Ratel

A Can of Man

A Can of Man

Je suis aware
bushpig1998 said:
ratel-c1.jpg

Ratel APC/Recon
Click to expand...


That is one beautiful looking vehicle!

Here's some stats on it:

Crew: 4 + 7
Armament: 1 x 20 mm cannon
1 x 7.62 mm MG (coaxial)
7.62 mm MG (anti-aircraft)
1 x 7.62 mm MG (anti-aircraft)
2 x 2 smoke grenade dischargers
Ammunition: 1,200 x 20 mm, 6,000 x 7.62 mm
Length: 7.212 m
Width: 2.516 m
Height (Overall): 2.915 m
Height (Hull Top): 2.105 m
Ground Clearance: 0.34 m
Wheelbase: 2.809 m + 1.4 m
Weight (Combat): 18,500 kg
Weight (Empty): 16,500 kg
Power To Weight Ratio: 15.24 hp / tonne
Engine: D 3256 BTXF 6-cylinder
in-line turbocharged diesel
developing 282 hp at 2,200 rpm
Maximum Road Speed: 105 km / hr
Maximum Range: 1,000 km
Fuel Capacity: 430 lit
Fording: 1.2 m
Vertical Obstacle: 0.6 m
Trench: 1.15 m
Gradient: 60 %
Side Slope: 30 %
Armour: 20 mm (maximum)
Armour Type: Steel
NBC System: No
Night Vision: Optional

--------------------------------------------

That's pretty good... except the lack of NBC protection is a bit of a problem. Look at that top speed! Steel armor too. 20mm cannon... not the biggest thing in the world and certainly not for taking on tanks but not bad against other kinds of vehicles.
Heck, I guess you could shove an anti-tank weapon in the passenger compartment just incase. Though that's really if there's no other option! But with that sort of top speed it'd be tough to kill. Not to mention the smoke. And check out all those machine guns :rambo:
Can anyone with a better grasp of cars tell me how the engine performance etc. on this thing looks on paper?
 
It is South African.

The South Africans caused havoc amongst Angolan government troops when they have shown up in the bush, circulating enemy positions and firing all they had into it while always moving.
There is a wide range of this vehicle category the South Africans used in Namibia and Angola. The idea of them was to provide mine protectes vehicles for bush war which were fast, protected the troops and gave a good combat platform for all kind of systems.
Even years after the war when the South Africans send UN contingents for demining activities to Angola (using the same vehicles painted white and without guns) they caused panic in remote villages that knew the vehicles (and their effect) from war time.

There is a good book on the development of this vehicle category, the title is "Taming the land mine" (forgot the author).

Here some links:

http://www.armyrecognition.com/Afri...es/Ratel/Ratel_Afrique_du_Sud_description.htm

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/rsa/ratel.htm

http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/lsm/dhmg/ratel.html

http://www.aboutthejohnstons.com/craig/ratel_pictures.htm
 
global security says:
"In its primary role the Ratel is fitted with a 20 mm or 90 mm gun"
Meaning this thing can even be a light tank.
 
The ratel 90 is fitted with the anti tank weapon and was used very effectively in the anti-tank role. The poorly trained angolan tank crews couldn't get the t54's to swing around fast enough to catch up with the ratels, so the ratels would just circle around a group of cuban/angolan tanks and let rip into them. They are very fast and can really crash through the bush. Anti mine protection is excellent. If I'm not mistaken, I heard rumours of the USMC looking at purchasing a few of these for ops in Iraq (protection agains IED's). A very intimidating vehicle. There are even come versions with 2 anti-tank missiales mounted on a turret.

See:
http://www.baxmod.co.za/ratel_60.htm
http://www.military.szm.sk/zbrane/trnbvp/ratel.htm


See this site for a complete lineup of all ratel variants:
http://www.twilightarmouries.ca/AFV/LAV/Ratel.htm
 
BTW, the engine, with only 280 HP is more than enough on a Ratel. 280 doesn't sound like much, but take the vehicles' relatively light weight into consideration. This isn't a tracked (which takes more HP) vehicle or Tank with heavy armor. It's speed is its greatest defense...that and the fact that it is super quiet for a diesel. The SA forces snuck up on the terrs quite frequently. And then POW! without warning their world was turned upside down. Another vehicle used during angola was the Casspir
casspir_2.jpg

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/rsa/casspir.htm


apologies, I mentioned earlier that the USMC bought Ratels....I got it messed up. I must have been reading this:
http://www.strategypage.com/gallery/articles/military_photos_2004102421.asp


http://www.defendamerica.mil/articles/oct2003/a101503g.html
 
Yeah when I just looked up the attributes on this thing I was wondering why more Armies around the world hadn't adopted it. It seems like an excellent vehicle. You could easily get it upgraded with the latest electronics if you needed to. It's battle proven, packs a good punch and has a decent cargo space. Plus the mine protection.
You gotta give it to the South Africans. They know how to survive in a very tough part of the world.
 
the_13th_redneck said:
I wonder what sacrifices it had to make to accomodate the bigger gun though.
Click to expand...

The gun is a low recoil system like the MECAR from Belgium so it was likely not too difficult.
 
Lets put them in a head to head.
Let's start with mobility via air compraed to the Stryker because it's one of the Stryker's biggest selling points.

Dimensions:
RATEL:
Length: 7,21m
Width: 2,7m
Height: 2,395m
STRYKER:
Length 6.98 m
Width 2.7178 m
Height 2.6416 m
VERDICT: We know the Stryker can fit inside a C-130 with its wheels deflated. The Ratel is 30 cm shorter vertically. The main difference is the length. Ratel's much longer. The C-130's cargo bay length minus the ramp is 12.19 m. You won't fit two Strykers and you will fit a Ratel. So dimension wise it's a tie.

Weight:
RATEL:
18,500 Kg or 40,785.5 lbs
STRYKER:
38,000 lbs. or 17,236.5 Kg.
VERDICT: C-130's maximum payload is 41,790 lbs / 18,955 kg. This means although it can carry the Ratel it's REALLY pushing it.

FINAL VERDICT: I think in terms of air transportability, the Ratel and the Stryker have tied.
We'll compare others later.
 
Yes, the Ratel is an open terrain vehicle, but it has it's attributes in CQB as well. Because of the firing ports, it can be more or less like a porcupine...
It sure is a sight better than a hummvee - especially in situations like Iraq - because of the mine (and IED) protection.
The weight is a bit of an issue.
The largest international buyer of Ratels is India and the UN.
I can tell you of quite a few cuban vets that still run like mad when they see one of these. According to some vets, the Ratel 90 was used extensively in the anti-tank role. The older soviet tanks couldn't target, turn and manuever fast enough to keep up with a group of these ratels circling and thus, got knocked out pretty fast.
The 90mm revoilless is one hell of a weapon. Can mount it on almost anything - even a pickup - but it has drawbaks...the back blast can be a bit if a hassle.
I do Think that the lower profile is an absolute God sent - trees in the savannah generallyt aren't that tall, so it makes it less visible. The one drawback is the engine...while reliable, I think it is slightly underpowered and a bit noisy. Personally, I would go for something more commercial and quiter like the cummins from a dodge 3500 - with additional mufflers. You can hear a group of ratels approaching from a distance on the open veld - granted, they are less noisy than tanks and some other IFV's or APC's.
 
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