Turkish special operations vehicle ready for mission

By Azernews

By News Center

The Pars IV 6x6 special operations vehicle, which was made solely for the demands of the Turkish armed forces, has passed all reliability and durability tests, and the countdown has begun for the delivery of the first batch of vehicles, Yeni Shafak reports.

"The vehicle is the first of its kind. I've never seen a vehicle with such high levels of protection, agility, and heavy equipment. It is much superior to its European alternatives," Aybars Kucuk, the FNSS (Defense Systems) Marketing and Programs Group President, stressed.

The Pars IV 6x6 Special Operations Vehicle has been developed as part of the 6x6 Mine Protected Vehicle (MKKA) Procurement Project, which was signed by FNSS and the Turkish Defense Industries Presidency (SSB).

Kucuk underlined that the vehicle systems and configuration are entirely tailored to the customer’s needs, and the customer chooses the weapons to be installed on the vehicle. The company works with the project group, which includes project coordinators, solution partners, and customers, during the project's design and development process, preparing it for the task once all testing is completed.

He added that a variety of tests such as mines, ballistic and hand-made explosives, maneuverability, environmental conditions, and electromagnetic compatibility were carried out during the testing to meet the customer's expectations.

"This vehicle has successfully passed all of these stages. Our vehicle has completed all reliability and durability tests in line with military standards. Testing on asphalt roads, stabilized road tests, and driving tests in thick mud under extreme conditions have all been performed. Our mass manufacturing continues, and the first batch of vehicles is being prepared for delivery,” Kucuk emphasized.

He pointed out that the special operations vehicle provides the highest level of protection, as well as much more than mine-resistant vehicles, known as MRAPs.

"Our vehicle is resistant to ballistics, mines, and hand-made explosives at high levels defined by military standards. Intensive testing, particularly against mines and hand-made explosives, was conducted, and it passed all of them successfully. This is the product of over a decade of hard effort by our engineers. FNSS has developed various projects both at home and abroad over the previous ten years, producing a wide range of vehicles. All of them were subjected to extensive mine-detonation tests. No other firm in Europe possesses our degree of engineering. For years, there has been no fresh development in Europe. We have been working on this project for many years,” Kucuk underlined.

Kucuk said that as the level of protection increased, the vehicle became heavier, yet the technical teams devised a design with the agility that would not be expected from such a vehicle.

"This is a vehicle for special missions. It must be able to move rapidly to the scene or under threat, and it must do so in all circumstances and terrain. We have a unique design for this. The engine of our automobiles is located in the center. As a result, the vehicle's weight distribution is relatively neutral. We employ hydropneumatic suspensions that can be adjusted depending on the vehicle's asphalt, stabilized road, or rough terrain driving position. Thanks to this feature, the vehicle can almost fly over the bumps in the test area, which is like a motocross track, and land in a very balanced way and continue its operation and movement," he added.

Kucuk further revealed that the vehicle employs thermal cameras with 360-degree views, which provide the driver and commander with an over 180-degree field view.

"These cameras can detect every movement surrounding the car. They are capable of detecting automatically. You can even see the menace lurking behind the bush. We collaborated with a local electronics manufacturer as our solution partner to create a unique camera. This camera combines thermal radiation and daylight to provide a sense of depth and the ability to perceive obstacles such as pits and bumps even in complete darkness. This enables the vehicle to function even when the headlights are turned off. The camera is unaffected by the opposing side's headlight. We are going to utilize this homegrown camera in all of our vehicles,” Kucuk emphasized.

He underlined that the vehicle has two remote-controlled weapon systems that can be equipped with three different types of weaponry, providing 360-degree firing with no "dead zone."

The vehicle also has been equipped with an acoustic target identification system, which detects targets accurately using supersonic acoustic waves when a shot is fired at it and directs the weapon systems towards the danger.

“We did not purchase or install any particular brand or product. Even prototype systems used across the world were tested in real surroundings under comparable conditions. Two systems, one native and one foreign performed admirably. This is how we made it work. It now functions flawlessly, in harmony with all of our systems,” Kucuk stressed.

Kucuk emphasized that FNSS sells large quantities of 6x6 and 8x8 vehicles to two friendly countries.

“Since it is the first of its kind, we believe that once this vehicle is in the inventory, it will have tremendous potential. I'm not aware of any vehicle with such high levels of protection, agility, and heavy equipment on it. These vehicles have already outperformed their European alternatives. Our advertising efforts continue. First and foremost, it must be entered into the inventory. We hope that not only this vehicle but all of our cars and systems that we are now developing in Turkiye, will be very successful," he emphasized.