United Arab Emirates to receive Belarusian MZKT-741351 tank transporters.

The Armed Forces of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are set to receive its ordered Belarusian-made MZKT-741351 tank transporters by the end of 2019, according to the Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant (MZKT Volat) that manufactures the vehicles.

The road train composed of the MZKT-741351 prime mover plus the MZKT-999421 semi-trailer and the MZKT-837211 trailer (not towed on this picture taken in the EAU) is 42-meter long and has a payload capacity of 136 tons (Picture source: Volat)

"The [MZKT-741351] transporter has successfully passed through the tests in the UAE. The serial production of the vehicles has already been launched, and the Emirati army will take the delivery of the transporters later this year," said the enterprise. The spokesperson for the MZKT did not specify the number of the platforms to be delivered to the UAE.

The MZKT-741351 is powered by an 812 hp Caterpillar C18 turbocharged engine associated to an Allison electronically-controlled automatic gearbox. The vehicle has a full-time 8x8 drive. Maximum road speed is electronically limited to 70 km/h. The prime mover is fitted with a central tyre inflation system.

The road train composed of the tractor plus the MZKT-999421 semi-trailer and the MZKT-837211 trailer is 42-meter long. The platform transports up to three combat vehicles. The Belarusian MZKT-741351 prime mover and associated trailers were specially developed to meet requirements of the United Arab Emirates. A pre-production prototype was first publicly revealed in 2016. It was planned that, during the same year, the prototype would be delivered to the UAE for trials. The MZKT-741351 is a revised and updated version of the previous MZKT-74135 with a different layout. The new vehicle can haul more load. Its predecessor, the MZKT-74135, was also developed to participate in the United Arab Emirates tender and eventually 40 units prime movers with associated trailers were ordered.

The unique feature of the MZKT-741351 prime mover is that it is used in conjunction with two trailers. These are MZKT-999421 6-axle semi-trailer which weights 26,000 kg and has a payload capacity of 76 tons and MZKT-837211 6-axle trailer, which weighs 18 tons and has a payload capacity of 60 tons. Combined hauled load capacity for this road train is 136 tons. So, this vehicle can transport one Leclerc main battle tank and two infantry fighting vehicles at once, for instance.

When fully loaded this road train has a range of 700 km. When hauling only a loaded semi-trailer, the tank transporter has a 900 km range.