Bionix

     Notes: The Bionix was originally designed to replace Singapore’s aging M-113 fleet completely, but it appears that, in the near-term, will simply supplement Singapore’s M-113s (most of which will also be upgraded). The Bionix is, in essence, a radically-upgraded M-113.  The Bionix entered Singaporean service in 1997 and is also being offered for export, though no known export customers have materialized so far. (Several countries are believed to have trialed the Bionix or plan to do so in the near future.)  The Bionix is meant to be a smaller, less expensive alternative to vehicles such as the Bradley and Warrior; though the Bionix cannot match those vehicles in armor protection, armament, fire control, or night vision systems, the Bionix is a much more affordable IFV for those countries who simply want a more modern vehicle but simply cannot pull off a more expensive vehicle purchase.  The Bionix is also attractive to countries who, due to political reasons, cannot buy vehicles from the more usual arms companies.  Though inferior to most Western AFV designs, it is plenty for those countries that are likely to use the Bionix.  In 2000, a version of the Bionix (the Bionix ICV) was even tested by the US Army, though that contest was eventually won by the Stryker family of vehicles.

     There are currently three variants of the Bionix IFV; the first two are in use by the Singaporean military, and the third should be entering service soon. (A fourth version, the Bionix ICV, which used an OHWS in lieu of a turret, was cancelled soon after the US trials; only the two prototypes that were sent to the US for trials were built.)  In addition, there are ARV, AVLB, Counter-Mine, and SP Howitzer versions of the Bionix (not covered in this entry); the Bionix was designed to be a modular system which can be used as a base for a family of AFVs.  All use essentially the same hull, which has a sharply-raked glacis plate of spaced armor.  The hull, especially the suspension, shows its M-113 heritage, with the tracks, roadwheels, drive sprockets, and final drives all being obviously derivative of the M-113 series.  The sides of the Bionix have spaced armor, including armored side skirts covering the top of the tracks just above the roadwheels.  The extra armor applied to the Bionix is of steel. The rear of the vehicle is essentially the same as on the M-113, with a powered ramp at the rear that has a door in it; it is also obviously taken from the M-113 series.  The Bionix has no firing ports and no vision blocks for the troops in the rear.  Despite its M-113 heritage, the Bionix is not readily amphibious; to swim, a special kit must be attached which includes Stryrofoam-filled metal blocks to the sides, the extension of a trim vane at the front, the attachment of balloon-like floats to each of the roadwheels, and the switching on of a bilge pump.  Note that none of these requirements for amphibious operations are supplied with a standard Bionix; the standard Bionix is not amphibious.  As the Bionix is much heavier than an M-113, the engine has been replaced with a license-produced 475-horsepower Detroit Diesel DDC-6V-92TA supercharged diesel engine, along with an HMPT-500EC automatic transmission (a modified form of the transmission found in the M-2 Bradley) and a driver’s compartment that has a conventional steering yoke, gas pedal, and brake pedal.  The driver’s position remains in the front right of the vehicle; the driver has three vision blocks to his front, the center of which can be replaced with a night vision block.

     The Bionix 25 is the base IFV version.  It is topped with a two-man turret armed with an ATK M-242 25mm autocannon (a license-produced version of the M-242 Bushmaster) and a coaxial machinegun.  (It should be noted that STK license-produces the ammunition for this weapon and the Bionix II’s weapon from Oerlikon.) The turret is located in roughly the center of the vehicle, and is of all-steel construction. The commander also has a pintle-mounted weapon, and a third machinegun is found in a remote overhead mount atop the troop compartment.  This remote installation provides a day/night periscope with magnification, and is manned by one of the troops in the rear.  Three smoke grenade launchers are found on each side of the turret.  The turret has modern night vision and the fire control equipment includes a ballistic computer; magnification for the sights are x8 by day and night.  The commander has no night vision equipment or magnified day sights of his own, but can access the gunner’s sights, and has auxiliary controls for the autocannon and coaxial machinegun. The commander’s cupola has vision blocks to the sides and front (a total of five); the gunner has three vision blocks, to the right and rear. The troops in the rear are seated three per side, with the seventh (normally the squad leader) being at the front of the troop compartment facing to the rear; the rearmost soldier on the left side mans the remote machinegun. The troops and crew have a collective NBC system.

     For the most part, the Bionix 40/50 is similar to the Bionix 25, but the turret mounts an automatic grenade launcher with a coaxial .50-caliber machinegun.  The turret on this model is a one-man turret, and there is no commander’s station; as the turret is smaller, more troops are carried. The rear overhead mount for a machinegun remains over the left rear troop compartment. The Bionix is designed to act as a counterpart to the Bionix 25; the Bionix acts primarily in the IFV role, while the Bionix 40/50 is optimized for counterinsurgency and, to an extent, anti-riot work.

     The Bionix II is produced both as new-build vehicles and as an upgrade kit for the Bionix 25.  The Bionix II is a modern IFV, featuring a battlefield management system (in conjunction with IFF receivers that are being mounted on most Singaporean vehicles and in many units, as well as being offered for export).  This BMS gives the commander two LCD screens that display information about friendly and enemy units, receives updated intelligence and allows the commander to send updated reports, and displays precise information about the state of his vehicle.  The BMS also allows the commander to interface with UAV cameras and information from UAV sensors can be displayed on one of the commander’s LCD screens.  The Bionix II is armed with the ATK Mk 44 ChainGun (a license-produced version of the US M-230 Bushmaster II). Fire control for the main armament and coaxial machinegun is improved with the addition of a laser rangefinder and dual-axis stabilization.  The commander retains his pintle-mounted machinegun and the left rear-mounted overhead machinegun is also retained.  The commander still has no magnified day vision or night vision devices of his own, but has the ability to access the gunner’s sights as well as having auxiliary controls for the autocannon and coaxial machinegun.  Armor overall is beefed up, with extra attention being paid to the floor of the vehicle for mine protection. Other additions include an air conditioner.

     Twilight 2000 Notes: The Bionix 25 and Bionix 40/50 were put through an accelerated development program before the Twilight War; however, only 10 of each were actually available for the start of hostilities.  Though it was not substantiated, some export sales may have been made to South Africa.  The Thais were known to have about 8 Bionix 40/50s on hand for the war, and the Cambodians were believed to have four.  Some reports state that the Indonesians bought five Bionix 25s, and used them against the Australians.

*Belly armor for the Bionix 25 and Bionix 40/50 is 3.

**Belly armor for the Bionix II is 5.

M-113A3 Ultra

     Notes: STK of Singapore offers a number of upgrade possibilities and modifications for the M-113 series of APCs, including modifications to turn the M-113 into a variety of specialist vehicles and to turn the M-113 into a variety of ICVs and IFVs.  The M-113 Ultra is the part of the M-113 upgrade program that deals with the IFV-type modifications to the M-113.  The M-113 Ultra program began as a program specifically to upgrade Singapore’s M-113 fleet, but was soon offered on the international arms market.  Singapore employs a large number of M-113 Ultra-upgraded vehicles, as acquisition of the Bionix has not gone as fast as desired by the Singaporean Army. I have called the various possible upgrades below as Ultra 1-5, though these are not official designations.

     The Ultra modification starts with the upgrade of the basic M-113 chassis to the M-113A3 standard, including the replacement of the engine with a license-produced version of the Detroit Diesel 6V53T 275-horsepower supercharged diesel engine.  The suspension is also greatly-improved, primarily to cope with the additional weight of the Ultra upgrades. The chassis is topped with a turret, with three possible turrets being applied. The primary version used by Singapore uses a turret that is essentially a heavily-armored cupola with overhead protection, and armed with an automatic grenade launcher and .50-caliber machinegun. A second variant uses an OHWS turret designed by Rafael of Israel, armed with a 25mm autocannon and coaxial machinegun, and with the weapons sights and external sensors being downlinked to the gunner’s station inside the hull.  This turret has a small hatch in the roof. The third turret, not used by Singapore but offered for export, uses the Rafael OHWS, but with the addition of a single launcher for a TOW II ATGM.  The launcher is reloaded from the large hatch which, like most M-113-based vehicles, is present on the rear deck.  Due to the space taken up by the turret and ammunition storage, the troop complement is reduced substantially. The electrical system of the M-113 chassis is beefed up to cope with the demands of the turret.  In each case, there are three smoke grenade launchers on each side of the turret. The M-113 Ultra series is not designed to be amphibious, though STK states that such a capability could be added in a similar manner to the kits proposed for the Bionix.

     The hull layout remains essentially the same as the M-113, except for the presence of the turret, and the resulting absence of the commander’s station.  There is a large hatch on the rear deck, and primary access to the interior of the vehicle is through a powered ramp in the rear face which also has a door in it.  The driver remains in his position in the right front of the hull.  Firing ports have been added, with four being on each side of the troop compartment and one in the rear door. An interesting crew-comfort feature has been added: a special seatbelt can be snapped on, which pumps chilled water through the seatbelt to help cool off the soldier.  This, combined with the addition of air conditioning, makes the M-113 Ultra potentially an unusually comfortable vehicle for the soldier. A collective NBC system has been installed. The vehicle’s armor has been increased though the use of appliqué armor – but unlike most appliqué armor, which comes in the form of steel or aluminum plates, the Ultra upgrade uses advanced ceramics sandwiched in a spaced fashion inside thin steel walls.  This makes the appliqué armor lighter than most appliqué armor upgrades, but just as effective.  This approach was taken because the Ultra modifications already make the resulting vehicle heavy, and standard appliqué armor would have made the Ultra unacceptably heavy.  As the Ultra appliqué armor modifications were also designed with urban warfare in mind, the hull floor and deck have also received such armor upgrades.

     STK also offers the ceramic appliqué armor package by itself on the international arms market for use as a general M-113 armor upgrade.

     Singapore is contemplating a further upgrade to the Ultra in the near future, replacing the engine with a Caterpillar 3126B turbocharged diesel that develops 330 horsepower, or a variant of the 3126B engine that develops 350 horsepower.  STK also is also offering an upgrade for the OHWS turret with a 30mm autocannon.

     Twilight 2000 Notes: The Ultra-upgraded M-113 was more common than the Bionix in the Twilight 2000 timeline, though not with the 330 or 350-horsepower engines or the 30mm autocannon.

*Hull floor armor for the M-113 Ultra series is 5; hull deck armor is 4.