Jon Hawkes Profile picture
Specialism on AFVs, tanks & tech | Visit my blog | Principal at @JanesINTEL | Member @MilWritersGuild/@UKFightClub1 | Views my own L/RT≠E
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Sep 30 25 tweets 10 min read
(Part 2) It started as a thread on the UK's Titan AVLB and Project TYRO, but got so unwieldy I’ve made it a mini series. What is Titan and TYRO; why is it one of, if not the, most important requirements in the British Army (or any army); and why is it a critical requirement? Image I’ve broken into a few parts; (1) What is Titan and Project TYRO; (2) Why is combat bridging important anyway; (3) Why is Titan a serious problem area; (4) Whats the plan for TYRO CSB; and (5) What are the other options and the implications?
Sep 17 25 tweets 11 min read
The UK was the birthplace of the tank and though today it has only a single upgrade programme to show for heavy tracked armour, it was the origin of many key technologies and capabilities used by tanks the world over. A🧵of a few highlights of the glory days of British armour R&D


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The first practical gas turbine powered vehicle, the FV200 Turbine Test Vehicle, a Conqueror. 'Practical' is a caveat - the Germans actually had the first gas turbine tank, a Jagdtiger in WW2, but it had a problematic habit of setting trees and other nearby objects on fire.


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Jul 1 6 tweets 3 min read
(1/n) A neat bit of thermal footage of Challenger 2 firing and driving. A couple of obvious takeaway comments on tank heat signatures: Engine is peak sustained source of heat, particularly once underway & exhaust blooms. Its at the rear which is good for classic head on engagements, but modern all-aspect attacks mean its increasingly a concern that you can't do much to mitigate. (cgi image but representative) Image
Jun 11 19 tweets 7 min read
Some fervent discussion about KF51 in one of my tweets yesterday, a quick thread on the 130 mm main gun and its ammunition handling system in the KF51 concept vehicle to answer some of the question that came up. Reminder this is a prototype vehicle still and everything is in active development and would be subject to user requirements if it gets bought by anyone. Notional data follows. Image
Jun 6 90 tweets 33 min read
80 years since D-Day, so I thought a (rather long, it turns out) thread of the various interesting AFV things that were around that day, and a bit of a look at what they have evolved to today as spiritual successors. #tanktwitter #dday80 #tanks Image Specialist AFV are ubiquitous now, but the D-Day landings were some of the first outings for many of these capabilities or at the least cemented their utility upon which several generations have evolved since.
Apr 17 21 tweets 9 min read
A brief summary🧵of the Manned Ground Vehicle (MGV) element of the aspirational US Army Future Combat Systems (FCS) programme. A bit of a "what they almost got" for the US Army of the late 90s and early 00s. Image MGV was a common family of AFV that were bold in their vision - baseline 24 ton hull (later upped to c.30t) with hybrid drive & CRT track, loads of data & sensor fusion, a lot of automation (most variants were 2-man crews), with less passive armour and more smart solutions. Image
Mar 7 46 tweets 17 min read
A long-requested (long) overview of the UK’s wheeled vehicle strategy – the Land Mobility Programme (LMP) and Boxer Strategic Pipeline (BSP).
Its actually rather good as a plan, being well considered, framed in reality and funded. Well done Army! Image So, broad strokes. LMP and BSP form a full spectrum of wheeled vehicle capability for the Army. LMP comprises three strands – Light Utility, Light Protected Mobility, and Medium Protected Mobility. Boxer sits above as a de-facto Heavy Protected Mobility of sorts Image
Feb 23 18 tweets 6 min read
1/ 2024 is shaping up to be a bit of a year of the Leopard, a brief summary of plans afoot to make even more Leopard 2 users and variants a reality, which is always a good thing.
An open-ended, non-exhaustive list of actual & speculative users going on as of February 2024: Image 2/ 🇮🇹 Italy: Leopard 2A8
The Italians are looking at a medium-term successor to the Ariete (pictured), despite that tank still being in the midst of an MLU, with long term aspirations to join MGCS (or whatever emerges when it finally gives up). Image
Feb 14 22 tweets 8 min read
1/ Japan's Future Amphibious Technology Research (FAT-R). The oft-overlooked work to really push the envelope of AAV tech that is actually making some great strides in the background.

A short summary 🧵 Image 2/ A quick background of Amphibious Assault Vehicles (AAVs). Since the DUKW and LVT in the 1940s, there has been a niche for AFV capable of swimming when afloat and transitioning to land movement seamlessly to transport and support an opposed landing and inland movement.
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Feb 9 12 tweets 4 min read
1/ A short summary of 🇪🇸's Leopard 2E upgrade plans.

Spain bought 219 Leopard 2E (local name Leopardo 2E), which are broadly speaking a 2A6 analogue with the Strv 122/2A6HEL roof armour and some unique to Spain C4 gear (LINCE BMS, Indra licence-built TI optics etc) Image 2/ The initial plan was to manage obsolescence and reduce some of the maintenance burden - in recent years the training has been curtailed simply because funding for spares and consumables wasn't there, so they are rather keen to minimise outdated elements.
Jan 23 8 tweets 3 min read
1/ UKs Challenger 3 prototype now a real steel bit of kit, going into trials within the next few weeks. Imagery from #IAV2024 courtesy of @Janes own @Rivet_Counter

A few of the usual objections/critiques/comments flying around on twitter this week - a mini thread of responses to Image 2/ The design remains unchanged at the overall design level from that which I summarised 3 years ago at contract award in this thread:
Oct 16, 2023 40 tweets 11 min read
1/ A much requested 🧵 thread on the confused and misunderstood topic of Challenger 2/3’s engine and just how many horses are, or can be fit under the deck of these tanks. Short answer – there is no 1,500 hp uplift for CR2 or CR3. Image 2/ There *could* be a lift to 1,500 hp but there are major technical obstacles and there is no intent to do it. There is be a mid-ground to be found that is being looked at outside committed programmes.
Jan 11, 2023 15 tweets 5 min read
1/ Wheels vs tracks: a short series of threads on relative merits of each, continuing with one on turning circles

TLDR: tracked AFV have better capabilities for turning, even when both vehicle types can do neutral turns, which the vast majority of wheeled AFV cannot 2/ Missed the start of this (increasingly large…) mini-series of threads? Start over here:
Jan 5, 2023 19 tweets 6 min read
1/ Wheels vs tracks: a short series of threads on relative merits of each, continuing with one on approach and departure angles.

TLDR: tracked vehicles broadly have better capabilities for approach, departure, belly/ramp and tilt angles. 2/ Missed the start of this (increasingly large…) mini-series of threads? Start over here:
Jan 4, 2023 15 tweets 6 min read
1/ Wheels vs tracks: a short series of threads on relative merits of each, continuing with one on the ability to negotiate obstacles.

TLDR: wheeled vehicles can more easily achieve higher ground clearances but they struggle more with obstacles once contact is made than tracks do Image 2/ If you want to start at the beginning, this mini-series started here:
Dec 24, 2022 22 tweets 7 min read
1/ Wheels vs tracks: a short series of threads on relative merits of each, continuing with another on the ability to negotiate trenches.

TLDR: tracks are better at trench crossing than wheels, and for wheels the fewer the # axles, the worse it gets. 2/ Quick point of order: these threads are to talk about comparative strengths & weaknesses outside the normal framing of 'which is best in a muddy field' and think about a few other angles that don't always get acknowledgement.
Dec 23, 2022 27 tweets 9 min read
1/ Wheels vs tracks: a short series of threads on relative merits of each, continuing with one on the ability to negotiate obstacles.

TLDR: tracks are generally better at obstacle negotiation whether natural or man made. 2/ This part of the series on obstacle crossing got wildly out of hand (about 140 tweets) so I've broken it into further mini-threads. This first one is step climbing.
Dec 21, 2022 26 tweets 10 min read
1/ Wheels vs tracks: a short series of threads on relative merits of each, starting with one on comparative design efficiency, in terms of volume.

TLDR: tracks are inherently more compact configurations allowing lower & more efficient profiles for the same internal volume 2/ Quick point of order: these threads are to talk about comparative strengths & weaknesses outside the normal framing of 'which is best in a muddy field' and think about a few other angles that don't always get acknowledgement.
Sep 28, 2022 12 tweets 8 min read
With news of Pearson buy out by Rafael, a short thread to show some appreciation of what a remarkable dominance of their market they have, for a ~75 person company in a large shed in Newcastle. Image In summary, unless theyre getting mine clearance kit from Russia (this pic the odd sight of a Finnish Leopard 2A4FIN with Russian KMT-5M roller), when you see a mine plough/roller on an AFV essentially anywhere in the world, they probably bought a Pearson product. Image
Aug 16, 2022 8 tweets 6 min read
A short🧵on Leopard turret size:

Leopard 2's turret has changed radically in size and shape over its various developments, here some angles of the bustle getting longer and longer through a few examples (2A4, 2A5, 2SG and KF51), mainly to accommodate increased electronics The turret face has also continuously crept forwards, contrast flat-faced 2A4 with the famous arrowhead armour from 2A5 onwards, and particularly the latest 2A7A1 where APS radars have extended it even further. Some of the more exotic prototypes also have substantial turret faces
Jun 29, 2022 15 tweets 8 min read
1/n If 130 and/or 140 are to be the future calibre for the next generation of MBTs, the means of handling the new rounds need some thought. Some rambling thoughts in the form of a mini thread. 2/n The 10 mm difference in calibre between 120 and 130 mm has quite a marked impact on the overall size of the round, potentially much more than you might expect. Pictured here the Rheinmetall 130 next to a conventional 120 round.