted one either side at the rear of the hull. Standard equipment of the ZTL-11 includes an automatic fire extinguishing system, CBRN protection system and air conditioning. According to Chinese military sources, the vehicle is equipped with a battlefield management system, data link communication radio, and a satellite position system. It seems that a satellite communication antenna is mounted on the upper part of the turret.
