The Turkish Armed Forces Receives The First Batch of 105mm BORAN Light Howitzers
The Turkish Armed Forces received the first batch of 105mm BORAN light howitzers developed by the Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation (MKE), which is affiliated with the Turkish Ministry of Defense. The delivery was reported by the Turkish Ministry of Defense with a statement saying, “the first shipment of 105 mm air-transportable light towed howitzer BORAN, designed and developed to support TAF’s internal security and air operations, is being delivered.” The Turkish Ministry of Defense did not specify how many howitzers were delivered to the Turkish Armed Forces, however, 7 BORAN howitzers were visible in the published video.
BORAN was developed as part of the Turkish Defense Industry Agency’s 105mm Air Portable Howitzer Project, which was launched on November 6, 2009, to replace the Turkish Land Forces Command’s 105mm M101 and 75mm M116 howitzers, which could not meet modern combat needs. Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation is developing the weapon system for the 105mm Boran Howitzer Project, while Aselsan is developing the fire control system. The first contract called for the delivery of 106 BORAN howitzers to be completed by the end of 2017. However, because the first howitzer lacked the features requested by the Land Forces, the delivery process took a long time. The weapon, which was first displayed at the IDEF 2017 Defense Industry Fair, had its first test-fire in 2018. The final test of the system, which passed 24 tests at international standards without entering the inventory, was carried out in Konya-Karapınar.
BORAN is a 105 mm air-transportable howitzer designed by the Turkish Ministry of Defense’s Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation and ASELSAN to support the Turkish Armed Forces’ internal security operations, air operations, and commando brigades. Boran has a 105 mm (30 caliber) barrel and is capable of firing 6 rounds per minute with a range of more than 17 kilometers when using long-range ammunition. Boran howitzers are operated by a crew of five and can be set up in less than a minute. The howitzer, which weighs 1745 kg including the Fire Control system, can be transported using Sikorsky S-70 helicopters and a variety of light vehicles. Aside from Aselsan’s command and fire control systems, BORAN is outfitted with a Muzzle Velocity Radar (MVR), a night vision system, a battery, and a generator. The artillery system, which can fire at elevation angles of -3 to +70 and 8 degrees right-left, can carry out all types of strike missions for 8 hours without ceasing at temperatures ranging from -32°C to +44°C.
Aside from BORAN, the Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation continues its work on artillery systems. In this context, the 155 mm (52 caliber) T-155 Yavuz howitzer mounted on a 6×6 vehicle developed by the company is counting down the days until it enters service. Furthermore, it is known that BORAN and YAVUZ howitzers are of interest to Malaysia and an unnamed African country.