I suspect the days of the intrepid salesman making a pitch in a luxury hotel room and AFV procurement selections then being made under the influence of certain ‘unorthodox’ enticements are now a thing of the distant past, and rightly so! Nowadays, as with any business decision, a wide range of factors are considered before spending large sums of dollars, ‘petro’, ‘crypto’ or otherwise.

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Indeed, I imagine our Artificially Intelligent helpers will doubtless become just as embedded a part of the procurement process as they will be present on the battlefield if technologists’ predictions turn out not to be wildly overoptimistic. The complex web of factors surrounding upgrades vs new builds means any assistance in decision-making will be more than welcome.

Looking at the upgrade question ahead of the many deals that will be struck (and possibly even announced, you never know) at IDEX this year, one clear trend among Middle Eastern militaries is improving capabilities of medium and light vehicles in their inventories by the installation of subsystems such as new turrets with enhanced capabilities.

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These turrets and their armament can be just as important as the vehicle itself. This industry can be rather chassis-fixated at times, but many countries now have a separate competition when ordering a new AFV for the actual weapon system and in some cases, the end user specifies a fresh combination or integration to achieve fleet commonality.

One prime example in the Middle East is Saudi Arabia where its first-generation General Dynamics Land Systems – Canada Light Armoured Vehicles (LAVs) were fitted with various turrets, with the largest direct-fire one being the French TS-90 armed with a 90mm gun.

Above: A modern turret can make a big difference. The John Cockerill Defense C3105 two-person model is in service with Saudi Arabia installed on GDLS – Canada Light Armoured Vehicle 8x8s. (Photo: John Cockerill Defense)

The latest batch of LAVs acquired are not only larger but have better protection, a more powerful diesel engine, improved suspension and can be fitted with a larger turret. In the AFV world, if one thing gets larger or more powerful on a platform, everything else must grow to compensate (or be eliminated entirely).

Belgian company John Cockerill Defense developed the C3000 family of two-person turrets as a private venture and a large number are fitted to the latest Saudi LAV 8x8s in two configurations.

These are the C3030 armed with a 30mm Bushmaster cannon and the C3105, equipped with a 105mm high-pressure rifled gun. No loader is required in this case as the turret features a bustle-mounted automatic system which holds 17 rounds of ammunition with the empty cartridge cases ejected through the turret rear.

It never ceases to amaze how much firepower can now be packaged into a small space without overheating or malfunctioning, and reducing manning levels has the side benefit of putting one less body in harm’s way, while not ejecting hot cases into the crew compartment means one less thing to worry about.

A key feature of the C3000 series is a modular design which not only covers the weapon but the stabilised sight with at least three types offered by the company. This mix-and-match (or should that be plug-and-play, I am never sure?) approach is increasingly essential as militaries want commonality across fleets and the ability to shop around.

The interchangeability baked into vehicle designs also offers a solution if one of the original options drops off the market, making a repeat order impossible. The first tranche of Saudi LAVs also included a version fitted with the old Royal Ordnance 120mm Armoured Mortar System with ammunition from MECAR, with 73 supplied before marketing of the turret ceased.

For its next LAV buy Saudi Arabia selected the Finnish Patria NEMO 120mm mortar and 36 were duly delivered. This is a more advanced system fitted with an automatic loader enabling a higher rate of fire to be obtained. While some commonality is lost, this is confined to the turret. One platform can be hooked up with multiple generations of subsystems (or vice versa), pleasing everyone except possibly those who have to keep track of what spare parts are needed!

The neighbouring UAE’s armed forces meanwhile are the largest export customer for the Russian BMP-3 tracked IFV. This ‘number one’ slot may be surprising to some, but I think underlines how many of Russia’s traditional clients either ran out of serious money, developed their own industries or switched to Western or other alternatives.

The BMP-3 is arguably the most well-armed vehicle of its type in the world, toting a 100mm 2A70 gun that in addition to conventional rounds can fire a 9M117 laser-guided missile out to 6,000m or more.

Added to this is a 30mm dual-feed cannon (which would be the main armament of many IFVs!) and the obligatory 7.62mm coaxial MG, plus two more of the same weapon mounted in the bow either side of the driver. This is quite the arsenal by modern standards but inevitably eats up space and weight.

The BMP-3 chassis is therefore very cramped compared to other tracked IFVs with the diesel power pack low down at the rear which has the side disbenefit of making it difficult for dismounts to rapidly leave the vehicle. This also reduces flexibility for installing new subsystems and represents if you like the counter-example to the Saudi LAV fleet, especially as Russian support is now likely harder to come by.

Above: In a relatively rare instance of such recycling, the UAE's Rabdan 8x8 fleet is equipped with turrets taken from Russian-supplied BMP-3 IFVs. (Photo: Al Jassor)

While an engineering solution can usually be found for upgrading something with an uncooperative or no longer extant design authority, it can add cost and complexity that may render the work uneconomical. The different standards used by the Warsaw Pact and NATO have caused more than a few headaches in the past for nations using kit from both ‘sides’. You need completely different parts even down to the nuts and bolts level usually!

That said, the UAE has taken delivery of a large number of Otokar Rabdan 8x8 IFVs via Al Jassor and these are fitted with the complete turret of the BMP-3 removed from the original vehicles, an example of ‘recycling’ not seen much in the modern age.

Another Cold War warrior soldiers on in the region. Back in Saudi, the armed forces operate a huge fleet of venerable US-supplied M113-series tracked APCs and these have been upgraded with kits provided by FNSS of Turkey.

In a statement, the company said “we have upgraded 1,000 M113 family of vehicles to the latest M113A4 configurations in the KOSA with local technology transfer and a considerably high level of local manufacturing content.” How many defence contracts do we see involving a four-figure total of vehicles these days? And note the all-important offset arrangements that are part and parcel of any such deal and probably require more paperwork than the actual engineering!

The M113A4 standard involves stronger torsion bars, new shock absorbers, the driver’s tillers being replaced by a steering yoke, a thermal driver’s camera and a more powerful diesel engine coupled to an automatic transmission, as well as replacing the internal fuel with new protected tanks mounted either side of the rear power-operated ramp. Getting explosive or inflammable things out of the main hull is always a good idea!

Increasingly, customers in the Middle East are demanding such thermal imaging devices for their AFVs rather than the old image intensification type, but these are more expensive to obtain and have higher through-life-cycle costs. Yet another trade-off to be factored into the already complex mix.

In addition to greater firepower and better sensors, another concern is of course survivability. Due to the wider range of battlefield threats (with some notably better armed adversaries emerging on the borders of some countries), they are also enhancing survivability of their platforms with typical measures includes additional passive armour at the front, sides and belly, which the Saudi M113 upgrade also features.

There is also a trend to fit detectors to warn the crew if they are being targeted by laser rangefinders or laser-guided weapons so that they can then take avoiding action, not to mention spare the ‘Mark 1 Eyeball’ the effects of so much dust.

Some are also fitted with fire/explosion protection systems and internal spall liners to reduce the effect of rounds penetrating the main armour.

While this increased armour protection enhances the survivability of the platform, it does have an adverse effect on its mobility with lower ground clearance, overloaded suspension, and reduced speed and acceleration. This is all particularly problematic in the desert, so everything should literally be weighed up carefully when planning an upgrade package.

This then also means that the power pack has to be upgraded to enable the power-to weight ratio and speed to be maintained.

As we have seen, virtually any part or subsystem of an AFV can be enhanced or replaced, keeping even some decidedly aged platforms relevant for decades beyond their planned use-by dates. But any army going down this route must keep a careful eye on both cost and weight – otherwise you may end up with a package of upgrades that cumulatively costs more than a brand new vehicle, or an AFV with state of the art firepower, sensors and armour that can barely make it over the nearest sand dune!