The Russian Ministry of Defense has received a new batch of T-80BVM tanks from the Omsktransmash company, a wholly state-owned engineering company which produces the T-80 tanks for the Russian Armed Forces.
As reported by Defence 24, the modernized tanks have, among other things, received a changed additional armor of the “cage” type, which now covers the rear niche of the tower and part of the hull ceiling.
In addition, the tank’s protection has been reinforced by the installation of explosive modules on the reactive armor of the vehicle. This is to increase the resistance of the tank to impacts of FPV unmanned aircraft. The sides of the hull were also reinforced, where more modules of heavy explosive reactive armor were placed.
???????? Omsktransmash przekazał kolejną partię czołgów T-80BVM.#UkraineRussiaWar #UkraineWar #Ukraina pic.twitter.com/2Qu9GhVDpw
— Wojtek Kostrzewa (@wojtekfalco) August 18, 2024
These tanks are not new, but thoroughly renovated and modernized T-80BVMs from military depots.
The T-80BVM is the latest version of the T-80 family tanks. The vehicle was deployed to the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation just a few years ago. Through modernization, the Russian military aims to raise the vehicle to new standards to increase combat capabilities in three basic categories: firepower, protection and mobility. Emphasis was also on increasing the location awareness of the crew.
Defence 24 reports that originally, Russian engineers planned to install the following components onto the tank: a new explosive reactive armor called Relikt, a multi-channel gun sight Sosna-U, a modified spare gun sight 1P67, a new TWN-5/TWN-5M driver observation instrument, a PKUZ-1Ak crew protection system, as well as a new firefighting and communications system.
In addition, the tank received a reinforced 1,250 hp power unit, which compensated for the increase in weight resulting from the addition of additional armor, while increasing the maximum speed in reverse gear from 12 to 20 km/h.
It is not known exactly how many tanks have been handed over to the Russian Armed Forces.
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