MOWAG Piranha

MOWAG Piranha
Irish Army Piranha IIIH APC (armed with 12.7 mm HMG), on the streets of Dublin for the 2006 Easter Military Parade.
Type	Armoured personnel carrier
Place of origin	Switzerland
Specifications
Weight	From 9,500 kg[1]
Length	6.25 to 7.45 m[1]
Width	2.5 to 2.66 m[1]
Height	1.8 to 1.98 m[1]
Engine	diesel
Speed	100 km/h [2]

The MOWAG Piranha is a family of armoured fighting vehicles designed by the Swiss MOWAG (since April 2010 the name has changed to General Dynamics European Land Systems - Mowag GmbH), corporation.

Five generations of vehicles have been produced, manufactured by MOWAG or under licence by other companies, and variants are in service with military forces throughout the world.

Swiss Rad Spz 93 during the 2006 Steel Parade in Thun

A Romanian MOWAG Piranha IIIC on the Romanian National Day parade on December 1, at the Triumph Arch in Bucharest.

Irish Piranha IIIH 8x8 APC on public display

Variants

Piranhas are available in 4x4, 6x6, 8x8, and 10x10 wheel versions. There are several variants within these versions, giving different degrees of armour protection and several kinds of turret, for use in a variety of roles. Piranha derivatives have been assigned roles as troop transports, command vehicles, fire support vehicles, tank trainers, and police vehicles.

Piranhas are used by the Swiss Army. Swiss-built Piranha derivatives have been exported to Sweden, Denmark, Ireland, Romania, Spain and Belgium. The Romanian Army and the Belgian Army have selected the Piranha IIIC 8x8. It has decided to convert to all wheeled vehicles, simultaneously removing the current main battle armoured transporter TAB and the Leopard 1 battle tanks, from the inventory. The Piranha is modern and armoured, but lacks the protection, firepower and manoeuvrability of a conventional tracked tank. In total 242 vehicles will be delivered, of which 104 optional.^{[clarification needed]}

Piranha derivatives have been manufactured under licence by General Dynamics (Canada), BAE Systems Land Systems (UK), Komatsu (Japan), Cardoen and FAMAE (Chile), and in the USA. The 8x8 US Army Stryker vehicle is derived from the Canadian LAV III which in turn is based on the Piranha, as is the LAV-25 family in service with the USMC. The Australian Defence Force also has its own modified version of the Piranha I 8x8 known as the ASLAV (Australian Light Armoured Vehicle). The ASLAV is operated by two cavalry regiments (the 2nd Cavalry Regiment and 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment) and is used in the armoured reconnaissance and armoured personnel carrier roles.

Some variants, like the United States Marine Corps's Light Armored Vehicle-25 (LAV-25) and its derivatives, are equipped with propellers for amphibious use, though their swimming capability is restricted to sheltered waters.

A new Piranha V version, weighing in between 25 to 30 tons, was announced as the provisional winner of the British Army's FRES program on 8 May 2008.^[3] However this was withdrawn seven months later and bidding has started again.^{[citation needed]}

General Dynamics European Land Systems launched their new Piranha Class 5 at EUROSATORY 2010 on 15 June and it is reported that the British MoD are showing renewed interest but struggle with budget constraints.^[4]

Family tree

• Piranha I
  • AVGP
  • LAV-25
    • ASLAV
• Piranha II
  • Bison
  • Coyote
  • Desert Piranha
  • LAV II
• Piranha III
  • Piranha IIIC
  • Piranha IIIH
    • LAV III
      • Stryker
      • NZLAV
• Piranha IV
• Piranha V

Operators

• African Union - 105 AVGP
• Australian Army - 257 ASLAV^[5]
• Belgian Army - 242 Piranha IIIC 8x8 in 7 versions ordered:
  • AIV Fus: Piranha IIIC with a FN Arrows 12.7 mm overhead gun system. Crew: 10 (driver, commander, gunner and seven fusiliers).
  • AIV DF30: Piranha IIIC with a OIP/ELBIT 30 mm overhead gun system. Crew: 6 (driver, commander, gunner and three men for MILAN).
  • AIV DF90: Piranha IIIC with a CMI LCTS 90 mm gun: Crew: 3 (driver, commander and gunner). This version is back to sale.
  • AIV CP: Piranha IIIC used as commander post with a FN Arrows 12.7 mm overhead gun system. Crew: 6 (driver, commander, gunner and three NCO's)
  • AIV GN: Piranha IIIC used by the Belgian engineers with a FN Arrows 12.7 mm overhead gun system, doze blade ans anti-mine plough. Crew: 10 (driver, commander, gunner and seven fusiliers).
  • AIV Amb: Piranha IIIC used as Ambulance without weapon and with a BINZ ambulance equipment. Crew: 4 (driver, commanders and four medics).
  • AIV Rec: Piranha IIIC with a FN Arrows 12.7 mm overhead gun system, blade and heavy recovery winch. Crew: 3 (driver, commanders and gunner). http://www.army-technology.com/contractors/armoured/mowag/press12.html</ref>
• Botswana Defence Force- 45 Piranha IIIC 8x8^[6]
• Brazilian Marine Corps - 30 amphibious Piranha IIIC 8x8 in 4 versions^[7]
• Canadian Army - 491 AVGP, 199 Bison,^[8] 203 Coyote and 651 LAV III
• Chilean Army and Chilean Marine Corps - total of 230 Piraña 6x6 and 30 Piraña 8x8D^[A]
• Danish Army - 18 Piranha IIIH 8x8 and 24 Piranha IIIC 8x8; another 91 Piranha IIIC 8x8 ordered^[6]
• Eritrea - Piranha I 6x6
• Ghana Army - 63 Piranha I 4x4, 6x6 and 8x8^[6][9] ordered^[10]
• Irish Army - 80 Piranha IIIH 8x8 in 6 versions^[6]
• Liberia - Piranha I 6x6 (unconfirmed)
• Monaco - Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince - 4 Piranha V (unconfirmed as of 2010)^{[citation needed]}
• New Zealand Army - 105 NZLAV.
• Nigeria - 140 Piranha I 6x6
• Royal Army of Oman - 174 Piranha II 8x8 in 7 versions^[6]
• Qatar Army - 40 Piranha II 8x8
• Romanian Land Forces - 33 Piranha IIIC 8x8^[11]
• Saudi Arabian National Guard - 1,117 LAV/Piranha II 8x8 in 10 versions; another 132 ordered^[6]
• Sierra Leone - 10 Piranha I 6x6
• Spanish Navy Marines - 39 amphibious Piranha IIIC 8x8^[6]
• Sweden - 33 Piranha IIIC 10x10^[6]
• Swiss Army - 303 Piranha I 6x6 and 509 Piranha II 8x8 in 3 versions; 60 Piranha IIIC 8x8 in two versions ordered
• United States Army - 2,988 Stryker
• Army National Guard - 12 Bison
• United States Marine Corps - 772 LAV-25
•  Uruguay - 147 Cougar

Comparable vehicles

• AMX 10 RC
• Pandur 8X8 APC
• Pandur 6x6 APC
• LAV 600
• MOWAG Piranha family tree
• LAV III
• Stryker
• NZLAV
• Mobile Gun System
• ASLAV
• LAV-25
• BTR-80
• BTR-90
• Patria Pasi aka Sisu Pasi
• Patria AMV
• KTO Rosomak
• Pindad Panser
• Al-Fahd

Gallery

• 

  Mobile Gun System; derivative of the Piranha, mounting a 105 mm tank gun

• 

  Canadian Forces LAV III

• 

  Canadian Piranha-derived, six-wheeled Cougar AVGP, with Scorpion tank turret (76 mm gun)

• 

  The LAV-25 has two M240 machine guns and a 25 mm autocannon

References and notes

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} FAS.org - Piranha overview - Stats
2. ^ Army-Technology.com - Specifications - Piranha III / LAV III Wheeled Armoured Vehicles
3. ^ "Drayson: New vehicles will have "vital part to play in the Army of the future"". United Kingdom Ministry of Defense. June 8, 2007. http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceNews/EquipmentAndLogistics/DraysonNewVehiclesWillHavevitalPartToPlayInTheArmyOfTheFuture.htm. Retrieved July 4, 2007. 
4. ^ GD Rolls Out Piranha 5 Once Slated for Britain – Eurosatory 2010 - Defense News Show Scout
5. ^ Defence Materiel Organisation
6. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h} http://disarmament.un.org/UN_REGISTER.nsf
7. ^ General Dynamics awarded Order for 18 PIRANHA IIIC 8x8 Vehicles from Brazilian Marines
8. ^ http://www.army.forces.gc.ca/lf/english/11_6_3.asp
9. ^ Ghana Armed Forces
10. ^ Procurement: Iraq Buys What It Knows
11. ^ http://www.janes.com/extracts/extract/jaa/jaa_a052.html

Notes

1. ^ Chilean built 4x4, 6x6 and 8x8 in different configurations for the Chilean Army.

External links

• www.mowag.ch - including PIRANHA concept
• Army-Technology.com - Piranha
• Swissmotor.ch - Neue Radpanzergeneration bei MOWAG - Der PIRANHA III
• Soldf.com - Piranha III 10x10 Armoured Sensor Vehicle
• DanskPanser.dk - Danish Piranha IIIC
• DanskPanser.dk - Danish Piranha IIIH
• War Wheels - Canadian Bison
• - Military Today - Canadian Bison