Roland 1
Contents
Description
The AMX-30 Roland 1 is a rank VII French self-propelled anti-aircraft vehicle with a battle rating of 9.7 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.89 "Imperial Navy".
General info
Survivability and armour
The armour of the Roland 1 is average compared to other SPAAGs of the same battle rating, such as the FlaRakPz 1 or the FlaRakRad, which still means that the user will have a hard time surviving an encounter against an MBT or other SPAAGs equipped with cannons with at least 30 mm of penetration, such as the SIDAM 25 if they are using an APDS belt. Because the Roland is the only top tier SPAAG currently available for France, it will be very common for the user to face against top-tier jets such as the MiG-21bis or the MiG-21MF. These jets (and many more) have no problem shredding through the top of the tank with ease.
Almost every MBT in the game will have absolutely no problem destroying you with a single shot into the front of the tank, as the 30 mm thick front plate is inadequate for protection and the spall created from APFSDS shells will be more than enough to wipe out your crew. The user should also bear in mind that this vehicle can be hull broken with chemical shells, meaning shells of the HE, HEAT or HESH type for example, will instantly destroy their vehicle. However due to the large interior of the tank and the spacing of the crew, one might survive an APFSDS shot to the side provided it does not hit the munitions, a fuel tank, or the driver and the commander at the same time. Due to the tank being larger, the modules such as the engine or the transmission won't be enough to stop a shot from the back. Because of this, one should avoid direct confrontation with a hostile MBT at any given time.
Armour type:
- Rolled homogeneous armour (Hull, turret)
| Armour | Front (Slope angle) | Sides | Rear | Roof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 30 mm (30°) Upper glacis 30 mm (40°) Lower glacis 15 mm (75°) Driver's port |
15 mm | 15 mm | 10 mm 5 mm Radiator |
| Turret | 15 (0° - 30°) mm Turret front 10 mm Optics |
10 - 15 mm | 15 mm | 10 mm |
Notes:
- Tracks are 20 mm thick
- Suspension wheels are made from structural steel and are 15 mm thick
- Additional armour in the front of the hull, consists of spare tracks 20 mm thick and a single structural steel block 4 mm thick
- There is also additional armour placed on the rear of the vehicle albeit only 4 extra millimetres in the form of structural steel
Mobility
| Game Mode | Max Speed (km/h) | Weight (tons) | Engine power (horsepower) | Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | Reverse | Stock | Upgraded | Stock | Upgraded | ||
| Arcade | 71 | 71 | 34 | 1,023 | 1,374 | 30.09 | 40.41 |
| Realistic | 66 | 66 | 637 | 720 | 18.74 | 21.18 | |
Modifications and economy
| Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Armaments
Main armament
| Roland SAM (x2) | Turret rotation speed (°/s) | Reloading rate (seconds) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal | Stabilizer | Stock | Upgraded | Full | Expert | Aced | Stock | Full | Expert | Aced |
| Arcade | 10 (2) | 145 | -10°/+35° | ±180° | N/A | 74.9 | __._ | __._ | __._ | __._ | 5.00 | 5.00 | 5.00 | 5.00 |
| Realistic | 50.6 | __._ | __._ | __._ | __._ | |||||||||
Ammunition
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | |||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | ||
| Roland 1 | SAM | 39 | 39 | 39 | 39 | 39 | 39 |
| Roland 3 | SAM | 54 | 54 | 54 | 54 | 54 | 54 |
| Shell details | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity (m/s) |
Range (m) |
Projectile Mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g) | |
| Roland 1 | SAM | 900 | 6,300 | 65 | 0 | 0.1 | 4,590 | |
| Roland 3 | SAM | 900 | 8,500 | 77 | 0 | 0.1 | 6,810 | |
Ammo racks
| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
3rd rack empty |
4th rack empty |
5th rack empty |
6th rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ |
Usage in battles
Always scan the clouds for enemy jets. Since you cannot engage hostile MBTs, there is no point trying to get into positions where MBTs may be lurking. Your best bet would be to stick to cover from where you can constantly scan the sky for enemy jets while also being safe from hostile MBTs. Due to your size, you won't be able to find cover all that easily, so if needed, you can stay behind a hill and wait until your team advances so that you can reposition and find new cover that is way more effective.
Your missiles have no problem catching even the fastest of the jets, but speed is not everything. Try to strike down jets which are crippled or in the middle of a manoeuvre. There is no point in wasting a missile on a jet that has plenty of energy and time to react and dodge your missile. This plays a major factor in your performance because you can only carry 10 missiles and getting to a capture point to refill your missiles might not be an easy task to accomplish in some maps.
If you encounter helicopters, they are an easy target as long as you manage to spot them first. If they spot you first and you do not notice it, it is very likely your tank is gonna get hit by an AGM, which due to Roland's thin armour, results in an instant KO. If you are not sure if the hostile team has a helicopter, wait behind cover that protects you from the spawning helicopters and scout around or wait till your teammates call out the enemy helicopter. You should also bear in mind that the range of your missiles is roughly 6,300 m, which might not be enough against certain helicopters in some cases, such as the Ka-52/50 or the EC-665 Tiger UHT.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Roland 1 and Roland 3 SAM are more than enough to take down any aircraft if they hit center mass
- Fast turret rotation coupled with the 2 missiles per reload (which is only 5 seconds long) allows the user to take down jets in quick succession
- Radar can be used to guide the missile towards the target
- Pretty fast, allows for quick repositioning
Cons:
- Pretty large, it is a big target for enemy jets and MBTs alike
- Radar lock can be broken fairly easily if one is positioned near trees
- Lacks any sort of weaponry against MBTs, Roland missiles will only damage tracks/cannons if used against MBTs
- Crewmates are positioned in a row, allows for easy one shot kills from the front and the back
- Reloading process can't start until all missiles have blown up
History
The Roland 1 is a Franco-German designed anti-aircraft missile system, serving primarily with the German and French armies. Designed in the late 1960s, the Roland 1 was accepted for service in the late 1970s and served with the French Army. An improved version, the Roland 2, was accepted for service a short time later, with improved capability including all-weather operations. The Roland system has been widely exported to a variety of nations, and has been used during the Falklands Conflict and Iran-Iraq war.
Design and development
In the late 1960s, the first surface-to-air missile systems began to emerge as potent anti-aircraft defence systems. As a result, in 1964, representatives of the French and German governments signed an agreement to jointly develop a new self-propelled anti-aircraft missile launcher system (SPAAML), named Roland. The work was conducted by Messerchmitt-Bolkow-Blohm (MBB) on the German side, and Aerospatiale-Matra on the French side. The first prototype for the system was rolled out in 1967, and in 1977, the French government accepted the first Roland 1 SAM system into service.
The French Roland 1 SPAAML was based off of the AMX-30 Chassis. It was operated by 3 crew members, and was fitted with a large central turret carrying two Roland SAMs, along with the corresponding search radar. The Roland 1 was limited to clear-weather operations, and was semi-automatic, unlike the fully-automatic Roland 2 and Roland 3 systems. The Roland 1 missiles themselves had a maximum firing range of 6.5 kilometres, with a top speed of 900 m/s (Mach 2.5).
Operational History
The Roland 1 first entered service with the French Army in 1977, with a total of 83 Roland 1 missile batteries being produced. These served as the primary French SPAA system, though they were quickly supplemented by more advanced Roland 2 and Roland 3 systems. The Roland missile system has now been removed from French service, being replaced by more advanced, modern missile systems such as the Mistral.
The Roland missile system was widely exported, serving with multiple nations including Argentina, Brazil, Qatar, Spain, Nigeria and Venezuela. As well, it was one of the few foreign missile systems used by the United States. Roland missiles were used during the Falklands conflict of 1982, and reportedly shot down four British Sea Harriers. However, there is conflicting data on this claim, which cannot be confirmed. Iraq also used the Roland system during the Iran-Iraq war, shooting down an F-4E Phantom and a F-5 Tiger. Most Roland SAM batteries have now been phased out, replaced by more modern weapons.
Media
- Videos
See also
- FlaRakPz 1 - Germany Roland 2 with the same missile system
- FlaRakRad - Germany SPAAG with Roland missiles
External links
References
- Missilery Missile Database. (2006). Roland-1 anti-aircraft missile system. Retrieved January 02, 2021, from https://en.missilery.info/missile/roland-1
- Tanks Encyclopedia. (2011). AMX-30 Roland. Retrieved January 02, 2021, from https://tanks-encyclopedia.com/coldwar/France/AMX-30-Roland-SAM.php
| France anti-aircraft vehicles | |
|---|---|
| Wheeled/Half-tracked | P.7.T AA · CCKW 353 AA · TPK 6.41 |
| AMX-13 Derivatives | VTT DCA · AMX-13 DCA 40 |
| Radar SPAAG | AMX-30 S DCA |
| Missile SPAA | SANTAL · Roland 1 · ▄ItO 90M |
| Other | AMX-10P |
