Armoured, Amphibious, and Autonomous!
Ever thought you’d see a tank with a steering wheel that doubles as a boat? Of all the freaky amphibious machines we’ve seen, this monster hybrid really stands out – and its ready to do damage!
Called the Storm, Ukrainian company Highland Systems introduced this multi-purpose tank at the recent IREX defense expo in Abu Dhabi. Most in attendance were keen to put a deposit down – despite there being no price tag on it (yet)!
Putting down an earthquaking 2,500 horsepower, the Storm runs on an impressive long-range hybrid powertrain. With the diesel range extender, it can run from 18-36 hours in hybrid mode; or operate in full electric mode for up to 3.5 hours – depending how throttle happy you get!
Despite being a heavy beast at 8 tonnes, it’s still speedy for a tank, able to reach up to 140 km/h on land, and up to 30 km/h on the water.
As expected, it is capable of carrying 2,000 kg, and at 5.8 metres long, 2.3 metres high, and 2.8 metres wide, it has enough space for six adults in reasonable comfort – this is a tank afterall!
Running on either steel or rubber tank treads, the MPV can climb 75% gradiants and crawl over obstacles with its killer 20 inches of ground clearance. At the beach it’s at home as well, able to handle waves up to 1.5 metres high!
All the extensive armour onboard will help guard off any onslaught coming your way, and with the remote control function, you can run the tank autonomously – handy for those times the track/battlefield gets too scary!
The Storm MPV may not be the first amphibious military vehicle created, but it is one of the coolest, most evil looking ones – and the first to use a hybrid electric power system!
The company has two other weapons in their arsenal, including the Phantom MPV and the 4 person Buggy Hunter MK-200. Although just a prototype at the moment, Highland is making plans to move the Storm into serial production soon. A submersible version is also in the works, which will transform the Storm between tank, boat, and submarine – epic on all counts!
