Roland 1

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RANK 6 BRITAIN
Rooikat 105 PACK
Roland 1
fr_amx_30_roland.png
GarageImage Roland 1.jpg
Roland 1
AB RB SB
10.0 10.0 10.0
Class:
Research:260 000 Specs-Card-Exp.png
Purchase:710 000 Specs-Card-Lion.png
Show in game

Description

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.

Introduced in Update 1.89 "Imperial Navy", the AMX-30 Roland 1 plays like many other SPAAs around its BR, which means it has a hard time surviving encounters with any kind of vehicle, be that lighter IFVs or heavier MBTs. The vehicle only has access to air-to-air missiles, which makes it difficult for the vehicle to defend itself against ground targets, even light vehicles. The radar is competent, but it suffers from ground clutter when operating around trees, so in order to maintain your lock with more ease, you have to put yourself in an open area, which is more dangerous.

General info

Survivability and armour

Smoke grenades
Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle
Armourfront / side / back
Hull30 / 15 / 15
Turret15 / 15 / 15
Crew3 people
Visibility-600 %

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. In this SPAA, 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 difficulty 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. 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

Reverse gearbox
Forward and backward movement is possible at the same maximum speed
Speedforward / back
AB71 / 71 km/h
RB and SB66 / 66 km/h
Number of gears5 forward
5 back
Weight34.0 t
Engine power
AB1 374 hp
RB and SB720 hp
Power-to-weight ratio
AB40.4 hp/t
RB and SB21.2 hp/t
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

Repair costBasic → Reference
AB4 682 → 6 723 Sl icon.png
RB4 477 → 6 428 Sl icon.png
SB4 939 → 7 092 Sl icon.png
Total cost of modifications208 500 Rp icon.png
352 000 Sl icon.png
Talisman cost2 800 Ge icon.png
Crew training200 000 Sl icon.png
Experts710 000 Sl icon.png
Aces2 100 Ge icon.png
Research Aces1 080 000 Rp icon.png
Reward for battleAB / RB / SB
160 / 190 / 240 % Sl icon.png
232 / 232 / 232 % Rp icon.png
Modifications
Mobility Protection Firepower
Mods new tank traks.png
Tracks
Research:
15 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
23 000 Sl icon.png
420 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank suspension.png
Suspension
Research:
10 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
16 000 Sl icon.png
280 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank break.png
Brake System
Research:
10 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
16 000 Sl icon.png
280 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank filter.png
Filters
Research:
14 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
22 000 Sl icon.png
390 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank transmission.png
Transmission
Research:
15 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
23 000 Sl icon.png
420 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank engine.png
Engine
Research:
15 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
23 000 Sl icon.png
420 Ge icon.png
Mods tank tool kit.png
Improved Parts
Research:
4 500 Rp icon.png
Cost:
23 000 Sl icon.png
420 Ge icon.png
Mods extinguisher.png
Improved FPE
Research:
3 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
16 000 Sl icon.png
280 Ge icon.png
Mods tank reinforcement fr.png
Crew Replenishment
Research:
14 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
22 000 Sl icon.png
390 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank horizontal aiming.png
Horizontal Drive
Research:
15 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
23 000 Sl icon.png
420 Ge icon.png
Mods tank ammo.png
163mm_roland_3_aam_ammo_pack
Research:
10 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
16 000 Sl icon.png
280 Ge icon.png
Mods airstrike.png
Airstrike
Research:
10 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
16 000 Sl icon.png
280 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank vertical aiming.png
Elevation Mechanism
Research:
14 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
22 000 Sl icon.png
390 Ge icon.png
Mods smoke screen.png
Smoke grenade
Research:
14 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
22 000 Sl icon.png
390 Ge icon.png
Mods art support.png
Artillery Support
Research:
15 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
23 000 Sl icon.png
420 Ge icon.png
Mods tank rangefinder.png
Rangefinder
Research:
15 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
23 000 Sl icon.png
420 Ge icon.png
Mods scouting.png
Improved optics
Research:
15 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
23 000 Sl icon.png
420 Ge icon.png

Armaments

Main armament

Roland SAM
Autoloader
Automatically feeds projectiles into the breech. The speed does not depend on the skills of the loader
Ammunition10 rounds
Belt capacity2 rounds
Reload5.0 s
Fire rate145 shots/min
Vertical guidance-10° / 35°
Fire on the moveup to 5 km/h
Main article: Roland
Roland SAM (x2) Turret rotation speed (°/s) Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode Capacity (Belt) Vertical Horizontal Stabilizer Stock Upgraded Full Expert Aced Stock Full Expert Aced
Arcade 10 (2) -10°/+35° ±180° N/A 74.9 103.6 125.8 139.1 148.0 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00
Realistic 50.6 59.5 72.3 79.9 85.0

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
Missile details
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Velocity
(m/s)
Range
(m)
Projectile
mass (kg)
Fuse delay
(m)
Fuse sensitivity
(mm)
Arming
distance (m)
Trigger
radius (m)
Explosive mass
(TNT equivalent) (kg)
Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
Roland 1 SAM 500 6,300 65 1 0.1 300 6 4.59 79° 80° 81°
Roland 3 SAM 570 8,000 77 1 0.1 300 6 6.81 79° 80° 81°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the XM975 (identical).
Full
ammo
1st
rack empty
2nd
rack empty
3rd
rack empty
4th
rack empty
Visual
discrepancy
5 (+1) (+2) (+3) (+4) No

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 going to 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 centre 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
  • Crew members 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
  • Low elevation angle
  • Missiles have a very low speed compared to most SPAAs at its BR

History

Design and development

AMX-30R 'Roland' formerly of the 401e Régiment d'Artillerie (401e RA) on external display at the Musée des Blindés, Saumur.

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 Messerschmitt-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 an F-5 Tiger. Most Roland SAM batteries have now been phased out, replaced by more modern weapons.

Media

Skins
Videos

See also

Vehicles equipped with the same missile

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.


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 DCA
Missile SPAA  SANTAL · Roland 1 · ▄ItO 90M
Other  AMX-10P