K2 Black Panther

South Korea's world-class tank — and Europe's new workhorse — the K2 Black Panther is one of the most advanced main battle tanks in service: a 120mm L/55 gun fed by an autoloader, a three-man crew, an active protection suite, and adaptive hydropneumatic suspension that lets the tank "kneel," lean and adjust to terrain. Built by Hyundai Rotem for a South Korea facing North Korea's massed armour, it has become the centrepiece of a historic arms deal — Poland is buying around 1,000, with production moving onto Polish soil — making the K2 a symbol of Korea's surge into the front rank of global arms exporters.

Overview

The K2 Black Panther is South Korea's indigenous main battle tank, built by Hyundai Rotem. It mounts a 120mm/L55 smoothbore gun (the Hyundai WIA CN08, the same long-barrel calibre as the latest Leopard 2) fed by an autoloader, cutting the crew to three and giving a high rate of fire (around 10 rounds per minute). Around it Hyundai Rotem packed a modern sensor and protection suite: composite and reactive armour, a soft-kill (and developing hard-kill) active protection system, and a distinctive hydropneumatic suspension that lets the tank raise, lower, tilt and "kneel" to fit terrain and firing positions. It can fire programmable top-attack smart munitions and ford deep water with a snorkel. Entering service in 2014, the K2 is regarded as one of the most capable MBTs in the world — and, through the Poland deal, the spearhead of South Korea's emergence as a major arms exporter.

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