Indonesian Harimau tanks to be equipped with reconnaissance UAVs

The Indonesian Army's Harimau tanks on display at Indo Defence 2022. The tanks will be equipped with reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicles. (Janes/Andrew Galer)

The Indonesian Army'sHarimau medium tanks will be equipped with reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) “to adapt to the demands of combat operations”, said the country's Minister of Defense, Prabowo Subianto.

In a recent statement, Subianto said the addition of UAVs to the tanks will improve the “completeness of the combat operation”.

Indonesia and Turkey signed an agreement in November 2014 to jointly develop and produce a medium tank. This collaboration – known as the ‘Modern Medium Weight Tank' development programme – involved Indonesia's PT Pindad and Turkey's FNSS Defence Systems.

The tank is called ‘Harimau' in Indonesia and ‘Kaplan MT' in Turkey. Following the endurance and firing tests in Indonesia and Turkey, FNSS and PT Pindad signed a serial production contract for 18 Harimau tanks in 2019.

The Indonesian Army will receive all 18 tanks in 2023, Subianto added. “Ten units have been produced in Turkey and eight in Indonesia.”

Cem Altınışık, corporate communications manager at FNSS, told Janes that 10 units were shipped from Turkey to Indonesia in March 2022 as part of the contract's first batch delivery.

A further eight units are being manufactured at PT Pindad's facilities in Bandung with assistance from FNSS, Altınışık added.

According to Janes Land Warfare Platforms: Armoured Fighting Vehicles, the Kaplan MT is equipped with the CMI Defence Cockerill 3105 turret, which is fitted with a 105 mm high-pressure gun and a bustle-mounted autoloader. The turret is also armed with a 7.62 mm co-axial machine gun.