Mansley Systems MBT-8H 'Cavalier' Main Battle Tank
MBT-8H of the 19th Federal Cavalry Brigade, in temperate pattern.
MBT-8H of the 10th Federal Armoured Division, 5th Tank Platoon, in desert pattern.
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Mansley Systems A Brief History
Mansley Systems has been the premier arms manufacturer in Eura for nearly three hundred years, and has been behind a number of succesful pieces of military hardware that have made the Euran military what it is today. Mansley Systems has long held to the belief that it can turn a profit and prosper whilst producing only the best equipment for its customers, without cutting corners. The organisation is also dedicated to avoiding sales to rogue states and organisations, and holds itself to account for its actions.
An introduction to the Mansley Systems MBT-8H “Cavalier” Main Battle Tank
Design age: The MBT-8H is brand new, but the original MBT-8 was designed in 1987 and entered service in 1989.
Number of MBT-8’s produced: 4,877 MBT-8 Series tanks had been produced, 530 of which had been exported.
Manufacturer: Mansley Systems PLC
Unit production cost: £4.1m
Weight: 56.2 tonnes
Length: 7.9m hull, tank is 9m overall with gun forward
Width: 3.5m
Height: 2.45m (Bottom of hull to top hatch)
Crew: 3 (Commander, Gunner, Driver)
Armour: Lewis-Shorley Ceramic Composite Armour (LSCCA) Grade 2
Main armament: 120mm L/55 Smoothbore Gun
Secondary armament(s): Cupola mounted Mansley M300 12.7mm Machine Gun, Coaxial Rabarra-30 7.62mm LMG, AA-350 Mansley Systems SAM Module
Countermeasures: Smoke dispensers, infared flares
Engine: Mansley-Johnson MBT40 Diesel Engine (1,490hp)
Power to weight ratio: ~26hp per tonne (Varies depending on fuel and engine config, highest known ratio is 26.512)
Transmission: RoadGear HP-5 (6 fwd, 2 rev)
Suspension: RoadGear Hydropneumatic Suspension System
Maximum speed: 38mph cross country, 47mph on clear ground/roads
Operational range: 298 miles (On a full tank, furthest test range recorded on 1> occasion was 304 miles)
Ground clearance: 0.4m
Mansley Systems MBT-8 Series – Production History
In late 1988, the Chairman’s 8th Cavalry Division of the FSSO Army delivered it’s thirty Mansley Systems MBT-6D tanks to the Mereside Military Storage Centre. The model was finally being retired; it was truly the end of an era, as these tanks had been the staple main battle tank used by Euran forces over the last twenty eight years. The final D variant was produced in numbers exceeding eight thousand units.
However, despite its lengthy service, it was hard to deny that the vehicle was out of date – and four years before the retirement of the MBT-6, planning had begun on the next series of Mansley main battle tanks, the MBT-8 series. In the Army Strategic Review commenced by the Capital Party in 1985, the need for a new main battle tank for the Euran Army was outlined by military strategists.
The bidding process was over quickly as Mansley Systems won a contract continuation bidding war to give them the task of building the new vehicle, beating Rabarra-Whitley and Dagger Arms Manufacturing to the contract. In March 1986 the preliminary design process was complete and forty MBT-8A prototypes were produced, and trialled successfully over the following months. In June 1987, after a year or preparation Mansley Systems and the Ministry of Defence announced a £2.3 billion deal to produce 894 MBT-8B’s, scheduled to be delivered to the army by 1991.
Early on in development there was a hitch; the first twenty vehicles to hit the construction line had been fitted with an almost entirely different engine configuration, after a disastrous error in the order papers given to the Woolton Armouries outside Holdenburg. After a four week delay in production, Mansley Systems announced they had been forced to restart production, resulting in the loss of the first twenty vehicles at the cost of £50 million. The mistake led to an examining of the contract, and the deadline was extended to early 1992 on the condition that Mansley paid for the mistake.
However, Mansley sped up production and halted production of their doomed XRR-334 Heat Seeking Missile for the air force early, to reduce losses from the failed project and ensure more resources could be directed towards the MBT-8 programme. In January 1991, a whole year ahead of schedule, all 894 MBT-8B’s were delivered. They entered service near the end of 1991 after crew training was complete, and in 1992 a further 620 B variants were produced. An early export version of the tank, the MBT-8C, was marketed to protectorates and other nations, such as New Croydon. 160 C variants were produced and exported.
In 1995 the government placed a further order for the hastily developed D and E variants, which both served an array of purposes as mobile bridges, minesweepers and demolition platforms. The D variant was flawed due to its hasty production and only 30 were produced, but the E variant was produced 107 times for domestic use and 30 times for export. In 1999, the B variant was relegated to secondary main battle tank for the Euran Army in favour of the new F variant, which over the next four years would be produced on a massive scale due to increased military spending – 2,450 F’s were built, along with another 320 for export. On New Years Day 2004, the government announced that the D/E variants were to be replaced by the new utility G variant, of which 120 were produced. 25 more F’s were ordered several months later after 32 MBT-8F’s sunk with the military transport vessel SS Tennant in the Cordlon Bay Disaster.
By 2008, 4,877 MBT-8 Series tanks had been produced, 530 of which had been exported. However, in 2006 it had been announced by the government that the MBT-8 would be replaced by a new tank within several years. Despite having only been in service for 17 years, and still being moderately up to date, the Military Restructuring Commission of 2006 (which completely changed the course of Euran defence policy) demanded a new MBT. In February 2008, Mansley Systems announced they had been awarded a contract to produce 1,500 MBT-10A main battle tanks, beginning the fourth generation of Mansley tanks.
Although the new tanks began to enter service in 2010, it has been far from the death knell for the much loved 8 Series. Although all MBT-8B’s have been retired and either exported or scrapped, along with the other older versions of the vehicle, the military has kept 1,815 MBT-8F’s in service, as well as the entire fleet of G variant tanks. This measure was clearly an example of a lesson being learnt by the army; when the MBT-8 replaced the MBT-6 in 1991, there was a six month gap where Eura had virtually no main battle tanks in service. Luckily Eura was not in any major conflict at the time, but this time lessons had been learnt and the MBT-8F and MBT-8G variants are expected to remain in service until as late as 2016.
However, it was not the end of overall 8 series production. The export record of the MBT-8 was its one pitfall. Only approximately a tenth of MBT-8’s were built for export, and continued Euran economic growth required increased exporting in the defence sector. As the MBT-10 is still in the early stages of its service life, it would be foolish to export it and risk having to compete with superior products, such as Yohannesian and Anemonian vehicles.
For this reason, planning for a final variant of the MBT-8, the MBT-8H, began in 2009. The objective of the project was to redesign the vehicle to give it all the modern additions and reverse all the flaws which could be fixed from the MBT-8F, so that Eura could sell a cheap, moderately powerful MBT en masse to smaller nations who cannot realistically afford large numbers of the worlds elite ‘super-tanks’. The H variant is fully upgraded with modern technology, and production finally began in late 2010. The tank was designated as export exclusive and so far, a base fleet of 475 vehicles have been produced. Mansley Systems are so optimistic about this final model that they set no limit on how many they can produce.
The MBT-8, known commonly as the Cavalier (preceded by the MBT-6 ‘Cutter’ and followed by the MBT-10 ‘Crusader’), is now ready for purchase.
Combat History
Earlier variants saw some action in various scenarios, mainly under Euran military control. The MBT-8B saw action in the 1985-1992 Euran-Sameban War after coming into service early in 1991. Although in the final year and a half of combat the role of heavy armour had largely become marginalised, as Eura moved into a position of backing what was left of the South Sameban insurgency, the tank was used to some extent and early results suggested it was well equipped for combat. In March of 1992 during the Borkin offensive, MBT-8B's outclassed their Sameban counterparts, blasting through Sameban lines to bypass the ruined town of Borkin with the loss of only four vehicles. Over the course of the conflict, only ten vehicles were lost - with a crew survival rate of 94%.
Between this time and the rolling out of the H variant, very little combat experience came to the crews of these vehicles in various militaries. Euran vehicles were occasionally used in very minor border skirmishes with Sameba during this period, while the government of New Hackney lost one MBT-8E vehicle with all hands in the civil disturbances their capital experienced in 2003. During the Euran incursion into the Huangdiist colony of Taipei, a small number of MBT-8H's saw the first combat action experienced by the variant, suffering no losses and disposing of dozens of enemy armoured vehicles; as well as potentially thousands of the notoriously poorly armed and trained Huangdiist troops.
The Astograthian military, a Rushmori ally of Eura who purchased 150 vehicles, used them soon after purchase in the conflict which resulted in the split of the territory of Iturributa from Astograth. Cavaliers saw little action in the conflict though, establishing urban superiority through the threat of an unbeatable armoured deterrent rather than engaging Iturributan partisans in anything more than localised skirmishes. Despite unfounded accusations by Iturributan partisan groups and a human rights group in our country, Liberty Prevails, the MBT-8H was not used for any activites that could be considered war crimes or crimes against humanity.
MBT-8H – Technical Analysis
Primary Armaments
One of the weaknesses of the MBT-6 Series was its main armament, a less accurate version of the Mansley-built smoothbore 120mm FG-39 Tank Rifle, which had not only suffered from sporadic accuracy but had little to no advanced electronics behind its operation, nor was it built with modern enough materials to prevent it bending over time and intensive usage. The new gun, the FG-41, has been designed specifically to be superior to the previous model in these areas in particular.
The FG-41 is made using classified set of combined metals and covered in a thermal sleeve to ensure it is further protected against erosion from regular weapon use and the various forces involved in weapon firing, and to raise the maximum firing rate of the gun from 9 rounds a minute to 11 rounds a minute when normal high explosive rounds are being used, without having to think about maintenance issues (It is not reccomended that the gun be fired at this rate in most scenarios). This firing rate was confirmed after the addition of an autoloader system. This allows the gunner to manage a variety of rounds with ease and if necessary create a ‘firing shortlist’.
Weapon targeting is managed by the Mansley Systems Mark XI Visual Ranging Reconnaissance and General Targeting System (Mk.11-VRRGTS). This fire control system allows for accurate targeting and a forward looking infrared system. It incorporates a FLIR, which allows thermal imaging to be utilised by the gunner or commander for identifying targets, along with a standard CCD camera for normal targeting mode. The VRRGTS possesses a highly accurate rangefinder, using infrared lasers to accurately decode the exact range and altitude of a target.
The tank can be loaded with quite a high number of rounds, 44 in all. Plenty of room has been made within the tank to allow for this high capacity so the tank can use a variety of rounds to fulfil different duties in combat. While the majority of these rounds will be APFSDS and HE rounds, the vehicle can also utilize a variety of other rounds such as the TR-52B High Explosive Dual Purpose round, although this FSSO built ammunition is not the only ammunition which can be used in the tank – rather it is the recommended equipment for this model. These are fin-stabilised to make up for the smoothbore guns accuracy disadvantage against rifled guns. It also has the capacity to fire guided 105mm LAHAT anti tank missiles, providing an alternative to conventional rounds.
APFSDS and HEDP rounds serve as the vehicle’s main anti-tank ammunition. APFSDS rounds punch through armour using a depleted uranium alloy KEP (kinetic energy penetrator, or penetrator rod), causing damage through the kinetic forces associated with it penetrating through the armour of the target. This generally is more effective against armour than other shells but there are alternatives which can also be used to target infantry and buildings. Alternatively, very simple HE rounds can be equipped to target vehicles, infantry and buildings with explosive force.
The TR-52B, which was developed in 1998 by Mansley Systems, is a High Explosive Dual Purpose (HEDP) round designed specifically to suit the needs of the MBT-8 Series and it is highly recommended it be imported to any buyers alongside the tank. This round is comprised of a heat charge with a fragmenting case, which can penetrate walls and the hulls of armour vehicles to expose the interior of buildings and vehicles to the full brunt of the explosive charge. The charge itself fragments, creating a carpet of shrapnel which is highly effective against embedded infantry and tank crews.
Additionally, the vehicle can be equipped with Mansley’s 110mm semi-active laser guided anti tank missile, the Mansley ATM-110. This missile is most effective as a medium-range anti tank weapon to be fired over elevated ground or other obstructions, with the help of laser designation by friendly units.
Secondary Armaments
The MBT-8H possesses a variety of alternative weapon systems from its main gun. To the side of the main gun is a coaxial Rabarra-30 7.62mm light machine gun, with an ammunition capacity of 950 rounds. The cupola mounted weapon, a Mansley M300 12.7mm heavy machine gun, has a reserve of 400 rounds. In earlier versions of the MBT-8, both cupola and coaxial machine guns were Rabarra-30’s with a shared ammunition reserve of 1,500 rounds, but during the design of the H variant it was decided a more deadly armament was required on the cupola.
Both weapons have powerful firing motors and a rapid ammunition replenishment system, GAD (General Ammunition Dispenser), which allow for effective suppressing fire against a variety of targets. Critics have argued this has come at the cost of accuracy, yet the cupola mounted M300 weapon has a considerably superior rounds hit to rounds missed ratio in testing than a previously proposed alternative, the Dagger D93A 12.7mm heavy machine gun. The M300 also has optical sights, which can switch to thermal and night vision modes, linked into the commander’s computer console, allowing for highly accurate fire to be maintained even with low visibility.
However, one of the systems incorporated into this tank is rarely found in other main battle tanks. The AA-350 Mansley System’s Surface to Air Missile Module is a medium sized missile pod that is attached to the right side of the MBT-8H’s turret. It can adjust yaw and what height it fires from using the hydraulic arm which holds it out slightly from the side of the turret; although it’s lateral movement capability is limited to ensure it does not harm the tanks mobility.
The pod is able to fire MSAM (Mansley SAM, short name applied to all Mansley produced SAM’s) B5 missiles. MSAM-B5 missiles track and lock on to targets using a highly sensitive infrared seeker on the nose of each missile, allowing it to identify targets with almost any infrared signature. These missiles are highly manuverable and although they have a limited range, they lock on quickly to helicopters and low flying aircraft giving the tank an anti-aircraft capability should it become separated from vehicles built solely for anti-aircraft purposes. However, there is only sufficient space in the tank for eight of these B5 missiles, but they still pose a serious threat.
Engine and mobility
The MBT-8H is powered by the Mansley-Johnson MBT40 Diesel Engine. This engine is significantly more powerful than that of the MBT-6 series, which operated with the MBT30 engine. This diesel engine is capable of producing 1,490 horsepower, ensuring it is not only capable of dealing with steep relief terrain but capable of high speeds across level terrain. Considering the vehicle’s current weight, the MBT40 engine produces an impressive average of 26 horsepower per tonne.
FSSO truck company RoadGear developed the automatic transmission system to accompany this engine, the HP-5, which has six forward gears and 2 reverse gears. Additionally, RoadGear developed the MBT-8H’s suspension. The tank operates on a hydro pneumatic suspension system which identifies load/weight distribution more efficiently, as well as both static and dynamic (moving and not moving) factors affecting the vehicle. Thanks to a combination of these factors the MBT-8H can pick up an impressive pace while moving. On clear ground and roads it can travel as fast as 47mph, reaching maximum acceleration in 14 seconds. It is obviously slower on rougher terrain, but can still hit impressive speeds of 38mph.
The range of the engine varies depending on how intensely it is used, but in trials it managed to take the tank 304 miles on one tank of fuel, across rough terrain. If necessary the engine can be retrofitted to operate on jet fuel in emergencies, but its range becomes very limited in this scenario.
Armour and vehicle structure
With the advent of modern tank warfare imminent during the late 1980’s, Mansley Systems have ensured that the MBT-8 Series tank offers combat effective armour which does not restrict offensive capability, and sufficient crew survivability. The MBT-8H is a crowded tank, with three crew, a large ammunition reserve and extensive electronic systems taking up a significant portion of space within. Taking into account these factors, Mansley have attempted to structure the MBT-8H’s armour around the vehicle’s core shape to ensure quality crew survivability. The space for the crew is unfortunately quite cramped, but this is worthwhile if it ensures enhanced crew survival rates and vehicle survivability.
The vehicles armour can be divided into three levels; core level, body level and exterior level, all of which make up the Grade 2 Lewis-Shorley Ceramic Composite Armour, or G2-CCA. The core level forms the basic structure of the tank interior, and is largely comprised of ballistic steel and fibreglass, along with rubber and molecularly manipulated polyethylene anti-spall lining to limit the effect of HESH and similar weapons. Over this lies the body layer – essentially the hull - of G3-RHA rolled homogenous armour. Between this and the exterior level is the location of hexagonal ceramic tiles held together with a resin mixture which act as a failsafe against KEP’s and similar weapons to protect the core level. Overlaying this is the exterior level; which is compromised of further rolled homogenous protection, made of a composite metal structure of classified nature. There are several advantages to this composite armour selection; namely an 8% reduction of weight from the MBT-8G and reduced thermal and radar signature.
The sides of the tank possess G1-NxRA padding, in the hope of reducing the effectiveness of shaped charges. This is a change from pre-H versions of the MBT-8, which used ERA. Comprised of a thin rubber lining with ballistic steel on either side, NxRA aims to intercept the impact energy of shaped charges and prevent tandem charges from penetrating the exterior level of the MBT-8H’s armour. Although the armour is designed to meet a minimum strength requirement across the entire vehicle, the front of the hull and turret and top of the turret have a thicker exterior level and additional G1-NxRA padding. Careful design of this armour set has allowed for extensive protection without increasing the weight of the vehicle to unacceptable levels.
Active Defence Systems and Countermeasures
MBT-8H adapts a specifically designed active protection system, the Mansley Systems APS-90T, to give it remarkably potent countermeasures by the standards of a tank of its generation. Based on the popular ‘Trophy’ APS system and introduced as standard for the MBT-8H model. It consists of three main segments that are key to its operational effectiveness. Firstly, it incorporates a sophisticated threat detection system, which consists of thermal and laser sensors, as well as a LADAR system developed by Mansley. Situated on the turret of the vehicle, the sensors cover a wide area around the tank and each sensor overlaps the effective area of other sensors, to avoid leaving significant ‘black spots’, whilst the short range radar system tracks threats as they move.
The second part of this system is 90TCentre, a computer system integrated into the commanders console which analyses threats detected by the exterior sensors, processing it into information which can be used by the commander to identify the type of threats present and in some cases their origin. Those two parts of the overarching system serve as methods of threat identification – but the third part of the system forms its threat interception ability. It incorporates several softkill measures, namely infrared decoy flares and 40mm grenade launchers which can eject smoke grenades of two variants; white smoke variants, which also release metal ribbon or ‘chaff’ into the atmosphere, which can cloak the vehicle and reduce the effectiveness of enemy locking devices, and simple coloured smoke grenades for position marking. 90TCentre also uses a jamming system similar to that of the Shtora system, which emits coded pulsed-infrared jamming signals automatically if the computer system detects a hostile ATGM launch.
Hardkill methods are also incorporated into this system, besides the NxRA armoured padding of the tank which is a hardkill measure in itself. All three hardkill measures are deployed via external launchers on the turret and top of the hull. The three types of ammunition employed by these launchers to deal with threats include explosive ‘shock interceptors’, which create a brief explosion within certain proximity of a threat in an attempt to disable it or knock it off course. Alternatively the launchers can fire ball bearings over a narrow area as a threat passes through, like a shotgun, either disabling or destroying the incoming warhead of a weapon or diverting its course. Finally there is the last hardkill measure which only activates as a failsafe where the first two fail; direct kinetic interceptors fired from the launcher to take out the incoming projectile directly at short range.
General electronics and interior environment
Although the MBT-8H’s Mk.11-VRRGTS and 90TCentre computer systems are crucial to the vehicle’s targeting and active protection ability, communications must be handled by an alternative system. This mantra is applied to every aspect of the MBT-8H, which has been designed to counter the inferiority of the electronic systems of older versions of the MBT-8 to other vehicles.
The entire MBT-8H fleet is built with IESCN, or Internal and External Secure Communications Network, incorporated into its main computer. Developed by Holdenberg County Computer Systems, IESCN allows MBT-8H commanders to relay and share data between vehicles, such as targeting data, and enables every vehicle to utilize its multiple wavelength radio and closed intranet communication systems, which have high data transfer speeds allowing for faster internet connectivity and data sharing. It also marks the vehicles position and general status on a central database which can be incorporated into the command and control operations of whoever operates this vehicle.
Sent regular anti-malware updates from the central databank, this system is built to limit the effectiveness of enemy cyber warfare, and can act as a general monitor of conditions inside and outside of the vehicle. The most important subsystem which operates in the vehicle in conjunction with IESCN is the rather bluntly named Cavalier Command and Direct System (CCDS) which gives the commander real time, extensive details on the status of his vehicle, whether it be current elevation off the ground or air temperature outside of the tank.
Commanders may also utilize ComCam, another HCCS innovation developed with FSSO IT company OppTIK, gives the commander the ability to tap into the camera feed on the gunners FLIR, whilst giving the commander their own front facing, multi-mode camera and three single-mode cameras for port, starboard and rear viewing. OppTIK also developed the interior communication radio network which allows the three crew to communicate easily in situations where hearing may be impaired.
The interior environment of the MBT-8H is naturally quite crowded and therefore must strike a balance between the crew’s needs for protection, access to their equipment and comfort. The crew are well protected by anti-spall lining and heavy armour (See: Armour) and the vehicles ammunition storage is armoured to contain accidents. MBT-8H has automated fire control systems which will quickly attack any blaze using internal smoke and heat sensors, and this system works in conjunction with the tanks air and water filtration systems.
To some degree, the vehicle is also protected against nuclear, chemical and biological infiltration. Even the crew’s seats take protection into account – although they provide some degree of comfort, they will support a crew member’s person when put under heavy stress from explosions. Perhaps most importantly there is sufficient room for the crew to reach vital equipment needed to perform their duties.
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Production Credits/Honourable Mentions
Mansley Systems Land Warfare Systems Technology and Development
Lewis-Shorley Armourer's - Armour (Hull and turret)
Rabarra-Whitley Firearms - Coaxial gun
Johnson Motor Engines Company - Powerplant
RoadGear - Transmission and suspension
Holdenberg County Computer Systems - Communications networking
OppTIK Information Technology - Internal communications and cameras
Anemonian State Arms Export Authority - Design and general consultation
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Purchase Information
The MBT-8H is currently being sold at 150% of its production cost, at £6.15m per unit. There is currently no order limit and upon conformation of your order Mansley Systems will deliver the vehicles to the buyer. All enquiries must be made to Mansley Systems central offices at;
International Sales Department
Mansley Systems PLC
Central Business Offices
Ragnet Business District
Holdenberg
FSSO
Please note that domestic production rights are not for sale at this time.
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