Many Western and Eastern experts agree that the Merkava Mk IV is the best main battle
tank today. Such a consensus is rare. This extraordinary tank is the latest representative
of a long-standing experience dating back to the 1970s. As the Weapon Detective, we
are investigating the Merkava Mk IV, the last chariot of the Israel Defense Forces.
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Indeed, with its firepower and survivability, the Merkava Mk IV is one of the best tanks
today. Many may even agree the best tank. It is the latest member in a long tradition
of tank design. So, we should go back to the 1960s to better understand the Merkava Mk
IV. In the 1960s, Israel intended to produce the
British Chieftain domestically. This tank had a high degree of survivability, which
was crucial for a small populated nation. But, in the same years, London began to oppose
Tel Aviv's aggressive security policies. So, the relations between these two countries
became problematic, and Israel decided to develop an indigenous tank.
The Merkava tank development programme was approved in 1970. Israel was a country with
a special condition. So, the new tank was supposed to have a special design. Its most
remarkable difference from other tanks was that the engine was in the front, not in the
rear. In 1972, a modified Centurion tank was produced
to test this unusual concept. One year later, Israel had to fight for survival.
This war, known as the Yom Kippur War, shaped the final design of the new tank.
In the first three days of the Yom Kippur War, every Israeli tank at the Golan Front
was hit at least 1.5 times. A total of 250 tanks of the Israel Defense Forces had been
knocked out. But, 100 of them had been repaired, manned by the injured crew, and returned to
the battlefield. Israel realized that a high degree of survivability
and easy repairability could change the fate of the battle.
So, these two features became the key criteria for the new tank.
The serial production of the Merkava Mk I began in 1977.
The fire control system of the new tank was the same as the M60’s.
The suspension components of the tank were a hybrid of those used in the Centurion, the
M48, and the T-55. The Merkava Mk II, whose serial production
begun in 1982, was developed based on the experience gained from its predecessor. This
tank had a 20 per cent higher performance in all areas compared to the Merkava Mk I.
It had two-axis stabilization. The first two Merkava variants had a 105mm
main gun, whose firepower was sufficient for the early 1980s.
Analysing the experience of the 1982 Lebanon War, Israel began to develop the Merkava Mk
III, which was introduced in 1989. This variant was equipped with a 120mm gun.
The new hydro-mechanical suspensions provided two times higher cross-country performance
to the Merkava Mk III than its predecessor. Also, its turret was being rotated with an
electric power system. The Merkava Mk III had modular armour plates.
The tank could engage the moving targets while it is on the move.
The Mk IV variant represents the last step of Merkava's evolution. It embodies all the
good qualities of its predecessors. However, this variant is incomparably superior to them.
The development of the Merkava Mk IV began in 1999. Five years later, the tank was introduced.
Nearly one-quarter of the Merkava Mk IV's parts come from other countries. Besides,
its many subsystems are also license-production models.
But, unquestionably, the Merkava Mk IV is an indigenous tank designed and produced for
Israel's specific requirements. Like its predecessors, the engine of the Merkava
Mk IV is in the front. This design enhances the ballistic protection
and allows for a large storage area and a door at the back. In this area, the Merkava
Mk IV can carry infantries or wounded soldiers, as well as additional ammunition, fuel, or
other supplies. In case of the tank is knocked out, the crew can escape via the clamshell
door, which provides overhead protection. This door also makes the resupplying easier.
The Merkava Mk IV has network-centric warfare capability, which increases the tanks combat
efficiency. Each crew can monitor footage coming from
day and night cameras on their individual screens. This feature provides the Merkava
Mk IV a high situational awareness. The 4-person crew of the Merkava Mk IV consists
of a commander, driver, gunner, and loader. Its hull length is 7.6 metres. The tank is
9.04 metres long, 3.72 metres wide, and 2.66 metres high. Its combat weight 65 tons. The
1,500 horsepower GD 883 V-12 diesel engine provides a maximum road speed of 60 kilometres
per hour. The range of the tank is 500 kilometres. The Merkava Mk IV can negotiate 1-metre vertical
steps, 3.5-metre trenches, and it can ford to a depth of 1.4 metres. It has a 120 mm
smoothbore main gun, a 60mm mortar, and two 7.62mm machine guns. Depend on the mission,
a remote-controlled 12.7 mm M2 machine gun can be fitted onto the front of the turret.
The first thing that stands out in the design of the Merkava Mk IV is its survivability.
The tank has a low radar and infrared signature. Its ballistic protection is also improved
in comparison with its predecessors. The removable modular armour packages of the
Merkava Mk IV is inherited from the Merkava Mk IIID. These armour plates are covering
all sides. There are also 30 millimetres-thick composite
armour plates on the turret. Because of these plates, there is only one hatch on the top.
The tank is fitted with a removable V-shaped belly armour package underside against land
mines and improvised explosive devices. Each suspension unit is attached to the hull
on four bolts and can be quickly replaced if it is damaged.
Thanks to the modular armour design, the battle damages of the tank can be easily fixed.
At the rear of the turret, there are chains, which detonate shape-charged anti-tank projectiles
before they reach the hull and turret. In addition to high ballistic protection,
the Merkava Mk IV is fitted with the LWS-2 soft-kill active protection system.
The M variant of the tank also has the Trophy hard-kill active protection systems, which
provides 360-degree protection. The serial production of the Merkava Mk IVM
Windbreaker began in 2009. The Trophy's ELM/2133 radar has four panels.
When the radars detect an approaching threat, the computer of the system classifies the
threat and calculates the optimal time, angle, and interception vector.
Then the Trophy launches the counter-measure munitions, which detonate near the incoming
anti-tank missile or rocket and destroy them before they reach the vehicle. The munition
has a very small kill zone, which ensures the protection of nearby infantries from shrapnel.
The active protection systems of the Merkava Mk IV also provide better situational awareness.
Their sensors can detect the exact location of hostile forces who fire an anti-tank weapon.
So, the gunner can turn the turret toward the enemy to attack it with high precision.
Attacking the Merkava Mk IV with an anti-tank weapon is not only futile but also deadly
dangerous.
Yet, the Trophy is ineffective against the kinetic energy munition.
To ensure the crew's survivability, the turret has an electrically powered driving mechanism
instead of hydraulic. So, using flammable hydraulic liquid is elimintaed inside the
turret.
45Yes, the location of the engine provides extra protection. But, it also causes a disadvantage.
The tank's centre of gravity has shifted forward. For this reason, the control of the Merkava
Mk IV is difficult, especially in sloping areas.
Yet, its cross-country capability is sufficient for Israel Defense Forces' demands.
The Merkava Mk IV is fitted with locally designed tracks, which reduce track-shedding under
harsh basalt rock conditions. This feature is crucial, especially in Lebanon
and the Golan Heights. The 120mm MG253 gun has a new compressed gas
recoil system, consisting of an optimized concentric retarder and pneumatic recuperator.
This recoil system makes the gun more compact compared to the L44 of Rheinmetall.
The MG253 can fire the LAHAT semi-active laser homing guided anti-tank missiles. With a speed
of 300 meters per second, the LAHAT can reach a range of 8,000 meters. It has a circular
error probable of 0.7 metres. The missile can penetrate up to 800 millimetres of steel
armour. Thanks to its tandem warhead, the LAHAT is also effective against explosive
reactive armours. The ammunition boxes contain five rounds and
are loaded beforehand. They are armoured and located between the turret and hull to increase
the crew's survivability. After the gunner selects the type of ammunition, it forwards
to the loader. This design increases the rate of fire. The rest of the ammunition is located
inside the hull. Thanks to the Knight Mk4 fire control system,
the Merkava Mk IV can also engage low-flying and low-speed air targets.
Like its predecessors, the tank can be fitted with a remote-controlled 12.7mm machine gun.
It is aligned with the main gun. During the 2006 Lebanon War, the Merkava Mk
IV proved its level of ballistic protection. Hezbollah militants, who used the latest state-of-art
anti-tank weapons and highly powerful improvised explosive devices, managed to knock out 19
tanks. But, only two of them were destroyed completely, and only one crew lost his life.
In 2008, the Merkava Mk IVs managed to bisect the Gaza strip without loss in a short time.
In 2011, the Trophy active protection system of the Merkava Mk IVM proved its effectiveness
in real combat for the first time by intercepting a missile attack.
Three years later, during Operation Protective Edge, the Merkava Mk IVMs fought without loss.
Their Trophies intercepted many anti-tank missiles and rockets. And, thanks to the sensors
of this active protection system, one Merkava Mk IVM could manage to hunt its hunter. The
Trophy located the enemies, and the tank's crew eliminated them with highly accurate
counter fire. Just like its predecessors, the Merkava Mk
IV is a tank that has proven itself in real combat. However, just like its predecessors,
it has not found a place in the international market. In fact, no other country has developed
a similar tank. So why?
62Of course, the primary reason is that the Merkava was designed to answer the specific
needs of Israel. Other countries with these special needs were
enemies of Israel. Of course, the Arabs could not be expected to buy the Merkava. Also,
Israel's neighbours did not have enough infrastructure to develop an indigenous tank similar to the
Merkava. Therefore it has remained unique.
Over time, the situation in the Middle East has changed.
Since the peace accords signed in Camp David, Egypt, the biggest and most dangerous enemy
of Israel, has not been a threat. Without Egypt, Syria is not a real threat.
Now, Israel has a relatively smooth relation with many Arab countries.
the Israeli Defense Forces, who were reparing to march toward Damascus, Cairo, and Beirut
until the mid-1980s, are now focusing on local issues.
The Merkava Mk IV has become a symbol of this transformation. It does not need a high cross-country
capability to march onto an Arab state. The priority of this tank is to respond to asymmetric
threats. For this reason, it is protected much better than other tanks. And, because
of this protection it is also one of the heaviest tanks in the world.
This beautiful tank was born at the wrong time. So, only a small number of the Merkava
Mk IV was produced compared to the past. The Israel Defense Forces dispensed some of the
reserve brigades and reduced the number of the tank in a standard brigade to 102 from
111. In this relative peacetime, the quality has suppressed the quantity. But, a small
number of high-quality Merkava Mk IV is enough to secure Israel.
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