The FUCHS TPz1 is a German 6x6 armored vehicle personnel carrier developed by Daimler-Benz and built by Thyssen-Henschel in 1979. The latest variants of the vehicle are marketed by the German Company Rheinmetall Defence. The first production vehicle was handed over to the German Army, which also calls the vehicle the Fuchs, in December 1979. Deliveries of the Transportpanzer 1 were completed in late 1986. The designers of the Fuchs TPZ 1 had to strike a balance between the three conflicting requirements inherent in the design of all military vehicles: mobility, protection, and good carrying capacity in a spacious hold. The Army of Netherlands has taken delivery of a small quantity of Transportpanzer 1 vehicles for the electronic warfare role. Late in 2001, Rheinmetall Landsysteme stated that total production of the Fuchs amounted to 1,236 units. Recently, with the cooperation of Germany, an Algerian-German joint venture was created in Algeria to locally produce the Fuchs armored personnel carrier. The Algerian army plans to acquire several hundred.
|
| Armament |
|
When the FUCHS Tpz 1 is used as armoured personnel carrier, the armament consists of a 7.62 mm MG3 machine gun mounted over the commander's hatc. The vehicle can be also armed with 20 mm cannon. The 7.62 mm machine gun has an elevation of +40º and a depression of -15º. Some variants can be also equipped with a launcher MILAN anti-tank missile. A bank of six smoke grenade dischargers is mounted to the left side of the hull.
|
| Design and protection |
|
The loadbearing monocoque hull is built of welded steel plate and has good ballistic contours. The non-distorting steel used offers adequate protection against small-arms fire and hits from shell and mine splinters. The hull is divided into the driving cab, the mid-mounted engine compartment and the load compartment to the rear. The cab, located immediately behind the short bonnet, is designed with every consideration for crew comfort. The driver sits on the left and the vehicle commander on the right. The cab provides adequate space and is well fitted out to reduce driving fatigue. The driving seat, for example, is adjustable in the same way as a lorry seat, to give the most comfortable driving position. A good set of instruments allows a constant check of vehicle performance, and an excellent field of vision on each side allows the vehicle to be driven without undue difficulty. A bulletproof one-piece windscreen provides a lorry-type outlook forward and is fitted with triple wipers and washers. An armoured composite plate can be swung down over it to provide extra protection under intense fire. Sideways view is provided by a good-size window in each cab door. The door windows, like the windscreen, are made of bulletproof glass and are fitted with hinged armoured shutters. When the windscreen and windows are shuttered in action the driver can see outside through a periscope, or at night by means of a light intensifier. There are two hatches in the cab roof, the commander's being fitted with support for mounting a light anti-aircraft machine gun. The load compartment is primarily designed for carrying stores, and for that reason, it is as spacious and regularly shaped as possible, with room for six cubic meters of quite bulky stores. The maximum cargo weight is normally two tonnes, but up to twice that weight can be carried in special circumstances. The compartment's floor can be fitted with rails to simplify cargo handling. For troop carrying it can accommodate a squad of up to ten infantrymen. Access to the load compartment is through a rear-mounted pillarless double door of good size. It can also be reached from the cab through a gangway on the right-hand side so that the condition of the load can be checked without any need to leave the protection of the armour.
|
| Propulsion |
|
The Fuchs TPz1 is motorized with a Mercedes-Benz Model OM 402A V-8 liquid-cooled diesel developing 320 hp at 2,500 rpm, coupled to a ZF Model 6 HP 500 6-speed automatic transmission with torque converter. The engine compartment is located behind the driver and commander is provided with an automatic fire extinguishing system. The Fuchs TPz1 can run at a maximum road speed of 105 km/h with a maximum cruising range of 800 km. The vehicle can climb a gradient of 70% and cross a trench of 1.10 m maximum.
|
| Accessories |
|
The Fuchs TPz1 1 is fully amphibious and propelled at a maximum speed of 10;5 km/h in the water by two Schottel four-bladed propellers beneath the floor level of the vehicle at the rear of the hull. For steering when afloat the propellers can be traversed through 360º. Before entering the water a trim vane, which is stowed on the glacis plate when traveling, is hydraulically erected at the front of the hull. The three bilge pumps each have a capacity of 180 liters/min. The vehicle is also equipped with an NBC protection system.
|
| |
| Specifications |
| Back to top |
|
Armament
|
|
One 7.62mm machine gun
a
|
|
Country users
|
|
Germany, Netherlands, Algeria
|
|
Designer Country
|
|
Germany
|
|
Accessories
|
|
NBC protection system, heating and cooling system, panoramic cameras, hinged-arm excavator, dozer blade, and capstan winch
|
|
Crew
|
|
2 + 10 soldiers
|
|
|
Armor
|
|
Protection against small arms firing, land mines threats and shell splinters.
|
|
Weight
|
|
19,000 kg
|
|
Speed
|
|
105 km/h
|
|
Range
|
|
800 km
a
a
|
|
Dimensions
|
|
Length: 6,83 m; Width: 2,98 m; Height, 2,30 m
|
|
|
| |
|
