Karrar is an Iranian fourth generationmain battle tank. The tank was announced on 12 March 2017. At the announcement, it was stated that it possessed an electro-optical fire control system, a laser rangefinder, ballistic computer and could fire at both stationary and mobile targets in day or night. Despite its visual similarity to the T-90, Iran has rejected any alleged Russian collaboration in the project.
History
After the Karrar was unveiled to the public, Tehran announced that it will undergo mass production on 12 March 2017. Speaking to the Tasnim News Agency, Brigadier General Kiomars Heidari has mentioned that the Karrar would be delivered in 2018. The IRGC plans to procure up to 800 Karrar main battle tanks.
Design
The main armament of the Karrar consists of a 125 mm smoothbore gun fitted with a fume extractor and a thermal sleeve. A remotely operated weapon station armed with a 12.7 mm machine gun is mounted on the roof of the turret. The main gun is able to fire anti-tank laser-guided missiles. An autoloader is also installed, removing the need of a loader. The Karrar is supposedly fitted with latest generation of composite armor, with explosive reactive armor panels mounted on the front of the hull and turret. There is also armour plates on the sides and slat armour at the rear of the hull and turret. External fuel tanks can be attached to the rear in order to extend its range.
Defence Minister Brig. Gen. Hossein Dehqan said that the "tank can compete with the most advanced tanks in the world in three main areas: power, precision and mobility, as well as maintenance and durability on the battleground… The Karrar has the capability to fire missiles and precisely guide them , Moreover Karrar can be operated by the gunner and commander from two parallel sights.” "It is no coincidence that specialists regard the Karrar as some kind of a copy of the Russian-made T-90MS, the most advanced modification of the T-90 platform", according to retired Maj. Gen. Vladimir Bogatyrev, chair of the Board of the Russian National Association of Retired Military Officers. He also added that "It is based on the T-72 platform, but it also has something from the AmericanAbrams and M60 tanks. Some elements are borrowed from the M48 and the British Chieftain tank. They took all these elements and tried to design their own tank."
