South Korean wheeled infantry fighting vehicle N-WAV can get to the Armed Forces of Ukraine: what is known about the promising development (photo)
The South Korean defense company Hyundai Rotem considers the Ukrainian army as a promising user of the new N-WAV wheeled combat vehicles.
This became known from the company’s presentation, which was posted on Twitter by Bartłomiej Kucharski.
During the presentation, representatives of the Korean defense giant spoke about plans to set up a plant in Poland to produce new N-WAV 8×8 combat wheeled vehicles.
The new enterprise is expected to become a production center that will supply armored vehicles to other Eastern European countries. The Ukrainian army, which will obviously need large volumes of armored vehicles after the war, is considered a promising user.
The Polish army, which needs 1,500 units to arm two newly created divisions, as well as Bulgaria, Slovenia and Hungary, which plan to replace their Soviet armored vehicles with more modern models, are also considered promising customers.
In addition to the production of new vehicles, the future Polish industrial center of Hyundai is also expected to become a repair hub for the above countries.
What is known about N-WAV
The promising N-WAV 8×8 armored combat vehicle is based on the Korean K808 armored personnel carrier manufactured by Hyundai Rotem.
The vehicle is designed to deliver infantry and provide direct support in combat. In its normal configuration, the vehicle can accommodate eight infantrymen and three crew members in the landing compartment.
The main advantage of the new vehicle should be its modularity, which is reflected in the ability to easily integrate most of the combat modules on the market. The Koreans offer their own module with a Northrop Grumman Mk30 Bushmaster II automatic cannon. However, it is known that the Polish version of the combat vehicle will be equipped with the domestic ZSSW-30 module.
According to the information disclosed at the presentation, the ballistic protection of the vehicle will provide for withstanding 4-6 levels of shelling STANAG 4569. This can be interpreted as protection against fire from a 14.5 mm machine gun in a circle, as well as from a 30 mm automatic cannon in the frontal projection. At the same time, the mine protection is designed to withstand the detonation of 10 kilograms of TNT.
The armored vehicle has a classic layout with the engine and driver’s compartment in the front, the combat compartment in the center and the landing compartment in the rear with an exit through a ramp.
The gross weight of the armored vehicle is 35 tons, and its power plant provides 700 hp, which ensures an energy efficiency of 20 hp/ton. With this weight, the N-WAV remains buoyant and is able to cross water at speeds of up to 10 km/h.
As a standard, the vehicle is equipped with a diesel engine combined with an automatic transmission. However, the manufacturer is also developing an alternative propulsion system that will run on hydrogen.
