Anoa (armoured personnel carrier)

The Anoa is a 6x6 armoured personnel carrier developed by PT Pindad of Indonesia. The vehicle is named after the Anoa, which is a type of buffalo indigenous to Indonesia. The prototype was first unveiled at the 61st anniversary of TNI on October 5, 2006 in TNI HQ at Cilangkap, east of capital Jakarta. This has some external resemble to the French VAB, which is also in service with Indonesia.

History
The Anoa had been officially unveiled to the public under the designation APS-3 (Angkut Personel Sedang, Medium Personnel Carrier) at the Indo Defence & Aerospace 2008 exhibition on November 19, 2008 to November 22, 2008 after being shown in a TNI parade on October 5, 2008. On August 30, 2008, 10 APS-3s have been produced with the plan of having 150 vehicles to be produced for the Indonesian Army in time for their first deployment in 2009.

20 of the Pansers were handed over to the Indonesian government through the Defense Ministry, part of a deal from the initial 150 vehicles to 40 due to the economic crisis. 40 Pansers were delivered as part of PT Pindad's commitment to the total delivery of 154 Pansers. 33 Pansers were eventually submitted to the Ministry of Defence on January 13, 2010. Pindad had received loans from state-owned Bank Mandiri, Bank BNI 46 and Bank BRI as part of payments for the manufacture of the Pansers.

The Anoas were officially placed into Indonesian military service on July 2009. They were publicly seen in service with the Mechanical TNI Battalion Task Force Garuda Contingent in Lebanon.

The Anoa made its first appearance overseas when it was publicly display in BRIDEX 2011 in Brunei. It was also displayed at DSA 2012 in Malaysia where a planned Malaysian-only marketed Anoa called the Rimau was unveiled to the public.

Development
The development history of the Pindad Panser was started in 2003 as a result of increased military intervention in the Aceh province. During the conflict, the Indonesian Army put forward urgent requirements for an armored personnel carrier for the transport of troops.

Pindad responded to this requirement in 2004, with the APR-1V (Angkut Personel Ringan) a 4x4 armored vehicle based on a commercial Izuzu truck chassis. 14 vehicles were built by Pindad and were sent to Aceh for evaluation and combat trials. However, the follow-on orders for another 26 vehicles were canceled following the 2004 tsunami.

Pindad continued the APC development program with assistance from the Agency For Assessment and Application of Technology or BPPT in 2005. The next prototype was the APS-1 (Angkut Personel Sedang), a 6x6 design that was again based on a commercial Perkasa truck platform by PT Texmaco. Although it was not selected for production, the experience gained in developing the APS-1 convinced the Indonesian Army to give the go-ahead by Pindad to develop the next generation of Panser vehicles, the APS-2 at a production cost of 600 million rupiah or US$60,000 each.

Design
The APS-3 differed from its predecessors which had been based on commercial truck platforms. Instead, the "Anoa" used a monocoque hull design consisting of armor steel. The steel was made by PT. Krakatau Steel to NATO standards to STANAG Level III standard in withstanding 5.56 and 7.62 mm bullets. A new torsion bar suspension system was also developed for the Panser. Currently, the engine and transmission are imported from Renault with a Renault MIDR 062045 six-cylinder turbo-charged diesel engine being used. Indigenous options are being developed as replacements. Gears consist of six forward and one reverse.

The driver sits on the right of the vehicle while the vehicle commander sits on the left. Communications equipment include VHF / FM (anti-jamming and hopping) and GPS with night vision equipment included. Emergency exits are present on both sides of the Anoa, as well as a mounted video camera at the rear of the vehicle.

Anoa-2
The Anoa-2 was officially revealed to the public in Indodefence 2010. It is equipped with optional waterjet propellers for the ability to swim in shallow water, probably from LST/LCAC. Its also equipped with an optional RWS machine gun of unknown caliber, possibly 7.62 mm.

Visual external differences from the first generation of the Anoa include a change to rounded roof cupolas and the relocation of the smoke grenade launchers from the sides of the vehicle to directly above the driver and passenger positions. The RWS is controlled remotely from inside the Anoa via joystick. Bulletproof shutters can be opened and closed from inside the vehicle when needed as an option, which is an advantage over previously made Anoas that required one to open and close them from the outside.

Armament
The baseline vehicle is fitted with a cupola on the left of the vehicle and armed with a 12.7mm (.50 cal) heavy machine gun or a 40 mm automatic grenade launcher. A fire-support version using a CMI Defence's CSE-90 turret with the Cockerill 90 mm Mk III was unveiled at Indo Defence & Aerospace 2008, which was announced that the APS-3 fire-support version would be deployed into the Indonesian Army by 2010.

In Indodefence 2010, the Anoa 2 was shown to the public with a RWS installed.

Variants


The following variants are produced by Pindad:


 * APC
 * Fire Support with Cockerill CSE-90 turret
 * Panser 20mm with Denel's LCT20 turret
 * Ambulance
 * Command
 * Logistics modular design for fuel carrier and/or ammunition carrier
 * Armored Recovery
 * Reconnaissance/Surveillance
 * Mortar Carrier
 * Rimau
 * Anoa 2

Operators

 * 🇮🇩 Indonesia: 150 6x6 variants and 4 4x4 variants under construction for the Indonesian Army by 2008 – 2010. Several specially-modified Anoas are also used by the Presidential Security Forces (Paspampres) to carry the President and VVIPs in the event of emergency. End of 2012, Indonesian Army will receive 100 6x6 variants with new specifications. A recent news article from PT Pindad suggests a total of 254 Pansers are to be delivered. Anoa 6x6 is being used by Indonesian Army for UNIFIL in Lebanon to replace VAB An additional 31 was ordered in March 2012.


 * Brunei: 15 ordered in September 2011, 35 planned.


 * Timor Leste: 4 were ordered at an unknown date with water cannons installed, which was announced in 2009. More purchases of the Panser are expected. They are being used by the National Police of East Timor.

Possible operators

 * 🇧🇩 Bangladesh: A visit by a Bangladeshi trade delegation to the Pindad office has expressed interest in possible acquisition of the Panser.


 * 🇮🇶 Iraq: Iraq has expressed interest in buying the Anoa, taking the geography into account, during several meetings between Iraqi and Indonesian officials.


 * 🇲🇾 Malaysia: In April 2012, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi confirmed that while the Anoa had been evaluated, no decision had been made on the acquisition. There are 2 options for the machine to use, Mercedes Benz or Renault both with capacities 7,000 cubic-centimeter equivalent with 320 horse power. The said order was for 32 Anoas to be purchased. There is no signed deal available.


 * 🇳🇵 Nepal: Nepal was reported to have shown interest for 28 6x6 versions of the Panser for its UN peacekeeping missions. There is no signed deal available.


 * 🇴🇲 Oman: Unconfirmed reports of 200 units ordered. There is no signed deal available.