Sudan’s Military Industry Corporation (MIC) has increased its presence and brought a wider variety of its products to IDEX, having made its debut at the show in 2013.
In addition to its main stand, the company booked space in the static outside area, where it displayed its Khalifa-1 self-propelled gun, the 120 mm mortar carrier variant of its Khatim-2 infantry fighting vehicle (IFV), a mobile version of the Taka 107 mm multiple rocket launcher, the Nimr long-range patrol vehicle, unarmoured Tamal tactical vehicle, and the previously unseen Sarsar-2 armoured reconnaissance vehicle.
The Khalifa-1 gun is essentially a 122 mm D-30 howitzer mounted on the back of a modified Kamaz 6×6 truck.
The Khatim-2 has been identified as the Sudanese version of the Iranian Boraq-2 IFV, which is similar to the Russian BMP-2.
With a combat weight of 5,500 kg, the new Sarsar vehicle is built on a 1.2 ton KIA chassis and is listed as being armoured to the Russian CEN level BR6, which can withstand standard 7.62×51 mm bullets.
The Iranian connection continued on the MIC’s main stand, where a stabilised remote weapon station called the Ateed was on display. This appeared to be identical to the ARIO-H762, which is made by the Iranian company Rayan Roshd.
There were other new products on the main stand that appeared to be of Chinese, rather than Sudanese origin. Most notably, the Sarib anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) strongly resembles the Chinese HJ-8 optically tracked, wire-guided system on the lightweight launcher (known as the HJ-8L).
The MIC documentation for the Sarib said it is capable of penetrating 220 mm of homogenous armour steel plate at an angle of 68 degrees with explosive reactive armour: the same lethality as the HJ-8C tandem warhead missile.
The MIC also displayed two scale models of what appeared to be FN-6 man-portable air defence system (MANPADS), but there did not appear to be any supporting documentation claiming the weapon was being manufactured in Sudan.
Another Chinese weapon, the 35 mm QLZ-87 automatic grenade launcher, that the MIC says it produces under the name Ahmed was not on display.