M79 Main Battle Tank (FRAUT)

The M79 is a FRAUT, designed by Federal Defence. The vehicle was designed in 1965, and entered service with the Federal Republic Land Force Command in 1967. Production of the M79 ended in 1982 with a total of 4,400 vehicles being produced, primarily for the Land Force Command. The vehicle has not seen any conflicts. The M79 was upgraded by the Land Force Command In December of 2004 to the M79A1 specification in order to prolong the vehicle until replacement, scheduled in 2017.

History
Shortly after the Glorious War, General Staff realized that the 1940s era technology would not be sufficient to conduct operations in a much faster paced battle space. Heavily armored, slow moving vehicles with primitive electronic systems could not engage targets while moving, and were cumbersome to reload. So, The Command Administration Group Center delivered a development contract to Federal Defence in April of 1963 to develop a Medium Tank able to engage targets on the move, with sufficient armor but high speed. Designers took the basic profile of the much older M56 tank, and designed a wider and longer version. This prototype was known as the (P)T79 (Project, Tank Model 79). After completing extensive testing and re-designs, a final design proposal was submitted to the Land Force Command in 1967. The design was approved for full series production in 1968, and the first units entered service with the Dark Horse Dragoons in December of 1968.

Design
The design board targeted two advanced features for inclusion in the M79. The first was an auto-loading system. With very high reload times on vehicles used in the Glorious War, designers looked to create a mechanical loader that was faster than a human. Considering the weight of the 125mm round (Almost 50 lbs), sustained fire would quickly reduce the effectiveness of the vehicle. So, a direct action auto loader was developed. Ammunition, was stored in a bustle in the back of the turret, and the auto-loader moved rounds horizontally into the breach.

The second feature incorporated was the inclusion of an advanced Fire Control System. While technology of 1960s micro-computing was far too primitive to be used in an MBT, the vehicle used a complicated but very advanced range finder. A coincidence range finder was installed, and used mechanical linkages to automatically adjust for windage and range. While this system did not allow for fully automatic firing on moving targets, it greatly improved accuracy at long range. A basic stabilization system was also installed, allowing for fire on the move up to 40km/h, up to 2000m with 0.01 mils of dispersion.

Gun
Previous vehicles mounted much heavier, but less accurate weaponry. The design bureau realized for the M79 to be mobile, but also lethal a smaller but higher velocity gun would be needed. So, the M455 125mm gun was developed. A development of the M378 120mm gun, the M455 used higher quality steel and had an improved rifling system for better barrel longevity. The weapon remained breach loaded, and did not feature a bore evacuator to save weight. The M455 gun is capable of firing up to 4,500m accurately when firing Armor Piercing, Discarding Sabot, Fin Stabilized (APDSFS) ammunition. The M455 gun is capable of firing the following ammunition:
 * S18AS Armor Piercing, Discarding Sabot, Fin Stabilized, Tungsten Core (APDSFS)
 * H812Y2 High Explosive, Fin Stabilized (HEFS)
 * C21812 Anti-Infantry Cannister Shot (AICS)

Protection
Unlike the M56, the M79 did not solely rely on Rolled Homogenous Steel Armor. It adopted a much more aggressive sloped glacis, and heavily sloped turret mantlet and turret face. The vehicle also incorporated spaced armor with high density rubber between steel layers, providing excellent protection.

Mobility
The M79 is powered by a Federal Defence 79168 is a W-16 Diesel Engine. Instead of a traditional V8 or V12 design, two inline 8 cylinder engines were mated with a single crankshaft, producing a W-16 engine. While the output is de-tuned to 1000hp, the engine is highly under-stressed, making it highly reliable and requiring less maintenance hours than other stressed engines in main battle tanks. To improve the smoothness of power delivery and enhance acceleration, each bank of 8 cylinders was turbo charged and intercooled.

Electronics
The M79 features uses a 24v electrical system, with twin alternators. When the vehicle is turned off, a 103hp 4 Cylinder Diesel Generator produces enough power to operate the turret and gunnery systems, while making the vehicle a much smaller heat and noise signature. Other than lighting, and long range communications systems, the vehicle does not feature any other electronic systems.

Variants
Two variants of the M79 have been produced. From 1970 - 2003, the M79 was used by the Land Force Command. Beginning in 2001, an upgrade process was initiated, and the result was the M79A1, introduced in 2004.

M79
The original M79 features Rolled Homogeneous Armor only. The M79 is the basic variant, with slaved commander's and gunner's sights. Night Vision Optics for the gunner were standard, as the vehicle incorporated a first generation Night Vision system. The M79 did not have any mount for a commander's or gunner's local defense weapon, so the M84 Coaxial Machinegun was the only Machine gun for local defense. The Commander's position featured 360 degree episcopes. The Gunner had two sights, a primary gunner's sight which incorporated the night vision imager, and the Gunner's backup sight which only had day sights. The NV imager was effective to around 2,200m. The driver had one episcope, and sat in the center of the hull, just in front of the turret. The vehicle does not have any external gear storage, except for a toolbox.

M79A1
By 1990, it was clear to the Land Force Command that the M79 was no longer capable of providing adequate fire power, or protecting the crew. The Presidium had declared that funding would not be available for new tank development until at least 2005. So, as a stop gap measure, Federal Defence was given an upgrade contact to improve the M79. The armor was upgraded from spaced RHA and rubber, to RHA and some composites. Composite paneling was placed in the front glacis and turret face in place of rubber spaced armor, greatly increasing frontal protection. Side Skirts were a long standing issue with crews, as the tank was notoriously difficult to climb on as it did not have any hand holds. Those were discarded in favor of a more protective design, which featured composite paneling to defeat High Explosive weapons. To improve capability in urban operations and increase battlefield situational awareness, the M84A1 Remote Weapon System was added, which also serves as a hunter-killer sight for the commander, removing their reliance on sights slaved to the gunner.