No shot traps.
Posted on 06/03/2016 7:51:18 PM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
Countries which use Russia’s most mass-produced second-generation main battle tank – the T-72 – need not worry about what to do with aging equipment and the transition of military operations from open to urban conditions. Russia's Uralvagonzavod Corporation (UVZ), manufacturers of the tank, has worked out how to modernize the T-72 for effective combat in urban environments.
Vyacheslav Khalitov, UVZ's deputy director for special equipment, told Gazeta.ru that their project is based on experiences of the war in Syria.
"If you look closely at the armed conflicts in the world, war is now fought mainly in the cities, no one fights in the open anymore, because it is, in fact, instantaneous destruction," said Khalitov. "But you can fight quite successfully in the city and in urban areas generally. Therefore, while analyzing Syria and the wars in Iraq and the Middle East, we decided to make a special set of additional protection systems, which could be installed on the vehicle at the right moment, to fight more efficiently in urban environments."
Integrated protection systems for the tank crew To give the T-72 a new lease of life, they first propose to increase its firepower – to install a more efficient fire-control system with the Sosna multi-channel sighting system, a new electromechanical drive stabilizer, the upgraded 2A46M cannon and an autoloader modified to fire missiles.
Modernizing the T-72 for urban warfare also involves mounting a bulldozer blade, which clears all debris from collapsing buildings and other structures, and allows vehicles to pass.
A cockpit will be mounted on the T-72 to protect the tank commander, who has to look out of the hatch to fire the anti-aircraft machine gun, making him vulnerable to fire from all sides.
"We have made this cockpit with windows, so that he should have all-round visibility, but be fully enclosed himself. There is mostly anti-bullet armour protection there," said Khalitov.
The tank itself will be fitted with reactive armour tiles on all sides. They will protect the hull over track skirts, from the front, rear and sides, as well as the turret.
The tank will be equipped with electronic warfare devices
The modernized T-72 tank will be also equipped with electronic warfare devices. Khalitov said since militants now use radio-controlled missiles, it was necessary to block their signals over a wide area, a particularly important criterion in urban areas.
"We have installed equipment that suppresses radio-controlled explosive devices – these are two inconspicuous devices behind the turret that look similar to antennas; this equipment suppresses all signals sent to an explosive device," he said.
Viktor Murakhovsky, a specialist in weapons and military equipment, said the specific conditions of the city force designers to make technical improvements to the armour.
"Firstly, shelling from all directions is possible, not only from a frontal firing angle, as usually happens in the field." Murakhovsky said."Secondly, it requires large angles of gun elevation to fire at the upper floors of buildings. Third, it requires better viewing conditions for those operating the weapons – there should be better all-round and upward visibility. In Israel, for example, they have two or three extra machine guns on the roof of a tank – it is designed to hit the enemy in the upper floors of buildings."
Where to see the new tank?
The T-72 tank, upgraded for urban conditions and fitted with a fire control system and thermal imaging sight in the new configuration, will be displayed to potential customers for the first time at KADEX 2016, the Fourth International Exhibition of Arms and Military Equipment, being held in Astana, Kazakhstan from June 2 to 5.
First published in Russian in Gazeta.ru.
Just at a guess from looking at the vision blocks, I wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve engineered it to block their 14.5x114mm round, which is more powerful than the .50BMG and is more likely to be found in the former Soviet Bloc and former Soviet client states where this tank is likely going to be operating. After all, they made millions of KPV/PKPs in that caliber and they’re all still floating around in those areas.
I would like to see this used on the anti-Trump protestors in California.
The active protection will now be a homing device.
Nice shot trap at the turret hull interface.
For what? They have a ‘soft’ active protection system to jam guided missiles as well. Arena is aimed at stopping the unguided RPG/LAW threat as well as a backup to the guided missile jammer.
If you’re thinking radar homing missiles like the HARM, remember this is for use in cities. HARM has a nasty habit of running into buildings and homes so we won’t use it anywhere near cities. Keep in mind, too, that this is millimeter wave radar so it’s damn hard to see at anything resembling standoff distance. To kill this thing, you’re going to have to get up close and personal with an A-10 - good luck getting clearance for that under modern ROEs in a city - or Apaches. And Apaches will, again, have to get very close, possibly even under a neutral or even unfriendly sky. Urban fighting is considered the toughest for a reason - you can’t necessarily get the artillery or air support you’d need.
No shot traps.
It seemed like the turret itself was a few inches higher on the ERA equipped one. I guess the odds of finding that gap are pretty low.
Well, it is a later turret revision - T-72M and later - but it still looks like the classic Soviet ‘frying pan’ or ‘inverted bowl’ turret with no shot traps.
Mostly, eh? So there's still a chance for the handgun against an army.
>I like the idea of the raised cockpit and the visibility, but it sure looks like a nice target for a RPG........
Good thing it’s mostly arabs firing those RPGs. Allah is often not with them when it comes to guiding them.
10 years ago, we had a military that was hardened by recent experience in the Iraqi War. But today? We are LGBT and feminist friendly with no emphasis on combat prowess. In fact, there was a study that the Russians would obliterate the Americans in Eastern Europe in a hypothetical war (assuming nuclear weapons were not used).
Patton's Third Army had a similar urban requirement for similar reasons. Very early in the game, the armored Infantrymen who had to do the houseclearing in towns and cities that couldn't be bypassed learned the inadvisability of entering buildings through existing doors, and often also the windows. Accordingly, they finally asked for fire support from tank-escorted vehicles that could put a new door right wherever they wanted.
The M12 was built on the chassis of the M3 Lee tank. It had an armored driver's compartment shared with the commander, but the gun crew were located in an open topped area at the back of the vehicle. Only 100 vehicles were built: 60 in 1942 and a further 40 in 1943. Before the invasion of France, 74 M12s were overhauled in preparation for combat operations.
The M12 earned its nickname *Doorknocker* thanks to the 155mm cannon's ability to pierce seven feet of concrete at ranges up to 2,000 yards (1,830 meters). The vehicle was also dubbed *King Kong* by American operators due to the raw power of its gun. 
I'd bet they've relocated the fuel and hydraulic fluid lines as well, another notorious weak point of the T-72 that contributed to its habit of blowing the turret off the vehicle following a good SABOT shot.
Theirs are often not equipped with the optical sights. They make up for it with a LOT of live-fire practice...and some of those boys are right good at range estimation from arms' reach to 900 meters or so.
Ivan used water-filled thin-wall aluminum tubing as add-on armor on BMP and BMD personnel carriers in Afghanistan and Chechnya. And, of course, if not needed as backup armor, it's a nice additional supply of water as well.
Shouldn’t Russia have learned this with the slaughter of T-80 tanks at Grozny?
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