India Unveils Cutting-Edge Tracked Armored Vehicle, Outpacing Global Rivals

This new model developed in collaboration with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) represents a major evolution of the Wheeled Armoured Platform (WhAP) 8x8 vehicle already acquired by the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces. According to sources close to the file, "the images released by TASL on professional channels reveal a lowered chassis, with more streamlined lines, equipped with a modular turret and a redesigned hull to increase structural resistance and tactical mobility". Designed with the Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (CVRDE), the AAP-Tr should be subject to demonstration trials before the end of the year.

The WhAP 8x8 wheeled vehicle, which entered service in 2022 as an Infantry Protected Mobility Vehicle (IPMV), has a 600 horsepower Cummins engine, an automatic transmission and STANAG 4 ballistic protection. The Moroccan army has 150 units of this model produced in the new Casablanca plant. These vehicles, capable of transporting ten soldiers, are equipped with a 7.62 mm remote-controlled turret. According to technical sources, these incorporations "attest to the robustness, reliability and technological maturity of the platform".

Despite its qualities, the wheeled version of the WhAP, adapted for long distances on roads, "showed its limits during prolonged operations in difficult terrain, compared to tracked vehicles such as the Russian BMP-3". In reality, the AAP-Tr has been designed to combine modularity, agility and endurance by replacing the wheels with tracks, thus ensuring optimal traction on snow, mud or devastated terrain.

Static tests carried out in Bangalore have revealed major improvements. The vehicle first has "a more pronounced V-shaped lower hull, designed to better deflect explosions and increase mine protection". It also benefits from "increased resistance thanks to multilayer composite coatings and active protection systems against projectiles", as well as "STANAG 5+ ceramic armour, capable of withstanding 14.5 mm armour-piercing fire and anti-tank rockets without excessively increasing the weight of the structure".

Engineers have also "raised the ground clearance thanks to an improved bogie system, allowing it to cross 0.8 metre trenches and 30 degree slopes". The AAP-Tr moves its powertrain to the left, freeing up the right side for rapid troop egress. Finally, "the integrated turret, designed locally, gives the vehicle greater operational autonomy and better operational responsiveness on the battlefield". According to the Indian specialist media, "the design of the AAP-Tr embodies an industrial and tactical milestone for TASL, which is establishing itself as a major player in the creation of hybrid armoured vehicles adapted to the combat doctrines of the 21st century".