Article Posted on : - Mar 24, 2011

The K2 main battle tank of South Korea.

SEOUL (BNS): South Korea has delayed the deployment of its indigenous K2 Black Panther main battle tanks (MBTs) in the Army due to mechanical problems involving their engines and transmission.

The country's weapons procurement agency Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said Wednesday that the new tanks, which the Army was expecting to induct by next year, would not be deployed until 2013.

Mass production of the new-generation MBTs, which are set to replace the aging K1 and US-built M48 tanks, was originally planned to begin in 2009, but faulty indigenous engines and transmission of the tanks halted the production.

Production of the K2 tank has been suspended since then as the homegrown engine and transmission, known as a “power pack,” was found to be defective, the Yonhap news agency said.

“Given the circumstance of development for the domestically-built power pack, a deployment date of the K2 tank was delayed to 2013 from 2012,” DAPA spokesman Jeong Jae-un was quoted as saying.

The “power pack” of Black Panther, based on the German-made MTU-890, is made up of a 1,500-horsepower diesel engine and transmission.

If the local developers fail to meet a quality standard for the key part by October this year, DAPA will import the power pack (from Germany), Jeong said.

South Korea has been developing the Black Panther MBTs since 2006. The tank has been designed to travel at speeds of up to 70 km per hour on road surfaces, and maintain speeds of up to 52 km per hour in off-road conditions.