The K200 KIFV (Korea Infantry Fighting Vehicle) is a South Korean

armored personnel carrier An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. Ac ...

, originally produced by

Daewoo Heavy Industries Doosan Enerbility Co., Ltd., formerly known as Doosan Heavy Industries, is a heavy industrial company headquartered in Changwon, South Korea. It was established in 1962. Its business includes manufacturing and construction of nuclear power p ...

as a domestic replacement for older armored personnel carriers, such as the M113, in front line service with the

Republic of Korea Armed Forces The Republic of Korea Armed Forces (), also known as the ROK Armed Forces, are the armed forces of South Korea. The ROK Armed Forces is one of the largest and most powerful standing armed forces in the world with a reported personnel strength of ...

at the time of the K200's development. Since 2009 the K200 has been supplemented by the

K21 The K21 is a South Korean infantry fighting vehicle. A replacement for the K200-series, it was formerly designated as K300 or XK21 KNIFV (Korea Next-generation Infantry Fighting Vehicle). The initial production began in 2009, with the Republic of ...

. A total of 2,383 K200 vehicles of all configurations were produced between 1985 and 2006, among which are 111 K200A1 vehicles exported to

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

History

The K200 project began in 1981 when the

Republic of Korea Army The Republic of Korea Army (ROKA; ko, 대한민국 육군; Hanja: 大韓民國陸軍; RR: ''Daehanminguk Yuk-gun''), also known as the ROK Army or South Korean Army, is the army of South Korea, responsible for ground-based warfare. It is the l ...

issued a request for a new Korean Infantry Fighting Vehicle (KIFV) to meet future combat requirements. The

Agency for Defense Development The Agency for Defense Development (ADD) is the South Korean national agency for research and development in defense technology, funded by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). It was established in August 1970 under the banner ...

was in charge of its development, and

was the prime contractor for the production of this vehicle. The K200 was designed to be an amphibious personnel carrier that could cross shallow rivers, based on the

chassis A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of an artificial object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpart ...

of the American

Armored Infantry Fighting Vehicle The AIFV (''Armored Infantry Fighting Vehicle'') is a US tracked light armored vehicle that serves as an infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) in the armies of several countries. It is a development of the M113A1 armored personnel carrier. Histo ...

. The AIFV itself was based on the M113 armored personnel carrier. The vehicle was developed to be more affordable than the AIFV, but not necessarily sacrificing capability, to gain an edge in cost-effectiveness. The eventual domestic development and production of the K200 achieved a price range of US$1.32-1.41 million as opposed to the $1.52-2.83 million price range that a license-production or direct importation of the AIFV would have entailed. Doosan incorporated the

MAN A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromo ...

D2848T engine into the K200 under a license-production deal and assimilated its technology using domestic components, a reverse-engineering experience that would prove instrumental in the development of its next IFV, the

S&T Dynamics SNT Dynamics Co., Ltd. () is a South Korean weapons, windpower, auto parts and casting and machine tools manufacturer founded in 1959. Its heavy weapons equip most frontline units of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces. History SNT Dynamics was ...

was the licensee subcontractor for the Allison Transmission X200-5K

gearbox Propulsion transmission is the mode of transmitting and controlling propulsion power of a machine. The term ''transmission'' properly refers to the whole drivetrain, including clutch, gearbox, prop shaft (for rear-wheel drive vehicles), differe ...

. The vehicle entered production in 1985. Serial production was completed in 2006. In October 2017,

Hanwha , former_name = Korea Explosives Group , type = Public , traded_as = , industry = Conglomorate , founded = , founder = Kim Chong-hee , hq_location_city = Seoul , hq_location_country = South Korea , area_served = Global , key_people = K ...

unveiled an internally-funded upgrade project that would turn the K200 into a modular, multi-purpose vehicle. The design involves stretching the chassis and adding a road wheel for six pairs and removing the back section to create a flat cargo bed to fit various modules that can be swapped out for different missions; initial configurations include modules to act as an ambulance, fuel tanker,

minelayer A minelayer is any warship, submarine or military aircraft deploying explosive mines. Since World War I the term "minelayer" refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines. "Mine planting" was the term for installing controll ...

, and communications platform. With ROK Army approval, the company could fully mature the project in two years.

General characteristics

The K200 series of vehicles transport mechanized infantry platoon is designed to keep personnel safe from small arms fire. The hull of the KIFV is of all-welded aluminium armor with an additional layer of spaced laminate steel armor bolted to it. The composite armor provides a higher level of protection for less weight. It provides protection against 12.7 mm rounds on the sides,

7.62 mm The 7.62 mm caliber is a nominal caliber used for a number of different cartridges. Historically, this class of cartridge was commonly known as .30 caliber, the imperial unit and customary unit equivalent, and was most commonly used for ...

ammunition in the rear, larger shell

splinter A splinter (also known as a sliver) is a fragment of a larger object, or a foreign body that penetrates or is purposely injected into a body. The foreign body must be lodged inside tissue to be considered a splinter. Splinters may cause initia ...

from the ground, and

anti-personnel mines Anti-personnel mines are a form of mine designed for use against humans, as opposed to anti-tank mines, which are designed for use against vehicles. Anti-personnel mines may be classified into blast mines or fragmentation mines; the latter may ...

. The engine compartment is located at the front right of the vehicle and is separated from the remainder of the vehicle by a bulkhead. The engine compartment is fitted with a fire extinguishing system that can be operated by the driver or from outside the vehicle. The air inlet, air outlet louvers and the exhaust pipe are located on the roof of the vehicle to allow amphibious operations. The K200 has six electrically operated smoke grenade launchers mounted across the front of the hull as

countermeasures A countermeasure is a measure or action taken to counter or offset another one. As a general concept, it implies precision and is any technological or tactical solution or system designed to prevent an undesirable outcome in the process. The fi ...

against

electro-optical Electro–optics is a branch of electrical engineering, electronic engineering, materials science, and material physics involving components, electronic devices such as lasers, laser diodes, LEDs, waveguides, etc. which operate by the propag ...

and

infrared Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...

targeting. If the KIFV variant features a turret, the smoke grenade launchers mount on the turret (three on each side). K200 can provide infantry firepower support with 12.7 mm and 7.62 mm machine guns. Stronger anti-infantry and

anti-material An anti-materiel rifle (AMR) is a rifle designed for use against military equipment, structures, and other hardware (materiel). Anti-materiel rifles are chambered in significantly larger calibers than conventional rifles and are employed to elimi ...

firepower can be brought to bear by equipping a 20 mm Vulcan gun, or 81 mm and 107 mm mortars.

Anti-tank Anti-tank warfare originated from the need to develop technology and tactics to destroy tanks during World War I. Since the Triple Entente deployed the first tanks in 1916, the German Empire developed the first anti-tank weapons. The first deve ...

capability can be added by equipping the

Metis-M The 9K115-2 Metis-M ( NATO reporting name AT-13 Saxhorn-2) is a Russian portable anti-tank guided missile system. "9K115-2" is the GRAU designation of the missile system. The Metis-M1 is the latest upgraded variant of Metis-M. The system is desig ...

anti-tank missile An anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), anti-tank missile, anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW) or anti-armor guided weapon is a Missile guidance, guided missile primarily designed to hit and destroy Armoured fighting vehicle, heavily armored military v ...

system. The K200 is highly

modular Broadly speaking, modularity is the degree to which a system's components may be separated and recombined, often with the benefit of flexibility and variety in use. The concept of modularity is used primarily to reduce complexity by breaking a s ...

, and its variants provide additional types of combat support such as air defense and vehicle recovery using specialized equipment. The APC can accommodate 12 people including one infantry squad, the driver, and gunners. In November 2015, Doosan and

CMI Defence John Cockerill, formerly Cockerill Maintenance & Ingénierie (CMI), is a mechanical engineering group headquartered in Seraing, Belgium. It produces machinery for steel plants, industrial heat recovery equipment and boilers, as well as shunting l ...

revealed they had cooperated to create the Cockerill Protected Weapon Station (CPWS) to increase the firepower of the K200. The turret can support cannons between 20–30 mm, plus a 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun, including the: CPWS20 20 mm; CPWS 25 mm which can be armed with the M242 Bushmaster, Nexter M811, or

Oerlikon KBA The Oerlikon KBA is a 25 mm (25×137mm) autocannon, developed as a close range multipurpose weapon for the mechanised battlefield, originally made by Oerlikon (now Rheinmetall AG) and currently produced in Rheinmetall Italia S.p.A. facilities. It ...

; and CPWS30 armed with the M230LF.

Variants

* K200: First production variant. ** K216: NBC reconnaissance vehicle. Equipped with detection system to trace sources of NBC agents. ** K221: Smoke generating vehicle. Produces two types of smoke to protect from visible light for 90 minutes and infrared for 30 minutes. ** K242: Carries 4.2 inch mortar for fire support. ** K255: Proposed ammunition resupply vehicle for 155 mm self-propelled howitzer. ** K263 SPAAG: KM167A1 20 mm self-propelled anti-aircraft gun variant of K200. ** K277: Command post vehicle. The vehicle contains various supplements for commanders. ** K281: Carries 81 mm mortar for fire support. ** K288: Recovery vehicle. Rescues and repairs damaged military vehicles. * K200A1: Upgraded variant of the base K200 with more powerful engines and transmission. The upgrade also added NBC protection and automatic fire extinguishing system. ** K242A1: Carries 4.2 inch mortar for fire support. To be replaced by 120 mm mortar. ** K263A1 SPAAG: KM167A1 20 mm

M61 Vulcan The M61 Vulcan is a hydraulically, electrically, or pneumatically driven, six-barrel, air-cooled, electrically fired Gatling-style rotary cannon which fires rounds at an extremely high rate (typically 6,000 rounds per minute). The M61 and its ...

self-propelled anti-aircraft gun variant of K200A1. *** K263A3 SPAAG: Improved version of K263A1. A3 features such as improved FCS, electronic protection, safety, etc. All A1 have been upgraded to A3. ** K281A1: Carries 81 mm mortar for fire support. ** K288A1: Recovery vehicle. Rescues and repairs damaged military vehicles.

Operators

* - 111 K200A1 in service. *

References

External links