AACE Turkish Amphibious Armored Combat Earthmover

The AACE Turkish Amphibious Armored Combat Earthmover is an amphibious, armored, tracked combat earthmover designed for preparing river banks during river crossing missions. It is capable of performing bulldozing, rough grading, excavating, hauling, and scraping operations. Compared to standard heavy-duty vehicles, the AACE has the capability to take in ballast from the ground into its ballast bowl, and when necessary, the vehicle can discharge its ballast bowl at the end of the operation. In standard heavy-duty earthmovers, the dozer blade is hydraulically operated while the vehicle is stable. Contrary to the conventional earthmovers that move their blade up and down, it is equipped with a unique suspension system which allows the front of the vehicle to be raised, lowered, or tilted to permit dozing, excavating, rough grading, and ditching functions, and also the dozer blade can be raised for using it as a scraper. This capability enables the blade or ballast bowl to make contact with the ground and penetrate it. As a result, shovelling and plowing can be performed more efficiently. One of the most important and unique features of the AACE is its amphibious capability. It can be operated with a crew of 2. In addition, the AACE is equipped with modern electronic systems, including day and night cameras, a multi-function LCD monitor, and an air conditioning system. To provide amphibious capability, along with the mine and ballistic protection requirements, the AACE hull structure is made of ballistic aluminum. Its modern hydraulic system and power transmission enable the vehicle to operate with high manoeuvrability and operational performance. The AACE powerpack is based on a diesel engine coupled to a fully automatic transmission. The AACE is capable of speeds up to 45 km/h on land. It can travel safely in river streams against current speeds of up to 1.5 m/sec, with 360° high manoeuvrability provided by its two water jets, located at the rear section on both sides of the vehicle. Today, the AACE is selected by the Philippine Army and is in service with the Turkish Land Forces (TLF). Under the inventory of TLF, İt is a combat-proven system, having been used in various operations.