Centauro (tank destroyer)

The Centauro is an Italian family of military vehicles that grew out of a wheeled tank destroyer meant for light to medium territorial defence and tactical reconnaissance. It was developed by the Società Consortile Iveco Fiat - OTO Melara, a consortium in which Iveco Fiat designed the hull and propulsion while OTO Melara supplied the turret and weapons. The Italian Army wanted the firepower of its Leopard 1 tanks combined with greater strategic mobility, and the answer was an eight-wheeled armoured car with an all-welded steel hull, a stabilised 105 mm gun, a thermal-imaging fire control system and a turbocharged V6 diesel engine of 520 horsepower. It entered production in 1991, with deliveries complete by 2006, and has served with Italy, Spain, Oman and Jordan, and more recently Ukraine. The platform has been developed into infantry fighting vehicle, self-propelled howitzer and recovery variants, and a successor, the Centauro 2, is now being delivered.