FNSS, a Turkish defense company, has unveiled its latest creation, the PARS SCOUT 8×8 vehicle with BURC mobile air defense system (MADS)at the IDEF23 exhibition. The BURC mobile air defense system (MADS) is a product developed by Roketsan, and it was unveiled at IDEF 2023. It is designed to provide air defense capabilities against various targets, including UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) and helicopters. This remarkable vehicle is an evolution of the PARS SCOUT 8×8 tactical wheeled Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) and boasts cutting-edge features and capabilities. BURC mobile air defense system (MADS) hosts two types of effectors. The turret is installed in an electrically operated remote-controlled turret which can be traversed through a full 360° with a maximum elevation being +90°.
For longer range engagements two launchers have been installed right and left of the turret, each hosting four SUNGUR low-level, short-range, surface-to-air missiles. The SUNGUR has a maximum range of 8 km and a minimum range of 500 metres, with a maximum altitude of 4 km. It is fitted with an imaging infrared seeker with a 40° field-of-view allowing fire-and-forget operations with lock-on-before-launch. The two pods containing the Sungur missiles have a maximum elevation of 80°. The mobile air defense system’s shoot-on-the-move capability allows it to engage the target on the move. The SUNGUR missile system was developed to eventually replace the Turkish Armed Forces’s existing Stinger POST (FIM-92B) and Stinger RMP (FIM92C) missile systems.
The second effector is the 20 mm three-barrel Gatling gun provided by TR Mekatronik. The Gatling gun can fire various types of 20×102 mm NATO standard ammunition such as M56A3 HEI, M56A3 HEI-T, M55A2 TP-T, and M53 API, the rate of fire being 750 ± 50rounds per minute. TR Mekatronik developed the gun for the T129 Turkish Land Forces attack helicopter, and the system adopted on the Burç is heavily based on that gun. Many differences can be found in the overall layout; only elevation servos remain, azimuth movement being provided by the turret, elevation being greater in the positive angles, up to 70°, compared to the -45° typical of the helicopter solution. Electronic control units are also different, as well as the feeding arrangement.
The PARS SCOUT 8×8 modern tactical wheeled armoured combat vehicle is designed to be used in low and highintensity scenarios, offering strategic advantages to the user thanks to its unique features, and incorporate the most advanced technologies. Equipped with modern technologies, this special purpose tactical wheeled vehicle provides its users with strategic advantages, including enhanced situational awareness. The PARS SCOUT 8×8 is designed in accordance with the integration of Manned or Remote Controlled Towers and Missile Systems. Overall the Roketsan turret weighs around 2 tonnes with ammunition, and according to company sources can be installed on vehicles from 12 tonnes up.
