Modifications of the t 80 tank. The T-80 turned out to be a complete disaster. Victories in the virtual space

When the Minister of Defense of the Syrian Arab Republic, Mustafa Tlas, who commanded the fighting of the Syrian army in Lebanon in 1981-82, was asked by the Spiegel magazine: “Would the former driver of the Tlas tank want to have the German Leopard that the Saudis so desire to get?”, he replied: “... There is a desire, but there is also a T-80 - Moscow's answer to the Leopard. It is not only equal to the Leopard, but also significantly superior to it. As a soldier and tank specialist, I consider the T-80 the best tank in the world."

HISTORY OF CREATIONT-80

By the end of the 1960s, the Soviet Army had the most advanced tanks at that time. In 1967, the T-64 tank was adopted, which was significantly superior to foreign counterparts - the M-60, Leopard 1 and Chieftain. However, since 1965, joint work has begun in the United States and Germany on the creation of a new generation MBT MBT-70. The new NATO tank, in addition to enhanced armament and armor, was to be distinguished by increased mobility characteristics. An adequate response was required from Soviet tank builders.

On April 16, 1968, a joint resolution of the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR was issued, in accordance with which SKB-2 at the Kirov Plant was tasked with developing a variant of the T-64 medium tank with a gas turbine power plant.

By the end of the 60s, the USSR already had developments on the use of gas turbine engines in tanks. The gas turbine engine, which in the 1940s won a victory over piston engines in combat aviation, began to attract the attention of tank builders. A gas turbine engine gave significant advantages over a diesel or gasoline engine: with similar sizes, a gas turbine had much more power, which made it possible to dramatically increase the speed and acceleration qualities of combat vehicles, improve tank control and ensure quick engine start at low temperatures.

The first development of a tank with gas turbine engines in the USSR began as early as 1948. And in 1955, two experimental tank gas turbine engines with a capacity of 1000 hp each were manufactured for the first time. In 1957, at the Kirov Plant, under the leadership of the chief designer of the design bureau Zh.Ya. Kotin, the first domestic turbine tank, an experimental object 278, was manufactured and tested. t develop a good speed - 57.3 km / h. Two tanks of this type were built and tested, however, unlike the diesel engine, the gas turbine was still far from perfect and it took more than 20 years of work and many experimental machines before the gas turbine engine could be installed on a production tank.

In 1963, in Kharkov, under the leadership of A.A. Morozov, simultaneously with the T-64 medium tank, its gas turbine modification was created - an experimental T-64T, with a GTD-3TL helicopter engine with a power of 700 hp. In 1964, an experimental object 167T with a GTD-ZT (800 hp), developed under the direction of L.N. Kartsev, left the gates of Uralvagonzavod in Nizhny Tagil.

The first experimental "Kirov" tank - object 219SP1, manufactured in 1969 - outwardly was almost similar to the experimental Kharkov T-64T. An experimental GTD-1000T engine with a power of 1000 hp was installed on the machine. development of NPO them. V.Ya.Klimova. The next vehicle, the 219SP2 object, was already significantly different from the original T-64: it turned out that the installation of a new, more powerful engine, the increased weight and the changed dynamic characteristics of the tank required significant changes to the undercarriage. The shape of the tower was also changed.

From the T-64A there were weapons and ammunition, an automatic loader, individual components and systems, as well as armor elements.

After building and testing several experimental vehicles, which took about 7 years, on July 6, 1976, the new tank was officially put into service under the designation T-80 (“object 219”). In 1976-78, the Leningrad production association "Kirov Plant" produced a series of "eighties". The T-80 became the world's first mass-produced tank with a gas turbine power plant.

The first information about the new Soviet main battle tank in the West began to appear in the mid-70s. This information was initially very vague. Initially, the NATO assigned the T-80 index to the modified "seventy-two" - T-72M1. For some time, the T-80 was considered as a modification of the T-64. It seemed unlikely to Western experts that the Soviet Union would arm its ground forces simultaneously with three types of similar tanks.

The first image of the T-80 in a Western edition was published in the official Pentagon brochure "Soviet military power" for 1981. This drawing did not reflect reality: on the body of the T-64, the artist placed an angular tower similar to the Leopard-2 tower. In 1982, the "Soviet military power" issued the T-72M1 for the T-80. Once again, the Pentagon yearbook returned to the T-80 only in 1986, when it published a heavily retouched photograph of the tank. However, Western experts did not come to a consensus: however, some called the T-64 as the progenitor, others called the T-72.

Quote from the magazine "Military Technology" No. 6, 1986: "The T-80 tank is the result of evolutionary development. This is nothing more than a T-72 tank with a new engine ... The turret of the new tank is the same as the turret of the T-74 tank (meaning T-72M). A year later, Jane's Defense Weekly writes: “... it can be expected that the T-80 tank is closer in design to the T-72 than to the T-64 ... the principles underlying the design of the T-72 tank , had only a minor impact on the creation of the tank. "Armor magazine for January-February 1987 wrote:" the T-80 tank is a combination of a new hull and suspension system adapted to the turret from the T-64V tank.

Against the background of such different opinions about the very origin of the tank, the wrong assessment of its "stuffing" is not surprising. The location and configuration of the lattice in the aft part of the armored hull suggests that a gas turbine engine is hidden under it, however (quote again) “a gas turbine engine is incompatible with the general design principles of Soviet tanks, moreover, there is not enough space to accommodate it in their cramped internal volume ".

Therefore, many believed that the modernized diesel engine was installed on the T-80. The grating, according to the author of Jane's Defense, serves to suppress IR radiation. At the same time, the Military Technology magazine was of the opinion that the T-80 still uses a gas turbine engine.

The initial analysis of the tank's cannon with regard to the possibility of firing breech-loaded anti-tank missiles from it also became erroneous. V last resort, it was allowed to load the ATGM from the side of the muzzle, while the ATGM ammunition is placed on the outer part of the tower. In the end, Western experts got acquainted with the real state of affairs: the ammunition load of the 2A46 gun does indeed include ATGMs, and missiles are loaded from the breech, like ordinary shots. The combination of rocket and artillery weapons in the T-80 tank is marked as one key features this tank, especially since the attempts of the Americans to create a 152-mm tank gun - a launcher were unsuccessful.

DESIGN OF THE T-80 TANK

The design of the T-80 tank uses the systems and units of the T-64 tank, in particular elements of the fire control system, automatic gun loader, armor protection. In terms of armament (125-mm smoothbore gun 2A46), the tank is unified with the T-64 and T-72. However, the use of a new engine and the associated increase in mass required the creation of a new undercarriage: caterpillars, hydraulic shock absorbers and torsion shafts, support and support rollers, drive and guide rollers.

Layout

Like other Russian 4th generation tanks - T-64 and T-72 - T-80 has a classic layout and a crew of three. The mechanics-drivers of the T-64 and T-72 tanks have one viewing device each; the driver of the T-80 tank had three, which made it possible to significantly improve visibility. The designers also provided for the heating of the driver's workplace with air taken from the gas turbine engine compressor.

The body of the machine is welded, its frontal part has an angle of inclination of 68 degrees, the turret is cast. The T-80 hull is 90 cm longer than the T-64 hull. The frontal parts of the hull and turret are equipped with multilayer combined armor combining steel and ceramics. The remaining parts of the body are made of monolithic steel armor with a large differentiation of thicknesses and angles of inclination. There is a complex of protection against weapons of mass destruction (lined, undercut, sealing and air purification system).

The layout of the fighting compartment of the T-80 is similar to the layout of the T-64B.

Engine

The motor monoblock in the aft part of the tank hull is located longitudinally, which required some increase in the length of the vehicle compared to the T-64. The structure of the monoblock includes the gas turbine engine itself, an air cleaner, oil tanks and radiators for the engine and transmission, fuel filters, a generator, a starter, fuel and oil pumps, a compressor, and fans. The engine is made in a single unit with a total weight of 1050 kg with a built-in bevel-helical reduction gear and is kinematically connected to two onboard planetary gearboxes.

The GTD-1000T is designed according to a three-shaft scheme, with two independent turbochargers and a free turbine. The adjustable nozzle apparatus of the gas turbine limits the frequency of its rotation and prevents it from "spacing" when changing gears. The absence of a mechanical connection between the power turbine and turbochargers increased the tank's patency on soils with low bearing capacity, in difficult driving conditions, and also eliminated the possibility of engine shutdown when the vehicle suddenly stopped with the gear engaged. This means that even if the T-80 suddenly hits a wall, its engine will not stall.

The fuel system consists of an external and internal group of tanks. The outer group includes two tanks on the right fender and three on the left. Eight internal tanks are installed along the perimeter of the hull, encircling the fighting compartment. The front left and front right tanks, as well as the back rack, are installed in the front. Ammunition is stowed in the storage tank (wet stowage). Further clockwise are the middle right (in the fighting compartment), the right aft and supply tanks (in the MTO) and the middle left (in the fighting compartment). The total capacity of the internal tanks is 1140l. Engine operation is possible on TS-1 and TS-2 jet fuels, diesel fuels and low-octane automobile gasolines. The GTE start-up process is automated, the compressor rotors are spinning up using two electric motors.

Due to the rear exhaust, as well as the inherent low noise of the gas turbine engine compared to a diesel engine, it was possible to reduce the acoustic visibility of the tank. Reducing the thermal visibility of the tank is facilitated by the use of a box-shaped guide grille of the exhaust manifold and the placement of equipment for underwater driving of the tank on the stern of the tower. A massive OPVT pipe hangs over the roof of the MTO and partially shields the thermal radiation of the engine.

The features of the tank include the combined braking system implemented for the first time on the T-80 with the simultaneous use of a gas turbine engine and mechanical hydraulic brakes. The adjustable nozzle apparatus (RSA) of the turbine allows you to change the direction of the gas flow, forcing the turbine blades to rotate in the opposite direction. This heavily loads the power turbine, which required the introduction of special measures to protect it. The process of braking the tank is as follows: when the driver presses the brake pedal, braking begins with the help of the turbine. When the pedal is pressed further, mechanical braking devices are also included in the work.

To control the gas turbine engine, an automatic engine operation mode control system (ACS) was used, including temperature sensors located in front of and behind the power turbine, a temperature controller (RT), as well as limit switches installed under the brake pedal and the PCA pedal, connected to the RT and the supply system fuel. The use of ACS made it possible to increase the life of the turbine blades by more than 10 times, and with frequent use of the brake and the PCA pedal to change gears (which occurs while the tank is moving over rough terrain), fuel consumption is reduced by 5-7%.

To protect the turbine from dust, an inertial (so-called "cyclone") air purification method is used, providing 97% purification. However, unfiltered dust particles still remain on the turbine blades. To remove them when the tank is moving in especially difficult conditions, a procedure for vibro-cleaning the blades is provided.

Transmission

Transmission T-80 - mechanical planetary; consists of two units, each of which included an onboard gearbox, an onboard gearbox and hydraulic servo drives of the motion control system. Provides four gears forward and one reverse.

Chassis

Dual track rollers with external shock absorption consist of two ramps fastened with ten bolts; rollers have rubber tires; roller disks are made of aluminum alloy. Wider compared to the tracks of the T-64 tank, the T-80 tracks have rubber treadmills and rubber-metal joints. The use of tracks of this design reduces the vibrations transmitted from the undercarriage to the tank hull, in addition, the level of noise generated by the tank during movement is reduced. Thanks to the wider and longer tracks with 80 tracks, despite the increase in the mass of the T-80 tank compared to the T-64, its ground pressure decreased by 5%, and the engagement area with the ground increased by 25%.

Tank suspension - individual torsion, with misaligned torsion shafts and double-acting hydraulic telescopic shock absorbers on the first, second and sixth rollers. The supporting and upper part of the road wheels are covered with rubber aprons, which weaken the action of the cumulative jet; aprons also somewhat reduce the cloud of dust raised by the tank when moving at high speed.

Tower and armament

The T-80 turret is in many ways similar to the T-64 tank turret.

The main armament of the T-80 tank includes a 125 mm 2A46-1 smoothbore gun. Shots - separate-sleeve loading; 28 of them are placed in the “carousel” of the mechanized ammo rack (the automatic loader is similar to that used on the T-64BV tank), 3 shots are stored in the fighting compartment and another 7 shells and charges are in the control compartment. The rate of fire is 7-9 rounds per minute with automatic loading and 2 rounds per minute with manual loading. Direct shot range - 2100 m, maximum firing range of a high-explosive fragmentation projectile - 11 km; aimed fire at night with the use of active night vision devices can be fired at a distance of 1300-1500 m. In addition to the cannon, the tank is armed with a 7.62-mm PKT machine gun coaxial with the gun (ammunition load - 1250 rounds), and mounted on the bracket of the commander's cupola 12 .7-mm anti-aircraft machine gun NSVT "Utes" (shooting from it is carried out by the commander, being at this time outside the reserved volume); Ammunition "Cliff" is 300 rounds.

The gunner was equipped with a TPD-2-49 sight with a stereoscopic optical rangefinder, which allows determining the distance to the target within 1000-4000 m. The optical axis of the sight has independent stabilization in the vertical and horizontal planes. Night sights of the commander and gunner are similar to those used on the T-64A tank.

WMD protection

The T-80 has a collective system of protection against weapons of mass destruction, similar to the system used on the T-64. The inner walls of the fighting compartment are covered with a lining made of a polymeric material that performs a dual function. Due to its chemical composition, the lining significantly weakens the effect of gamma and neutron radiation on the crew, and when kinetic ammunition enters the tank, the lining prevents small fragments of armor from scattering inside the hull. In addition, fuel tanks provide additional protection for the crew from neutron weapons. The WMD protection system includes a radiation and chemical reconnaissance device, ZETs-11-2 switching equipment, a filter-ventilation unit, an engine stop mechanism, closing seals with actuators and permanent hull and turret seals, the system operates in automatic or manual mode. In automatic mode, when radiation or toxic substances are detected outside the tank, the seals are closed, the FVU is turned on, and sound and light alarms are activated, warning the crew about the contamination of the area.

Engineering equipment

Self-digging equipment is mounted on the lower front armor plate of the hull, which is a blade with four struts and guides. The set of means for self-extraction includes a log, fastening in the aft part of the hull, two cables and brackets with bolts and nuts, with which the log is attached, if necessary, to the tracks. The T-80 has attachments for attaching the KMT-6 mine trawl.

The tank is equipped with equipment for underwater driving, which provides for overcoming water obstacles up to 5 m deep.

T-80B ("OBJECT 219R")

In 1978, a new modification, the T-80B, was adopted. Unlike the T-80, its 2A46M-1 cannon can fire 9M112 guided missiles at a distance of up to 4 km, with a probability of hitting an armored target of 0.8. The missile corresponds in shape and size to the projectile, and can be placed in the trays of the mechanized ammunition rack of the automatic loader.

Missile guidance is semi-automatic: the gunner only needs to keep the aiming mark on the target. The ATGM coordinates relative to the aiming line are determined by means of an optical system using a modulated light source mounted on the missile, and control commands are transmitted via a narrowly focused radio beam.

The TPD-2-49 sight replaced the more advanced 1G42 sight with a built-in laser rangefinder and independent stabilization of the optical axis in two planes.

A ballistic computer was introduced into the 1A33 fire control system. Improved communication equipment; instead of the outdated R-123M radio station, the R-173 radio station is used. Communication equipment with aviation and a friend-foe identification device were introduced into the radio equipment.

Compared to the first T-80 tanks, the T-80B tanks also have more advanced multi-layer armor protection, equivalent in properties to steel armor 500 mm thick. Since 1980, more powerful GTD-1000TF engines (1100 hp) have been installed on the T-80B.

Smoke grenade launchers of the 902 Tucha system are mounted on the outer surface of the tower.

T-80BV ("OBJECT 219RV")

In 1985, a modification of the T-80B with hinged dynamic protection entered service. The machine received the designation T-80BV. Somewhat later, the installation of dynamic protection began on the previously built T-80Bs in the process of their overhaul.

The predicted growth in the combat capabilities of foreign main tanks, along with the improvement of means of combating armored vehicles, required further improvement of the "eighties". Work on the development of this machine was carried out both in Leningrad and in Kharkov.

In 1976, the KhMDB completed a preliminary design of the "object 478", which outlined a significant increase in the combat and technical characteristics of the T-80. It was supposed to install a diesel engine, traditional for Kharkivites, - 6TDN with a capacity of 1000 hp, on the tank (the option of 1250 hp was also being worked out). It was supposed to install a new turret, guided missile weapons, a new sight, etc. on the car. Work on the "object 478" served as the basis for the creation in the second half of the 1980s of the serial diesel tank T-80UD.

T-80U ("OBJECT 219AS")

The emergence in NATO countries of new means of combating tanks, primarily A-10A Thunderbolt-2 attack aircraft, AN-64 Apache attack helicopters equipped with powerful Mayverick and Hellfire ATGMs capable of burning through armor up to 1000 thick mm, as well as new modifications of the TOW and Khot missiles, required a further increase in the protection of the main tanks.

At the same time, the variety of types of manufactured armored vehicles worried the leadership of the Armed Forces of the USSR. It was decided to install on the T-80 chassis a new turret developed in Kharkov for the modification of the T-64, known as the "object 476". The cast tower, created under the direction of N.A. Shomin, had an increased volume and armored shield, consisting of spaced steel plates with internal armored vertical plates, the space between which was filled with a urethane field.

The development of a modernized tank with a "Kharkov" turret in SKB-2 LKZ began in the early 1980s. The machine, which received the designation T-80A (“object 2I9A”), also had improved weapons (ATGM “Reflex”) and a number of other innovations, in particular, built-in bulldozer equipment. An experimental tank of this type was built in 1982; subsequently, several more experimental vehicles were produced that had minor differences. In 1984, an experimental set of mounted dynamic protection was installed on them.

To test the new Reflex guided weapon system with laser-guided missiles, as well as the Irtysh weapon control system, the LKZ design bureau in 1983 created an experimental vehicle “object 2198” on the basis of the T-80B serial tank.

Both experimental tanks gave impetus to the next important step in the evolution of the "eighties", made by the Leningrad designers. Under the leadership of Nikolai Popov, work began on the T-80U tank ("object 219AC") - the latest and most powerful modification of the "eighties", recognized by many domestic and foreign experts as the strongest tank in the world. The machine, which retained the main layout and design features of its predecessors, received a number of fundamentally new units. At the same time, the mass of the tank compared to the T-80BV increased by only 1.5 tons.

The firepower of the T-80U has been significantly increased due to the use of a new complex of guided missile weapons "Reflex" with an anti-jamming fire control system that provides an increase in the range and accuracy of fire while reducing the time to prepare the first shot. The new complex provided the ability to deal not only with armored targets, but also with low-flying helicopters. The 9M119 missile, controlled by a laser beam, provides a range of hitting a tank-type target when firing from a standstill at ranges of 100 - 5000 m with a probability of 0.8.

The ammunition load of the 2A46M-1 gun (other names D-81TM, "Rapier-3"), which includes 45 shots, consists of armor-piercing HEAT projectiles ZBK14M and ZBK27, armor-piercing projectiles with a tungsten core ZBM12 and ZBM42, armor-piercing projectiles with a depleted uranium core ZBM32, as well as high-explosive fragmentation projectiles 2OF19 and ZOF26. The armor-piercing sub-caliber projectile has an initial velocity of 1,715 m/s (which exceeds the initial velocity of a projectile of any other foreign tank) and is capable of hitting heavily armored targets at a point-blank range of 2,200 m.

With the help of a modern fire control system, the commander and gunner can search for targets, track them, as well as aim fire day and night, both from a place and on the move, and use guided missile weapons.

The 1G46 "Irtysh" daytime optical sight with a built-in laser rangefinder allows the gunner to detect small targets at a distance of up to 5000 m and determine the range to them with high accuracy. The sight is stabilized in two planes, regardless of the weapon. Its pancratic system changes the magnification of the optical channel within 3.6 - 12.0.

At night, the gunner searches and aims using the Buran-PA combined active-passive sight, which also has a stabilized field of view.

The tank commander conducts surveillance and gives target designation to the gunner using the PNK-4S sighting and observation day / night complex, stabilized in the vertical plane.

The digital ballistic computer takes into account corrections for range, target flanking speed, own tank speed, cannon trunnion angle, bore wear, air temperature, atmospheric pressure and side wind.

The gun received a built-in control device for the alignment of the gunner's sight; quick-release connection of the barrel tube with the breech, allows the replacement of the barrel in combat conditions, without dismantling the entire gun from the turret.

When creating the T-80U tank, considerable attention was paid to strengthening its protection. Work was carried out in several directions. Through the use of a new camouflage color that distorts appearance tank, it was possible to reduce the probability of detecting the T-80U in the visible and IR ranges. Enhanced both armor and dynamic protection of the tank. The first series of the tank were equipped with a hinged set of dynamic protection "Contact". Then (for the first time in the world) elements of built-in dynamic protection (VDZ) were implemented, which is able to withstand not only cumulative, but also kinetic projectiles. VDZ covers more than 50% of the surface, nose, sides and roof of the tank. The combination of advanced multi-layered combined armor and VDZ "removes" almost all types of the most common cumulative anti-tank weapons and reduces the likelihood of being hit by "blanks". In terms of the power of armor protection, having an equivalent thickness of 1100 mm against a sub-caliber kinetic projectile and 900 mm - under the action cumulative ammunition, T-80U surpasses almost all foreign tanks of the fourth generation.

When armor is penetrated, the tank's survivability is ensured by the use of the fast-acting automatic fire-fighting system "Hoarfrost", which prevents ignition and explosion of the fuel-air mixture. To protect against the explosion of mines, the driver's seat is suspended from the turret sheet, and the rigidity of the hull in the control compartment area is increased by using a special piller behind the driver's seat.

An important advantage of the T-80U was its perfect system of protection against weapons of mass destruction, surpassing such protection of the best foreign vehicles. The tank has a lining and a lining made of hydrogen-containing polymers with the addition of lead, lithium and boron, local protection screens made of heavy materials, automatic sealing systems for habitable compartments and air purification.

The use of a self-digging system with a bulldozer blade 2140 mm wide and a system for setting smoke screens using the Tucha system, which includes eight 902B grenade launchers, contributes to an increase in survival. The tank can also be equipped with a mounted KMT-6 track trawl. excluding the detonation of mines under the bottom and tracks.

A significant innovation was the use of an auxiliary power unit GTA-18A with a capacity of 30 hp on the tank, which allows saving fuel while the tank is parked, when conducting a defensive battle, as well as in an ambush. The resource of the main engine is also saved. The auxiliary power unit, located in the rear of the machine in the bunker on the left fender, is “built into” the general system of the gas turbine engine and does not require any additional devices for its operation.

Initially, it was supposed to install a gas turbine engine GTD-1000 (“product 37”) with an HP 1200 power on the tank. However, the fine-tuning of the engine, which has a complex adjustment system, was delayed (in particular, due to the fact that the Klimov Design Bureau was loaded with work on aircraft power plants). As a result, it was decided to equip the tank with a less powerful GTD-1000TF engine ("product 38F") with a capacity of 1100 hp.

By the end of 1983, an experimental series of ten T-80Us was made in Kharkov, eight of which were transferred to military trials. In 1985, the development of the tank was completed, and its large-scale serial production began in Omsk and Kharkov,

T-80UD

As mentioned above, the T-80 became the world's first production tank with a gas turbine engine. The installation of the turbine was considered a great success for tank builders, but not all tankers agreed with this conclusion. Capricious jet engines greatly complicated the work of the engineering and technical services of combat units; perhaps it was the techies who “launched” the next assessment of the T-80 into the world - this tank has only one drawback - the gas turbine engine.

In addition to the difficulty in operation, the gas turbine engine was inferior to the traditional diesel engine in such an important parameter as efficiency. In addition to everything, the GTD-1000 cost the National Economy 104,000 rubles in the 1980s, and the V-46 tank diesel cost 9,600 rubles.

The answer to the question of which is better - a tank gas turbine or a diesel engine has remained open (and not only in your country, the Americans put a turbine on their Abrams, and the Germans put a diesel engine on the Leopard). In this regard, interest in installing a diesel engine on the most powerful domestic tank was constantly maintained. In particular, there was an opinion about the preference for the differential use of turbine and diesel tanks in various theaters of military operations.

Work on the creation of a diesel version of the "eighties" has been carried out since the mid-1970s. In Leningrad and Omsk, experimental vehicles "object 219RD" and "object 644" were created, equipped, respectively, with A-53-2 and V-46-6 diesel engines. However, the Kharkovites achieved the greatest success, creating a powerful (1000 hp) and economical six-cylinder diesel engine 6TD - a further development of 5TD. The development of this engine began in 1966, and since 1975 its development began on the chassis of the "object 476". In 1976, the Kharkovites proposed a variant of the T-80 tank with 6TD ("object 478"). In 1985, on its basis, under the leadership of General Designer I.L. Protopopov, the “object 478B” (“Birch”) was created. Compared to the “reactive” T-80U, the diesel tank had slightly worse dynamic characteristics, but had an increased cruising range. The installation of a diesel engine required a number of changes in the transmission and control drives. In addition, the car received remote control of the Utes anti-aircraft machine gun.

The first five serial "Birches" were assembled by the end of 1985, they were immediately sent for military trials. In 1986, the machine was launched into a large series, and in 1987 it was put into service under the designation T-80UD. The T-80UD was significantly different from the jet eighties, so it was supposed to give it a new designation T-84, however, they limited themselves to letters - UD (improved diesel), later, after gaining independence, the Ukrainians returned to the next model of the "eighties" to the designation T-84. "Birch" was tested with the condition of subsequent elimination of the customer's comments. The refinement of the tank continued for two years in parallel with mass production.

In 1988, the T-80UD was modernized: the reliability of the power plant and a number of units was increased, the hinged dynamic protection "Contact" was replaced with built-in dynamic protection, and the weapons were finalized. Until the end of 1991, about 500 T-80UDs were produced in Kharkov (of which only 60 were transferred to units stationed on the territory of Ukraine). In total, by this time in the European part of the USSR there were 4839 T-80 tanks of all modifications.

T-80 TWO WAYS: IN RUSSIA AND UKRAINE

The presence of two centers for improving the T-80 tanks (in St. Petersburg and Kharkov) predetermined the peculiar ways of further development of the design in Russia and Ukraine. Perhaps the only thing in common was that both Ukrainian and Russian designers adapted new modifications, first of all, to the requirements of possible foreign customers, since at that time neither the Russian nor the Ukrainian armies were able to purchase sophisticated military equipment in tangible quantities.

T-84

The Ukrainians won in 1996 a tender for the supply of main battle tanks to the Pakistani army. In the same 1996, a contract was signed for the supply of 320 diesel T-80s worth 580-650 million dollars (different sources give different figures), which received the Ukrainian designation T-84, to Pakistan (this number probably included tanks available in the Armed Forces of Ukraine). The export value of one T-84 was $1.8 million.

In Kharkov, a more powerful (1200 hp) 6TD-2 diesel engine was created, designed for installation on modernized T-64 and T-84 samples. Pakistan expressed interest in the participation of specialists from Kharkov in a joint Sino-Pakistani program to develop a promising main tank. Work on this car began back in 1988, but the developers were unable to overcome a number of technical problems, primarily related to the chassis and power plant. In 1998, the Pakistani side proposed installing a turret, developed in China for a promising tank, on the hull of the Ukrainian T-84. As the main engine, it is possible to use a "native" 6TD-2 diesel engine or a diesel engine of the European design "Perkins" V12 with a capacity of 1200 hp.

In 2000, KMDB specialists developed a version of the T-84, modified to NATO standards, called the T-84-120 Yatagan. The tank was equipped with a 120 mm cannon, an FN machine gun and communications equipment from the French company Thomson. The T-84-120 was made in a single copy, and did not go further into the series, since no orders were received for it.

In 2008, the production of the modern Ukrainian MBT "Oplot" was launched in Kharkov. This tank is significantly different from the T-84. It is equipped with a modern digital FCS and a thermal imaging sight, a commander's combined panoramic sight with day and night thermal imaging channels, and a laser rangefinder. The tank received a welded-rolled turret new form, the built-in dynamic protection system "Doublet", the complex of optoelectronic suppression "Warta" and side screens that protect the hull and chassis from RPG shots.

The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine ordered 10 Oplot tanks, for which they could not pay the manufacturer.

In 2011, Thailand ordered a batch of 49 Oplot-T tanks (tropical version). In 2013, the first batch of 5 tanks was delivered to the customer. At present, the factory Malyshev in Kharkov, the assembly of the second batch of "Oplotov-T" for the Thai army is underway.

T-80UM/UK

Russian designers, in the absence of powerful tank diesel engines left in Ukraine, continued to improve the "jet" T-80. The production of gas turbine T-80s has completely moved to a plant in Omsk. In 1990, the production of a tank with a more powerful GTD-1250 engine (1250 hp) began there, which made it possible to slightly improve the dynamic characteristics of the vehicle. Power plant protection devices against overheating were introduced. The tank received an improved 9K119M missile system.

T-80UM1 "Bars" with KAZ "Arena"

To reduce the radar signature of the T-80U tank, a special radar absorbing coating was developed and applied. The reduction in the effective scattering surface (ESR) of ground combat vehicles has become of particular importance after the advent of airborne real-time radar reconnaissance systems using synthetic aperture side-scan radar, which provides a high resolution. At a distance of several tens of kilometers, it became possible to detect and track the movement of not only tank columns, but also individual units of armored vehicles. The first two aircraft with such equipment - E-8JSTARS - were successfully used by the Americans during Operation Desert Storm, as well as in the Balkans.

On the part of the T-80U, they began to install the Agava-2 thermal imaging observation and aiming device (the industry delayed the supply of thermal imagers, so not all machines received them). Video image (for the first time on domestic tank) is displayed on a TV-type screen. For the development of this device, its creators in 1992 were awarded the Zh.Ya. Kotin Prize.

The serial T-80U tank with the above improvements introduced is known under the designation T-80UM.

Another important innovation that significantly increased the combat survivability of the T-80U was the use of the TShU-2 Shtora optoelectronic suppression system. The purpose of the complex is to prevent anti-tank guided missiles with a semi-automatic guidance system from hitting the tank, as well as to interfere with enemy weapon control systems with laser target designation and laser rangefinders. The complex included an opto-electronic suppression station (SOEP) TShU-1 and an aerosol curtain installation system (SPZ). SOEP is a source of modulated infrared radiation with parameters close to those of ATGM tracers of the Dragon, TOW, HOT, Milan, etc. types. Influencing the IR receiver of the semi-automatic ATGM guidance system, it disrupts the missile guidance. SOEP provides interference in the form of a modulated infrared radiation in the sector +/-20 deg., from the axis of the bore along the horizon and 4.5 deg. - vertical. In addition, TShU-1, two modules of which are located in front of the tank turret, provide IR illumination at night, aimed fire using night vision devices, as well as to blind any (including small) objects.

The SDR, designed to disrupt the attack of such missiles as Maverick, Hellfire and the 155-mm Copperhead artillery projectile, responds to laser radiation within 360 degrees, in azimuth and -5 / +25 in the vertical plane. The received signal is processed at high speed by the control unit, and the direction to the source of quantum radiation is determined. The system automatically determines the optimal launcher, generates an electrical signal proportional to the angle to which the tank turret with grenade launchers should be turned, and issues a command to fire a grenade that forms an aerosol screen at a distance of 55-70 m three seconds after the grenade is fired, the SOEP operates only in automatic mode, and SPZ - in automatic, semi-automatic and manual.

Field tests of Shtora-1 confirmed the high efficiency of the complex: the probability of hitting a tank with missiles with semi-automatic command guidance is reduced by 3-5 times, missiles with semi-active laser homing - by 4-5 times, and corrected artillery shells - by 1.5 times . The complex is able to provide countermeasures simultaneously against several missiles attacking the tank from different directions.

The Shtora-1 system was tested on an experimental T-80B (“object 219E”) and for the first time began to be installed on a serial command tank T-80UK - a variant of the T-80U vehicle, designed to provide control of tank units. Moreover, command tank received a system for remote detonation of high-explosive fragmentation projectiles with non-contact electronic fuses. T-80UK communication facilities operate in the VHF and KB bands. The R-163-50U ultra-shortwave radio station with frequency modulation, operating in the operating frequency range of 30-80 MHz, has 10 preset frequencies. With a four-meter whip antenna in medium-rough terrain, it provides a range of up to 20 km. With a special combined dipole antenna mounted on an 11-meter telescopic mast mounted on the body of the vehicle, the communication range increases to 40 km (with this antenna, the tank can only work in the parking lot). The R-163-50K short-wave radio station, operating in the frequency range of 2-30 MHz in telephone-telegraph mode with frequency modulation, is designed to provide communication over a long distance. It has 16 preset frequencies. With a HF whip antenna 4 m long, which ensures operation when the tank is moving, the communication range was initially 20-50 km, but due to the introduction of the possibility of changing the antenna pattern, it was possible to increase it to 250 km. With a whip 11-meter telescopic antenna, the operating range of the R-163-50K reaches 350 km.

The commander's tank is also equipped with a TNA-4-3 navigation system and an AB-1-P28 self-contained gasoline power generator with a power of 1.0 kW, an additional function of which is to recharge the batteries during parking with the engine off.

The creators of the machine have successfully solved the issue of electromagnetic compatibility of numerous radio-electronic means. For this, in particular, a special electrically conductive caterpillar tape was used.

armament, power point, transmission, undercarriage, observation devices and other equipment of the T-80UK corresponds to the T-80UM tank, however, the ammunition load of the gun has been reduced to 30 rounds, and the PKT machine gun to 750 rounds.

The development of the T-80 tank was a major achievement of the domestic industry. Designers A.S. Ermolaev, V.A. Marishkin, V.I. Mironov, B.M. Kupriyanov, P.D. Gavra, V.I. Gaigerov, B.A. Dobryakov and many other specialists. More than 150 copyright certificates for inventions proposed in the process of creating this machine speak of the amount of work done. A number of tank designers were awarded high government awards. By decrees of the President of the Russian Federation, a group of specialists and the general designer of the T-80U tank, N.S. Popov, were awarded the State Prize of the Russian Federation in the field of science and technology for the development of new technical solutions and the introduction of the machine into mass production.

However, the T-80 is far from exhausting the possibilities for further modernization. The improvement of the means of active protection of tanks also continued. In particular, on the experimental T-80B, the Arena Active Tank Protection Complex (KAZT) was introduced, developed by the Kolomna Design Bureau and designed to protect the tank from attacking ATGMs and anti-tank grenades. Moreover, the reflection of ammunition is ensured, not only flying directly at the tank, but intended to destroy it when flying from above. To detect targets in the complex, a multifunctional radar with an “instant” view of space in the entire protected sector and high noise immunity was used. For targeted destruction of enemy missiles and grenades, highly-directional protective ammunition is used, which has a very high speed and is located along the perimeter of the tank turret in special mounting shafts (the tank carries 26 such ammunition). Automatic control of the operation of the complex is carried out by a specialized computer, which also provides control over its performance.

The sequence of operation of the complex is as follows: after it is turned on from the tank commander's control panel, all further operations are performed automatically. The radar provides a search for targets flying up to the tank. Then the station is switched to the auto-tracking mode, developing the parameters of the target's movement and transferring them to the computer, which selects the number of protective ammunition and the time of its operation. Protective ammunition forms a beam of submunitions that destroy the target on approach to the tank. The time from target detection to its destruction is record short - no more than 0.07 s. After 0.2-0.4 s after the defensive shot, the complex is again ready to “shoot” the next target. Each defensive munition fires at its own sector, with the sectors of closely spaced munitions overlapping, which ensures the interception of several targets approaching from the same direction.

The complex is all-weather and "all-day", it is able to work when the tank is moving, when the turret is turned. An important problem that the developers of the complex managed to successfully solve was to ensure the electromagnetic compatibility of several tanks equipped with the Arena and operating in a single group.

The complex practically does not impose restrictions on the formation of tank units under the conditions of electromagnetic compatibility.

"Arena" does not respond to targets located at a distance of more than 50 m from the tank, to small targets (bullets, fragments, small-caliber shells) that do not pose an immediate threat to the tank, to targets moving away from the tank (including its own shells), on low-speed objects (birds, clods of earth, etc.). Measures have been taken to ensure the safety of the infantry escorting the tank: the danger zone of the complex - 20-30 m - is relatively small, when protective shells are fired, no side lethal fragments are formed, there is an external light alarm that warns the infantrymen behind the tank about the inclusion of the complex.

Equipping the T-80 "Arena" allows you to increase the survival rate of the tank during offensive operations by approximately two times. At the same time, the cost of losses of tanks equipped with KAZT is reduced by 1.5-1.7 times. Currently, the Arena complex has no analogues in the world. Its use is especially effective in local conflicts, when the opposing side is armed with only light anti-tank weapons.

Tank T-80UM-1 "Bars" with KAZT "Arena" was first publicly demonstrated in Omsk in the autumn of 1997. A variant of this tank with another active defense system, Drozd, was also shown there.

In order to increase the ability to combat air targets (primarily attack helicopters), as well as tank-dangerous enemy manpower, the Tochmash Central Research Institute created and tested a set of additional weapons for the T-80 tank with a 30-mm 2A42 automatic gun (similar to that installed on the BMP -3, BMD-3 and BTR-80A). The gun, which has a remote control, is installed in the upper rear part of the tower (while the 12.7-mm Utes machine gun is dismantled). The guidance angle relative to the tower is 120 degrees horizontally and -51 + 65 vertically. Ammunition installation - 450 shells.

T-80UM2 "BLACK EAGLE"

A further development of the T-80 was the Black Eagle tank, created in Omsk. For the first time this tank was demonstrated at the international arms exhibition Omsk-97. The demonstration caused considerable excitement in the world military press, especially since the tank was demonstrated at a distance of 500 m, and its turret was completely covered with a camouflage net.

Chassis and body "Black Eagle" inherited from the T-80. A new welded tower with a horizontal placement of the automatic loader is installed on the hull. The Cactus dynamic armor protection system is mounted on the frontal parts of the turret and hull, the Cactus blocks are also hung on the front of the side screens covering the undercarriage. GTE power increased to 1500 hp. At the same time, the mass of the vehicle increased to 50 tons. The main armament of the T-80UM2 remained the same - the 125-mm 2A46M gun.

The commander and gunner have stabilized sights with day and night channels; a laser rangefinder is integrated into the gunner's sight. Compared to the tanks of previous models, the commander and gunner have changed places; the workplace of the commander of the Black Eagle tank is located to the left of the gun, the gunner is to the right. The T-80UM2 tank is equipped with the Arena active protection system. According to information published after the first demonstration of the tank, it is equipped with a 1500 hp gas turbine engine. Later, there were reports of the use of a GTD-1250G with a power of 1250 hp on the T-80UM2. and upgraded transmission.

This is how the serial production of the Black Eagle began, however, according to some reports, the developments obtained during the creation of this machine were used to create a new generation Russian tank - the Armata.

T-80 IN THE TROOPS

Unlike the T-72, which was widely exported outside the USSR, the T-64 and T-80 in Soviet times were only in service with the SA. The guard units of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany had priority in obtaining these vehicles. It was planned that in the event of war, a tank fist with a T-64 and T-80 at the tip would be able to reach the English Channel in one to two weeks. These tanks have become a big problem for NATO military leaders. During the 70s - 80s. practically all newly created weapon systems in the West were to one degree or another intended to fight tanks. The Americans even made their Abrams not so much as a traditional breakthrough tank, but as an anti-tank weapon. And yet, despite the highest degree of saturation of Western Europe with anti-tank weapons (helicopters, aircraft, various ATGMs, and finally tanks), NATO strategists also came to the conclusion that the advanced tank units of the Warsaw Pact would reach the Atlantic no more than two weeks after the start of large-scale military operations.

The T-64 tanks were the first to be received in 1967 by the 100th Guards Training Tank Regiment and the 41st Guards Tank Division, and their military tests were also carried out there. The division was located near the plant number 75 (plant named after Malyshev), which produced the T-64. The choice of a compound located near the manufacturing plant was dictated by the need to assist tankers in the operation and maintenance of new equipment by teams of factory specialists. In the GSVG, the 2nd and 20th guards, 3rd tank armies were armed with T-64 tanks, the 1st guards tank and 8th guards armies were armed with "eighties".

T-80UD units were the first to receive units of the 2nd Guards Motorized Rifle Division Tamanskaya and the 4th Guards Tank Kantemirovskaya Division. Publicly, the T-80UD was first demonstrated at a parade in Moscow on May 9, 1990. At the time of the collapse of the USSR, 4839 T-80 tanks of all modifications were in service.

The T-80 tanks were well received by the troops, their high speed and excellent starting qualities of the gas turbine engine bribed them. According to General Staff analysts, in the event of a major war, armored divisions equipped with "eighties" could reach the English Channel in five days, even before reserves from the United States begin to land in Europe. The development of new machines proceeded in an atmosphere of heightened secrecy, and their vague, obscure photographs only occasionally appeared on the pages of the Western press, each time serving as the "highlight of the issue." However, sometimes "jet tanks" appeared before the "general public." So, during one of the exercises of the Western Group of Forces, the T-80 battalion, making a swift maneuver, entered the highway near Berlin and rushed along it, overtaking buses and Trabants.

Real experience combat use The T-80 is very far from the once planned rapid rush to the West. In October 1993, the T-80s of the Kantemirovskaya division shot at the Russian Parliament with direct fire. The track record of the tank includes Chechnya and Tajikistan. With the filing of the media, the New Year's assault on Grozny became a symbol of the Chechen war. It is difficult to say what the command was guided by when introducing armored vehicles into the city, because no armor will save you from point-blank shots from RPGs and ATGMs. As you know, it ended with the heaviest losses of the Russian army.

In the future, instead of the massive use of armored vehicles, small armored groups were widely used - a tank (T-80 or T-72) and two or three infantry fighting vehicles. Such armored groups no longer entered the settlements, "rolling out" the defense of the Dudayevites from a safe distance. This tactic was successful: on April 4, 1996, the 27th Yekaterinburg Motorized Rifle Regiment, numbering 500 people, with the support of tanks and infantry fighting vehicles, captured Gudermes, which was defended by about 800 militants, suffering minimal losses - one killed, several wounded. At the same time, for completely incomprehensible reasons, the use of "clean" tank units continued. So, in the summer of 1995, a separate tank battalion of the 166th motorized rifle brigade, armed with T-80BV tanks, covered the direction to Shali from militant attacks. The divisions of the battalion were located in an open field; I think that a well-trained infantry company would have completed such a task with great success: they had to defend themselves not from the Abrams and Leopards, but from light infantry.

Tanks were involved in escorting convoys, and often a tank with a mounted minesweeper was in the lead.

Currently, the T-80 is one of the most massive main tanks of the fourth generation, second only to the T-72 and the American M1 Abrams. As of early 2013, the Russian army had approximately 4,000 T-80BVs and T-80Us, of which 3,000 are in storage. Some more T-80s are in the Coastal Forces of the Russian Navy. In 2013, the head of the main armored department of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation A. Shevchenko announced the cessation of further operation of the T-80 and the decommissioning of all tanks of this series by 2015, however, then, apparently, these plans were abandoned. In any case, as of 2015, there is no such information in the media. The decommissioning of one of the most massive tanks would have the most serious consequences for the country's defense. Apparently, the issue of abandoning the T-80 should have been raised no earlier than the start of the massive supply of vehicles more than modern types, for example, "Armata".

The Ukrainian Armed Forces do not actively use T-80s, but as of 2013, there were 165 vehicles of this type in storage.

In addition to Russia and Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Cyprus, and Syria have T-80 vehicles.

T-80 TANKS OUTSIDE RUSSIA

The first country to officially purchase the T-80 was Cyprus. The delivery of 41 tanks (the contract amount is $174 million) increased the number of tank units of the Greek community of the island by almost a third (besides the T-80, the Greek Cypriots are armed with 104 AMX-30V2 tanks). T-80s allow, to some extent, to compensate for the quantitative superiority in tanks that the Turkish community has (265 M-48A5 tanks). In 2009, a contract was signed for the supply of another 41 T-80U / T-80UK. Thus, the total number of T-80s in the Cypriot army was 82 vehicles.

However, Great Britain became the first non-CIS country where the G80 got to. There are several versions of the appearance of the T-80U tank by the British: from the goodwill gesture of President B.N. Yeltsin, made during one of his visits to England (January 1992 or November of the same year) to the successful operation Intelligence Service. According to one version, a certain Russian commercial firm offered the Ministry of Defense in early 1992 its services in selling four T-80Us in Morocco. Officially, the sale was allegedly carried out by the foreign trade organization Voentekh, and each tank was estimated at $ 5 million, despite the fact that the average cost of more advanced T-80 variants is foreign market is approximately $2.2 million. How many and where the tanks were sold remained unclear, but the Minister of Defense of Morocco, who arrived on a visit to Moscow in the autumn of 1992, was very surprised when he found out about the purchase of Russian tanks by his country. But it is quite clear why the British needed the T-80U, which they thoroughly studied, tested and fired at their ranges Chertsey, Fort Halstead and Bovington.

It is possible that the information obtained during the tests of the T-80U made it possible to disrupt a number of deals for the supply of tanks of this type to the countries of the Near and Middle East; the British tried to clearly outline the shortcomings of the tank, modestly shading its advantages. The first reliable information about the presence of the T-80U in England was published in January 1994, and the publications did not indicate when the tank got there.

There were also reports that the T-80U was being tested at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in the United States. One tank was transferred to the US by the UK, and four more were received in 2003 from Ukraine.

Outside the CIS, the T-80U was first shown at an arms exhibition in Abu Dhabi, held in February 1993. The display aroused great interest, but no contracts were signed, possibly due to the counter-propaganda campaign of Western competitors.

As noted above, Ukraine supplied T-84 tanks to the armed forces of Pakistan. The press reported on the participation of T-84s delivered by Ukraine to Pakistan in combat operations in Afghanistan. Tanks with Pakistani crews fought on the side of the Taliban, but official Islamabad denied this information. As of 2013, the Pakistan Army had 320 T-80UDs.

In addition, the owners of a fairly large fleet of T-80s are the army South Korea- 80 T-80U and Yemen - 66 T-80.

Prepared for the portalhttp://www.. Army series. The T-80 is the best tank in the world."

The history of the creation of the T-80 tank began in July 1967 with a meeting with the Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU D.F. Ustinov, at which it was decided to develop a gas turbine power plant for the T-64 tank. 1000 hp engine had to provide a power reserve on the highway of at least 450 km with a warranty period of 500 hours. The reason for making this decision, as well as creating a backup power plant with a V-46 diesel engine, was that the 5TDF two-stroke engine of the T-64 tank worked very unreliable. In addition, there was an opinion among the military leadership that the use of gas turbine engines in tanks would significantly increase the combat and operational characteristics, including average speeds and combat readiness (especially in winter), as well as increase the power supply of the tank.

As a result of the meeting on April 16, 1968, a joint resolution of the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR was adopted, obliging the Ministry of Defense Industry and the Ministry of Aviation Industry to conduct development work on the gas turbine engine during 1968-1971. By this time, the LNPO named after V. Klimov had developed a successful engine GTD-1000T with a capacity of 1000 hp, and in KB-3 of the Kirov Plant, taking the gas turbine version of the T-64A tank as a basis, in 1970 they completed an experimental object 219 in metal.

More than 60 tanks were manufactured for testing in various climatic conditions, including for factory tests, in military operation and on special stands (trackless stand, cold chamber, wind tunnel, etc.). These tests showed that gas turbine engines still do not have sufficient reliability, have high fuel consumption and do not provide the required power reserve. Serious problems arose in terms of engine performance in conditions of high air dustiness, as well as transmission and chassis, due to an increase in engine power and speed.

To increase the power reserve, the amount of transported fuel was increased to 1700 liters (of which 1150 liters were booked) instead of 1093 liters (738 liters) on the T-64A tank. In addition, two additional 400-liter barrels were installed, which were absent on the T-64A.

Conducted in 1972, comparative tests of the object 219 and T-64A showed some advantages of the first. In the winter of 1973, in the Siberian Military District, at the training ground in Yurga, an experimental military operation of seven tanks was carried out, according to the results of which the commission concluded that this tank has higher maneuverability and maneuverability, is capable of making marches as part of a company up to 100 - 150 km per day on unprepared trails (without the use of snow plows), overcome snowdrifts up to 2 - 3 m and confidently move on virgin soil with a snow depth of up to 1 m.

The use of a gas turbine engine, which did not require "warming up before launch, increased the combat readiness of the tank in winter conditions and reduced the time for its preparation for exit to 2 - 3 minutes at -18 ° C and to 25 - 32 minutes - at lower temperatures (up to -45 ° C ) temperatures. Along with this, fuel consumption per 100 km of the way when the column was moving on virgin snow did not ensure the daily passage of tanks 300-400 km without refueling. No failure-free operation of engines was not ensured within the warranty period.

In 1974 - 1975, in the Volga Military District, an experimental military operation of a battalion of tanks in the amount of 10 - 11 thousand km was carried out. At its beginning, there was a massive failure of the gas turbine engine, mainly due to the destruction of the third support of the turbocharger. Urgent measures were taken to eliminate this shortcoming, and by December 15, 1974, the battalion received 10 modified engines of the so-called 8th series. In this regard, the experimental military operation program was clarified and for 10 tanks with improved engines, a test stage was added in conditions of loess dust in the air in the Turkestan military district.

Cars there were refueled with both aviation kerosene and diesel fuel. In the conclusions of the final report on experimental military operation, it was stated that the combat readiness of object 219 at low temperatures was 1.5 - 2 times higher than that of tanks with diesel engines. He had high maneuverability, was able, in cooperation with the BMP, to rapidly advance to the front line at a speed of 20 - 30 km / h or more, attack the enemy while under the influence of his firepower for less time, and provide firing at speeds of 20 - 25 km /h

Depending on the road and climatic conditions, the average speed was within 18 - 32 km/h (tactical) and 20 - 40 km/h (technical). Fuel consumption per 100 km: 453 - 838 l; for 1 hour of engine operation: 123 - 209 l; cruising range without barrels: 220 - 368 km, and with additional barrels: 270 - 456 km. Oil consumption was practically non-existent.

On August 6, 1976, shortly after the appointment of D.F. Ustinov as Minister of Defense, object 219 was put into service under the symbol T-80. "Eighty" became the world's first mass-produced tank with a gas turbine engine (serial production of the M1 "Abrame" tank began in 1980).

The main tank T-80 (object 219sp2) was the basic production version. The vehicle had a welded hull, basically similar in design to the hulls of the T-64A and T-72 tanks. Tower - cast, complex configuration. The 125-mm 2A46-1 gun was equipped with a heat-protective barrel cover, a hydroelectromechanical loading mechanism of the same type as on the T-64A tank, a coaxial PKT machine gun, an NSVT-12.7 Utyos anti-aircraft machine gun, and a TPD-2-rangefinder optical sight. 49, two-plane stabilizer 2E28M. In general, the early T-80 turret was largely unified with the T-64A turret (including aiming and observation devices, as well as the fire control system). The undercarriage had tracks with rubberized treadmills and RMSH, rubberized track and support rollers. The crew consisted of three people. Serial production of the tank was carried out at the Leningrad Kirov Plant from 1976 to 1978.

In 1978, a modification of the T-80B (object 219R) appeared, distinguished primarily by the presence of the 9K112-1 Kobra guided weapon system and the 1AZZ control system (1G42 laser rangefinder sight, 1V517 tank ballistic computer, 2E26M stabilizer, 1G43 shot resolution unit and a set sensors). The 2A46-2 cannon and the 902A Tucha smoke grenade launcher were mounted, and the turret armor was reinforced. Since 1980, the GTD-1000TF engine with a power of 1100 hp began to be installed. and a turret unified with the T-64B, since 1982 - the 2A46M-1 "Rapier-3" cannon. In 1984, the armor of the bow of the hull was reinforced by welding a 30 mm armor plate. The T-80B tank was also produced by the Kirov Plant in Leningrad. On its basis, the T-80BK commander tank (object 630), produced by the Omsk Transport Engineering Plant, was created.

Simultaneously with the development of the T-80B, its diesel version was also designed - object 219RD with a 1000-horsepower A-53-2 diesel engine. This machine did not leave the prototype stage. In 1983, another prototype was created - object 219V, on which elements of the new Irtysh control system and the Reflex guided weapon system were tested.

In January 1985, a modification of the T-80BV (object 219RV) was adopted, which differed from the T-80B by installing a mounted dynamic protection kit on the turret and hull.

According to the arrangement of mechanisms and equipment inside, the T-80B tank is divided into three sections: control, combat and power.

The control compartment is located in the bow of the hull. It is limited on the right by a fuel tank and a tank rack, on the left - also by a fuel tank, a driver’s control panel and batteries with electrical equipment installed above them, at the back - by a loading mechanism conveyor (MZ). The driver's seat is located in the control compartment, in front of which on the bottom of the case were the steering control levers, the fuel supply pedal and the pedal of the adjustable nozzle apparatus. Observation devices TNPO-160 are mounted in the shaft of the upper inclined sheet of the hull. To drive a tank at night, instead of the central viewing device TNPO-160, a TVNE-4B night device is installed, which in the non-working position is in the stowage to the right of the driver's seat. Behind the seat in the bottom of the hull is an emergency exit hatch. In 1984, the attachment of the driver's seat to the beam was introduced instead of the attachment to the bottom.

The fighting compartment is located in the middle part of the tank and is formed by a combination of the hull and the turret. The turret has a 125 mm smoothbore gun. The hull contains a cabin docked with the tower. The cockpit is located MZ, which provides placement, transportation, filing and sending shots, as well as catching and placing extracted pallets. To the right of the gun is the seat of the tank commander, to the left - the gunner. There are seats and footrests for the commander and gunner, as well as removable guards that ensure their safety during the operation of the stabilizer, the MOH and when firing from a cannon. To the right of the gun, a PKT machine gun coaxial with it, a TPU A-1 apparatus, a R-123M radio station (on later production tanks - R-173) and an MZ control panel are installed.

A commander's cupola with a hatch is mounted above the tank commander's seat in the turret. It has two TNPO-160 prism observation devices, a TKN-3 commander's observation device, and two TNPA-65 prism observation devices.

Behind the walls of the cabin there is an annular conveyor of the loading mechanism.

The power compartment is located in the aft part of the tank hull. It has a longitudinally mounted gas turbine engine. The power output to the shafts of the onboard gearboxes is carried out from both ends of the engine output gearbox. Each onboard gearbox is mounted in a block with a coaxial planetary final drive carrying the drive wheel.

The engine is assembled with other assembly units in the form of a monoblock, which includes: the engine and its oil tank, air cleaner, engine and transmission oil coolers, fuel filters, part of the thermal smoke equipment, BNK-12TD fuel priming pump, high pressure compressor AK-150SV with automatic pressure control, cooling and dust extraction fans, transmission oil pump, GS-18MO generator and GS-12TO starter.

Gas turbine engine GGD-1000TF with a power of 1100 hp made according to a three-shaft scheme with two mechanical independent turbochargers and a free turbine. The main components of the engine are low and high pressure centrifugal compressors, a combustion chamber, axial compressor turbines, an axial power turbine, an exhaust pipe, gearboxes and a gearbox.

The roof of the power compartment is removable and consists of a front fixed part and a rear lifting part, which is connected to the front part using hinges and a torsion bar. The roof opens with the effort of one person and is locked with a tie in the raised position. In the front part of the roof there are entrance blinds, closed from above with removable metal meshes.

Outside the tank, external fuel tanks are attached, included in the common fuel system, boxes with spare parts, towing cables, spare tracks, a bag with external launch wires, fuel transfer hoses, a log for self-pulling, brackets for installing additional fuel barrels, removable OPVT equipment, a covering tarpaulin, a driver's protective cap in a case and part of the ammunition load of an anti-aircraft machine gun.

The armament of the T-80B tank includes: 125 mm 2A46M-1 smoothbore gun; 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun PKT; 12.7 mm Utyos tank machine gun (NSVT-12.7); ammunition for cannon and machine guns; loading mechanism; fire control system 1AZZ; guided weapon system 9K112-1; night sight TPNZ-49.

The gun is installed in the tank turret on trunnions. The turret's embrasure is covered in front with armor, bolted to the cradle and covered with a cover from the outside. There is an embrasure seal inside the turret. The barrel of the gun consists of a pipe fastened in the chamber part with a casing; breech; couplings and a mechanism for blowing the bore. The part of the barrel outside the cradle and armor is covered with a thermal protective cover, which is designed to reduce the effect of adverse weather conditions on the bending of the pipe during firing. It consists of four sections, couplers, brackets, frames and fasteners.

The mass of the swinging part of the gun without armored mask and stabilizer is 2443 kg. Combat rate of fire - 6 - 8 rds / min. The range of a direct shot (at a target height of 2 m) with an armor-piercing sub-caliber projectile is 2120 m.

Ammunition for the gun consists of 38 shots with armor-piercing sub-caliber, high-explosive fragmentation, cumulative and guided projectiles. Of these: 28 shots are placed in the MOH conveyor in any ratio; 7 - in the control compartment and 5 - in the fighting compartment.

The anti-aircraft machine gun mount is designed for firing at air and ground targets at ranges up to 2000 m and provides circular fire at machine gun pointing angles in the vertical plane from -5° to +75°. The installation is located on the commander's cupola. For firing from a machine gun, 12.7 mm caliber cartridges are used: armor-piercing incendiary B-32 and armor-piercing incendiary tracer BZT-44.

A feature of the design of the T-80B tank is the presence of a hydroelectromechanical complex of the mechanism for automatically loading the gun with any of the types of shots used.

The loading cycle begins with setting the ballistics switching lever to the position corresponding to the given type of shot, and pressing the MOH button on the rangefinder sight. At the same time, the executive engine of the hydraulic pump MZ is turned on. The lever of the feed mechanism is pressed into the lower position, the conveyor starts to rotate. When the tray with the selected type of shot approaches the loading line, the conveyor brakes and stops. Simultaneously with the rotation of the conveyor, the gun is stopped at the loading angle by a hydromechanical stopper - and the tray with the shot is fed to the chambering line. On the dispensing line, the tray is opened and the shot is sent to the gun chamber. The wedge of the gun breech is closed. A green index is displayed in the field of view of the sight, indicating that the gun is loaded. When the rammer chain returns, the pallet is transferred from the catcher to the empty tray. The lever of the feed mechanism returns the empty tray to the lower position, and the gun, unraveling, goes to a consistent position with the aiming line. The loading cycle is over, the gun is ready to fire a shot.

Due to the peculiarities of its design, the cassetteless loading mechanism of the T-80 and T-64 tanks was called the "Basket".

The fire control system (FCS) 1AZZ installed on the T-80B tank is designed to ensure effective fire from a cannon and a machine gun coaxial with it at enemy tanks and other armored targets moving at speeds up to 75 km / h, at small targets (bunkers, bunkers etc.) and in terms of manpower when firing from a place and on the move, at speeds up to 30 km / h, at ranges of actual fire of cannon and machine-gun weapons, both with a direct line of sight of targets through a rangefinder sight, and from closed firing positions. The 9K112-1 "Kobra" guided weapon system installed in the T-80B tank is designed to provide effective cannon fire with guided projectiles at enemy tanks and other armored targets moving at speeds up to 75 km/h, as well as for firing at small targets (bunkers, bunkers), etc., from a standstill and on the move, at speeds up to 30 km / h, at ranges up to 4000 m, subject to line of sight of the target through the 1G42 rangefinder sight.

The 9K112-1 complex is functionally connected with the 1AZZ control system. The complex provides:

The possibility of simultaneous firing of guided projectiles as part of a company of tanks at nearby targets, including firing from two tanks simultaneously at the same target (with an interval between firing tanks along the front of at least 30 m) when operating radio links at different letter frequencies and codes;

Shooting with guided projectiles in the range of vertical guidance angles from -7° to +11° and with a tank roll up to 15°, as well as firing over the water surface;

Possibility of firing at helicopters at ranges up to 4000 m if a helicopter is detected at a distance of at least 5000 m and at a target speed of up to 300 km/h and an altitude of up to 500 m.

The equipment of the complex is located in the fighting compartment of the tank in the form of separate removable blocks.

The 9K112-1 guided weapon system has a semi-automatic projectile control system using a modulated light source on the projectile and a radio command line.

Projectile control in flight is carried out automatically by a closed loop with the help of rudders. The task of the gunner when launching a projectile is to keep the aiming arch on the target during the entire time of the projectile's flight to the target. The 9M112 projectile is equipped with sickle-shaped wings that create lift and give it a rotational movement around the longitudinal axis.

T-80 tanks began to enter the troops in the late 1970s, primarily in the western military districts and foreign groups of troops. The strained thermal resource of the gas turbine complicated the use of these tanks in hot areas, so they did not get into the southern military districts.

The military liked the car. In the course of a strategic headquarters game according to the “big war” scenario, new tanks reached the Atlantic by the morning of the fifth day of the offensive (the T-80 headquarters received the nickname “English Channel tanks” for this). The T-80s showed their dynamic qualities more than once. The case was especially famous during one of the exercises of a group of Soviet troops in Germany, when the Eighty-Syatki, performing a detour maneuver, entered the highway near Berlin and swept along it, overtaking tourist buses. The favorable attitude in the units was also caused by the excellent starting qualities of the gas turbine engine, which was not afraid of any frost. In addition, the gas turbine engine provided the power reserve and mass savings required to increase protection against the ever more advanced anti-tank weapons that appeared on the battlefield.

The "eighties" were not exported and did not take part in the hostilities as part of the Soviet Army. Tanks T-80B and T-80BV were used by the Russian Army during the military operation in Chechnya in 1995-1996.

M. BARYATINSKY
"Model designer" No. 10 "2009

DESIGN OF THE T-80B TANK

The T-80B tank inherited the layout of its well-known predecessors, including the T-64, with a control compartment in the front of the hull. The driver's seat is located here, in front of which on the bottom there are steering control levers, pedals for supplying fuel, brakes and an adjustable nozzle apparatus (PCA), on the front sheet there is a control instrument panel, a GPK-59 gyro-semi-compass. Above the shield - three prism observation devices TPNO-160; the central device for driving at night is replaced by a night viewing device TVNE-4B, which is illuminated by an on-board headlight FG-125 with an IR filter.

To the left and right of the seat are fuel tanks and a tank rack, two more medium fuel tanks are located at the rear wall of the compartment; under the seat is a weapon stabilizer control unit. On the bottom - a rotating contact device of the tower. Next to it there is a spare hatch in case of an emergency exit.

A bilge pump is installed under the control panel - in case of flooding when overcoming water barriers. Four batteries are in a rack behind the left fuel tank.

On the starboard side of the compartment, the air intake device of the radiation and chemical reconnaissance device (PRKhR) and the TPU A-3 intercom device were reinforced. Suspension torsion bars run along the bottom of the hull, and control drive rods run along the sides.

The fighting compartment occupies the middle part of the tank. Its turret is equipped with a cannon with a loading mechanism (MZ), which ensures the delivery and sending of shots, catches and places the extracted pallets.

The place of the commander is to the right of the gun, the gunner is to the left. In front of the commander's seat there is a TPU A-1 apparatus, a radio station, an MZ control panel, a hydrodynamic gun stopper, a weapon stabilizer linear acceleration sensor, a control panel with toggle switches for the engine stop mechanism, SAR, and fire-fighting equipment (PPO). Under the seat is an MZ electric control unit.

In the commander's turret, prism viewing observation devices were mounted - two TNPO-160 and a commander's device TKN-3V, switches for the headlight, side light and tower illuminator.

The combined day-night observation device TKN-3V is independently stabilized in the vertical plane; it has two daytime optical channels of single and 7x magnification and a passive-active night channel; the device is illuminated by an illuminator with an infrared filter OU-3GKU.

TNPO-160 are located to the left and right of TKN-3V.

Two more commander's prism observation devices TNPA-65 are installed in the turret hatch cover.

In the daytime, the gunner in the turret uses a 1G42 day tank sight-rangefinder, fixed to the left of the gun; its optical head is housed in an armored housing on the roof. The field of view of the device is stabilized in two planes, for which a two-degree gyroscope was used.

1G42 is part of the tank fire control system (FCS) and is designed to monitor the battlefield and fire. It includes: a control panel, an optical unit, a stabilizing unit, a range unit, a time interval meter with a digital indicator, and an observation head. Observation and aiming are carried out through the visual channel of the device. The range to the target is measured by a quantum rangefinder sight, which operates in conjunction with the 2E26M weapon stabilizer and the 1V517 ballistic computer of the fire control system.

The gunner also has at his disposal a TPN3-49 night tank sight, an azimuth indicator, a gunner's console, a control panel for the 902B smoke grenade launch system, a TPU A-2 apparatus, gun cocking and descent mechanisms and a turret stopper.

Tank T-80 on the observation deck of the Military Historical Museum of Artillery, Engineering and Signal Corps in St. Petersburg.

With the help of the night TPN3-49, the gunner has the ability to monitor the situation on the battlefield at night, detect and identify targets, conduct aimed fire from a cannon and a coaxial machine gun. This device is a passive-active electron-optical monocular periscope with gun-dependent stabilization of the field of view in the vertical plane. It provides work in active and passive modes, all-round observation during the rotation of the tower, aiming, measurement of target angles for target designation; works in conjunction with an infrared searchlight L-4A. However, when an object is detected in the dark, illuminated by the scattered light of the moon or stars, the device can operate in a passive mode, due to the amplification of illumination by its electron-optical amplifier. The sight is mounted on a bracket in the turret to the left of the rangefinder sight.

The layout of the T-80 tank.

Gunner's workplace in the T-80B tank:

1 - device 1G42; 2 - lifting mechanism of the gun; 3 - rotary mechanism of the tower; 4 - gunner's seat; 5 - azimuth indicator; 6 - gunner's console PO47-1C; 7 - control and indication unit GTN-11; 8 - hydropneumatic cleaning valve; 9 - left switchboard; 10 - apparatus TPU A-2; 11 - toggle switch for turning on the searchlight L-4A; 12 - remote control system 902B "Cloud"; 13 - emergency socket; 14 - night sight TPN-3.

A TNPA-65 prism observation device is also placed in the gunner's hatch cover.

The power compartment is in the stern of the tank. Here is the engine with service systems: fuel and lubrication; there are engine and transmission control drives, sensors and sprayers of the fire-fighting equipment system (PPO), sensors of instrumentation, and a pump unit for thermal smoke equipment (TDA). The engine itself is made in a single unit with a built-in bevel-helical reduction gear and is connected to two planetary onboard gearboxes.

The tank was equipped with a GTD-1000 gas turbine engine with a capacity of 1000 hp, made according to a three-shaft scheme with two independent turbochargers and a turbine. The adjustable nozzle apparatus of the turbine limits the frequency of its rotation. The launch of the gas turbine engine is automated, and the spin-up of the compressor rotors is carried out using two electric motors. Engine dimensions: length - 1495 mm, width - 1042 mm, height - 888 mm. Its weight with the gearbox is 1050 kg.

The workplace of the commander in the T-80B tank:

1 - communications shield; 2 - guidance device TKN-3; 3 - loading panel; 4 - calculator; 5 - visual index of the MZ; 6 - correction input device; 7 - remote duplication; 8 - mechanism for turning the conveyor; 9 - switchboard.

The tank used an automatic control system for the operation of the power plant (ACS) with temperature sensors located in front and behind the engine, a temperature controller (RT), limit switches under the brake pedals and a PCA associated with the RT and the fuel supply system. SAUR allowed not only to reduce fuel consumption with frequent use of the brake and the PCA pedal, for example, when driving over rough terrain, but also to significantly increase the turbine resource.

A combined braking system is also used with the simultaneous use of gas turbine engines and mechanical hydraulic brakes. The adjustable turbine nozzle allows you to change the direction of the gas flow; causing her blades to rotate reversibly. Thus, with the help of PCA, acceleration and deceleration of the engine is carried out. The braking of the tank when the brake pedal is pressed begins by means of a turbine, and then mechanical brakes are also included in the work.

The air cleaning system is also of significant importance with a high air flow rate - up to 4 kg / s - and a high speed of its supply. GTE is very sensitive to the presence of dust in the incoming stream. Therefore, the engine has an air cleaner unit, two dust extraction fans, air filters for the turbine nozzle apparatus, two air ducts for ejection of cooling air and dust, as well as a system for blowing off compressor impellers from the interblade channels when operating in clogged and dusty conditions (deserts, sandstorms, Samum and etc.). The air cleaning system operates in two modes: when moving on land and with OPVT equipment under water.

A gas turbine engine with the same occupied volume as a diesel engine has a significantly greater power, is easier to maintain, and is less noisy. In addition, it has a smaller unmasking effect in the IR range, since the heat transfer of a diesel engine is several times higher. This, along with thermal insulation of the roof and exhaust louvers, ventilation of the power compartment, the use of side screens, the absence of large heated surfaces of the radiators of the cooling system, provides low level thermal radiation, contributes to the thermal masking of the tank.

Tank tower. In front of the open cover of the gunner's hatch, the 1G42 rangefinder sight is clearly visible, to the left of it is the TPN3-49 night sight. Under the driver's hatch there are TNPO-160 surveillance devices. Dynamic protection units are installed on the upper front sheet.

The engine starts at low temperatures without additional heating.

However, since the gas turbine engine has a high fuel consumption - 1.5–2 times, the internal tanks occupied a larger volume of the engine-transmission compartment (MTO) than, say, on a diesel T-64, so the car body is somewhat elongated.

The volume of fuel tanks: internal - 1100 l, five external - 700 l, two or three additional barrels - 400–600 l. The total volume is 2200–2400 liters.

The engine is multi-fuel and runs on diesel fuel, gasoline A-72 and A-76, fuel mixtures TS-1 and TS-2.

In front of the roof of the compartment there are entrance blinds covered with metal nets on top. The back of them can be opened, although the entire roof is removable for routine maintenance or engine repairs.

To supply electricity and recharge the batteries when the engine is not running, as well as to scroll and start it, an electric unit with an 18 kW generator is located in the feed bunker of the machine.

The hull of the tank is welded from armor plates. Its bow is formed by inclined top and bottom sheets, welded not only to each other, but also to the front roof sheet, sides and bottom. Frontal parts - composite armor plates; their composition: rolled steel of medium hardness, steel of high hardness, fiberglass. In the "steel" equivalent, their thickness corresponds to 400 mm.

Mine trawl mounting brackets and self-digging equipment mounting brackets are welded to the bow sheets. On the top sheet there are tow hooks with latches, headlight brackets with their guards, tow cable laying brackets and fasteners, protective shields for the driver's viewing devices. Guide wheel brackets are welded at the junction of the front and side sheets. Most machines have a triangular water deflector at the front.

The lower frontal sheet with a thickness of 100 mm has a uniform structure.

Hull side sheets - vertical, rolled, 80 mm thick. Brackets and stops of balancers, supporting rollers, pins of hydraulic shock absorbers are welded to them from the outside. Protective shelves with external fuel tanks and boxes for spare parts are stretched along the sides.

The 1G42 rangefinder sight is part of the tank fire control system and is designed to monitor the battlefield and fire.

Above the guide wheels - folding mud flaps.

The stern part of the hull consists of upper and lower stern sheets welded together; their thickness is 80 mm. It has towing hooks, brackets for rear position lights and additional barrels of fuel, spare track mounts; a box of exhaust shutters with locks and a stopper is installed.

The roof of the hull is also made of welded armor plates, partly - above the power compartment - is removable.

The bottom of the tank is welded - from three trough-shaped sheets with longitudinal and transverse stampings to ensure rigidity and placement of torsion bars. It has maintenance hatches.

On the left side of the turret there is a block of smoke grenade launchers 902B of the Tucha smoke protection system, next to them is a radio antenna flange, a taillight is visible at the stern.

The thickness of the roof and bottom sheets is 30 mm.

To protect the undercarriage, four-section side screens made of reinforced rubber are hung.

Tower - shaped armor casting. Its combined frontal part has an equivalent thickness of 400–600 mm.

A roof with a protective head of a rangefinder sight is welded to the top of the turret. In front there is a cannon embrasure with a complex labyrinth of two pairs of protective cheeks and grooves, thus protecting the crew from penetration into the fragments, as well as from the effects of a blast wave. The coaxial machine gun embrasure is to the right of the gun. A bracket for the L-4A illuminator of the night sight was welded on right there.

On the sides to the left and to the right of the gun there are bolts for fastening the smoke grenade launch system.

The commander's cupola with a hatch is in the right half of the roof, the gunner's hatch is in the left. Near it is the installation flange of the TPN3-49 night sight, the shaft of the observation device.

In the stern of the turret, a rear headlight and side light, an antenna mounting flange, brackets for the removable OPVT equipment and its release levers, and a wind sensor attachment are installed.

A bottom sheet with holes for fastening bolts to the upper turret shoulder strap is welded to the bottom of the turret. Tower support - ball.

In tanks of the initial series, the tower was unified with the T-64A tank.

On the left of the turret there is an anti-aircraft remote installation with a cartridge box (the machine gun is removed), the gunner's hatch cover is folded back. In the center is a protective shield installed at the commander's hatch, behind it is a radio station antenna.

Tank caterpillar with rubber-metal hinge and lantern gear. Track width - 580 mm, number of tracks - 80. Track weight - 1767 kg.

Folding mudguards are located in front of the tank above the guide wheels.

In the chassis of the T-80B - six dual road wheels on board, with rubber tires and aluminum alloy wheels. The driving wheel - rear - is welded from two cast disks, two removable gear rims and a restrictive disk. The steering wheel - front - also consists of two cast discs with windows to eject mud and snow. The mass of the road wheels is 78 kg, the driving wheels are 188 kg, the guides are assembled with a crank - 230 kg, the supporting ones are 12 kg.

Suspension - individual, torsion bar, with misaligned torsion shafts. Hydraulic telescopic shock absorbers are installed on the 1st, 2nd and 6th nodes. Tension mechanisms - worm type. Track tracks - there are 80 of them on each - stamped, with a rubber-metal hinge; track width - 580 mm. The track tread has rubber pads to reduce stress on the undercarriage. If necessary - for driving on the highway in order to avoid its destruction - it is recommended to wear rubber asphalt "shoes" on the outer surface of the caterpillar. Track mass - 1767 kg.

The undercarriage of the tank provides a smooth ride, low noise level and at the same time high dynamic performance. Experts consider it the best of all available on our tanks.

Property boxes are mounted on brackets on the left side of the tower, and a wind sensor is located in the center of the roof.

In the transmission - two final drives complete with final drive, three planetary gear sets and five clutches per side.

The armament of the T-80B tank is a 125-mm smoothbore gun 2A46M-1 (D-81 TM), a 7.62-mm coaxial PKT machine gun, an anti-aircraft 12.7-mm machine gun NSVT "Utyos", a guided weapon system KUV 9K112-1 " Cobra".

The tank's ammunition load includes 38 shots; of which 28 armor-piercing sub-caliber, high-explosive fragmentation, cumulative placed in the conveyor of the loading mechanism. The other five shells and seven charges are in the control compartment in the tank rack; two more shells and two charges - at the bulkhead of the power compartment between the medium fuel tanks, finally, one shell - placed vertically in the fighting compartment behind the back of the commander's seat, and the charge was laid on the floor. 1250 rounds for the PKT machine gun are placed in magazines in the fighting compartment and on the turret mount, and magazines with 500 rounds for 12.7 mm NSVT are located on the right side of the rear of the turret and also on the machine gun mount.

The driving wheel of the tank, above it - the protective screens of the undercarriage with a connecting lock.

Twin road wheels, "long" torsion bar output bolt and shock absorber.

Fire from the 2A46M-1 cannon can be fired with high-explosive fragmentation projectiles (OFS) 3OF19 shot 3VOF22 and 3OF26 shot 3VOF36, designed to destroy manpower, various military equipment and field-type shelters. They are equipped with a B-429E fuse, which provides three functions: high-explosive, fragmentation and delayed action of the projectile. For direct fire at tanks, self-propelled artillery mounts, and other armored vehicles, the ammunition load includes cumulative projectiles (KS) 3BK12M of 3VKB7 and 3BK14M of 3VBK10 rounds. The shells are equipped with a stabilizer with six blades, a tracer for tracking its trajectory and hitting the target, which lasts 6–7 s.

In addition, also on tanks and armored vehicles, but also on armored caps, embrasures of long-term defensive structures, fire is carried out by armor-piercing sub-caliber shells (BPS) 3BM9, 3BM12, 3BM15, 3BM17 shots 3VBM3, 3VBM6, 3VBM7, 3VBM8 respectively. The shells themselves have ballistic tips, and in their rear part there are tracers with a burning time of 2–3 s.

When firing all types of tank shells, a single 4Zh40 charge is used, consisting of a partially burning cartridge case and a live powder charge with means of ignition, flame extinguishing and other elements placed in the cartridge case. When fired, a part of its body, pressed into the pan, burns out, the metal pan itself is thrown out of the gun chamber onto the catcher of the loading mechanism.

The maximum firing range of a high-explosive fragmentation projectile is 10,000 m at the optimum gun elevation angle. The range of a direct shot with a cumulative projectile is 1000 m, with an armor-piercing sub-caliber projectile - 2120 m.

All shots of the T-80B tank are unified with the ammunition of the T-64 and T-72 tanks.

The gun is loaded automatically by the loading mechanism (MZ). After each shot fired, a pallet is ejected from the bore, which fits into the MOH catching mechanism. When you press the button for selecting the type of projectile on the control panel, the stabilizer automatically brings the gun to a certain loading angle, then the conveyor is set in motion, bringing the selected shot to the breech. Here, the feed mechanism feeds the tray to the chambering mechanism, which "charges" the gun - its shutter closes. At the same time, the previous pallet is transferred from the catcher to the newly vacated tray. The loaded gun is removed from the stopper and the stabilizer is displayed on the aiming line. After firing, the cycle repeats.

The minimum duration of loading one shot when the conveyor is rotated one step is 7.1 s.

A bulldozer blade is mounted on the lower part of the front hull plate for self-digging the tank. With its help, a caponier with dimensions of 12x5.5x1.5 m is torn off in sandy soil in 15 minutes.

The gun is equipped with a built-in control of the gunner's sight alignment.

The quick-release connection of the barrel tube with the breech allows it to be replaced in field conditions without dismantling the entire gun from the turret.

The tank was equipped with a fire control system SUO 1A33. The system is designed to ensure the effectiveness of fire, detection of targets and tracking them by the commander and gunner, automatic input of corrections for deviations from normal firing conditions, guidance and stabilization of weapons, input of target designation from the commander.

With the help of the FCS, it is possible to fire at tanks and armored targets moving at speeds up to 75 km/h, at small targets and manpower from a standstill and on the move at speeds up to 30 km/h. Fire can be fired both in line of sight and from concealed positions.

The system includes: a rangefinder sight 1G42, a weapon stabilizer 2E26M, a set of sensors for input information - wind, hull roll, tank speed, heading angle, a shot resolution unit 1G43, a tank ballistic computer 1V517 (TBV).

It is the TBV that generates corrections for the range to the target, data on the aiming angles and angular lead of the gun from the automatically entered information from the sensors and the rangefinder.

Armament stabilizer 2E26M - two-plane, gyroscopic, with electro-hydraulic drives. When the tank moves on the battlefield, the stabilizer gyroscope keeps its position in space unchanged, thereby ensuring the immobility of the field of view of the sight. However, the gun itself, for dynamic reasons (friction in the trunnions, hydraulic resistance in the slave cylinder) tends to lag behind the "orders" of the stabilizer. The shot permission block issues a command to fire only when the specified minimum angle of mismatch between the stabilized aiming line and the actual position of the gun is provided.

When measuring the range with a rangefinder sight, its optical quantum generator is launched, emitting a powerful short light pulse towards the target, but partially falling on the photodiode of the receiving channel. Reflected from the target, the light pulse comes back to the photodetector. The time interval between emission and acceptance of the reflected signal corresponds to the distance to the target.

The wind sensor is designed to generate signals proportional to the lateral component of the wind speed. The roll sensor generates signals indicating the roll angle of the gun trunnion axis. The speed sensor gearbox is connected to the rotating cover of the steering wheel, so its signal is proportional to the speed of the tank. In addition to the readings of these sensors, when firing, some of the necessary indicators are entered into the TBV manually. This is data on changes in charge temperature, air temperature, atmospheric pressure, and gun barrel wear.

Gas turbine engine GTD-1000TF with a power of 1000 hp with two independent turbochargers and a turbine. The engine has an automatic control system for the operation of the SAUR.

Anti-aircraft installation of the tank with a 12.7-mm machine gun NSVT "Cliff" remote control.

The main components and equipment of the FCS are located on the tank as follows: rangefinder sight - in front of the turret to the left of the gun; shot resolution block - in front of the turret under the gun; tank ballistic computer - to the right of the commander's seat; weapon stabilizer nodes - in the hull and turret; control unit - on the floor under the gunner's seat; electrical unit - on the floor behind the gunner's seat; linear acceleration sensor - in the tank turret behind the commander's observation devices; tank speed sensor - in its left steering wheel; roll sensor - on the floor to the right of the gun; wind sensor - at the stern of the tower.

In addition to the cannon and machine guns, the T-80B tank was equipped with the KUV 9K112-1 Cobra guided weapon system for effective cannon fire with guided projectiles on tanks, armored vehicles, and small fortifications - from a place and on the move. Firing range - up to 4000 m, target speed - up to 75 km / h. It is also possible to fight helicopters flying at a speed of no more than 300 km / h at an altitude of up to 500 m; the range of their defeat is also up to 4000 m.

The complex consists of control equipment with a transmitter, a photodetector, an antenna unit, a command formation and control unit, other devices, and, of course, the 9M112M guided projectile itself. All equipment is located in the fighting compartment of the tank in the form of separate removable blocks and is functionally connected to the tank's control system.

The projectile consists of two compartments: the head and tail, which are connected on the MZ tray when the gun is sent into the chamber; in the tank they are stored separately. In the head compartment warhead cumulative type and sustainer engine; in the tail - there is a throwing device, rudders, wings, on-board equipment designed to receive, detect, amplify and decipher control commands.

When fired, the projectile is ejected from the gun barrel by powder gases of the propelling device, its wings and rudders open, the feedback emitter and antenna open. Further, its speed is maintained by a main engine.

Semi-automatic control of the 9M112M projectile is carried out within the line of sight via a radio link; Feedback- by means of an onboard modulated light source - emitter. The gunner must constantly keep the aiming mark on the target during the entire flight of the projectile.

The tank is camouflaged with thermal smoke equipment for setting multiple smoke screens. When the engine is running, diesel fuel is injected into the exhaust gases through injectors. Due to their high temperature, the fuel evaporates, turning into a vapor-gas mixture, which, getting into colder outside air, condenses and forms fog. Fuel consumption is minimal at the same time and is only 10 l / min; continuous action cycle - up to 10 min.

View of the T-80B tank from the stern. An OPVT pipe is attached to the upper part of the tower, additional fuel drums are on the sides, below is a guide grate for the engine exhaust device, under it is a log for self-extraction.

The same purpose is served by 81-mm smoke grenades of the 902B system, the blocks of which are installed along the sides of the tower. Their launch range is 250–300 m, providing the maximum front of the smoke screen with a salvo of four grenades up to 110–120 m. The mass of the grenade is 2.4 kg; block mass launcher- 3.6 kg.

The tank is equipped with protection against weapons of mass destruction (WMD). This is a collective system that provides protection for the crew and internal equipment from the impact of a shock wave, radioactive and toxic substances, with sensors, a measuring console, a power supply unit installed in the niche of the internal right fuel tank, as well as mechanically closing hull and turret seals.

The protection itself is provided by the setting of the undercut and overcut, the sealing system and the filter-ventilation unit for supplying purified air to the habitable compartments.

The lining significantly reduces the effect of gamma and neutron radiation on the crew due to its chemical composition, and also prevents the scattering of small pieces of armor inside the hull.

If necessary, the crew has the opportunity to use standard individual anti-radiation suits.

On board are also radiation and chemical reconnaissance devices.

There is also fire-fighting equipment (PPO) - an automatic three-time action system 3ETs13 "Hoarfrost". It includes 15 thermal sensors scattered throughout the body of the tank, and three cylinders of fire-extinguishing liquid with freon 114B2.

Communication facilities are unified with all types of tanks and other combat vehicles. The R-123M transceiver station allows you to maintain communication on medium-rough terrain with stations of the same type at a distance of at least 20 km, even when driving at a speed of 40 km/h. The operating frequency range of the radio station is 20–51.5 MHz.

Underwater driving equipment (OPVT), installed on the tank, is designed to overcome water barriers along the bottom, ensuring the sealing of the hull and turret. Its kit includes: an air supply pipe-snorkel, seals for the gun and machine gun embrasures, exhaust valves, air cleaner dampers. Movement under water in a certain direction is controlled by the GPK-59 gyro-semi-compass using radio communication. No preparation for firing on landfall is required.

The removable part of the equipment is installed in 35-37 minutes, it is dismantled and laid on the tank in 20 minutes. The mass of the OPVT kit is 129 kg.

If necessary, two pumps with a capacity of up to 100 l / min are used to pump water out of the housing.

For self-digging on the body of the tank - on its lower front sheet - a bulldozer blade is mounted, there are also devices for attaching the KMT-6 mine trawl.

The dozer blade has a width of 2140 mm; from marching to working position it is transferred in 1-2 minutes, again in marching position - in 3-5 minutes. With it, you can open a caponier measuring 12x5.5x1.5 m in sandy soil in 12–15 minutes, in clay soil in 20–40 minutes.

On the hull of the tank itself are located: external fuel tanks included in the common fuel system, spare parts boxes, spare tracks, towing cables, removable OPVT equipment, covering tarpaulin. Be sure to have a log for self-pulling; it is attached to the rear of the machine.

T-80U.

T-80BV.

From the book The last spurt of Soviet tank builders the author Apukhtin Yuri

Chapter 4. Search for the layout of the tank The general layout of the tank "Boxer" The general layout of the tank "Boxer" 2.03.81. Kovalyuh summoned Rudenko, Korobeinikov and me. He outlined the past NTS, the strangest thing is that he left with a completely different opinion than I do - he believes that, in principle, the complex

From the book Create a do-it-yourself android robot author Lovin John

Chapter 6. The development of the tank is supported at all levels 04/15/83. Kovalyuh and I were in the Kremlin at the military-industrial complex with Kostenko for the final editing of the draft decision of the military-industrial complex prepared by them on "Rebel". All our proposals were accepted, the deadlines for the completion of work have not changed, added

From the book Heavy tank T-10 author Mashkin A.

Lessons from the development of a new generation tank Tank "Boxer" / "Hammer" with an active protection system Proposed type of tank "Boxer" / "Hammer" with an active protection system

From the book "Object 195" Reflections on the possible appearance of a promising Russian tank author BTVT.narod.ru

Construction Construction of a robot begins with finding a suitable chassis from an RC car. Most RC car models have an external decorative casing that gives them the appearance of a real car, truck, ATV, etc.

From the book Chief Designer V.N. Venediktov Life Dedicated to Tanks author Baranov I. N.

The design of the T-10 tank "object 730" Armored mask of the T-10 tank turret; next to the gun is a coaxial 12.7-mm machine gun DShKMB. Boards - composite of the upper inclined and lower bent parts.

From the book Panzer I Light Tank author Knyazev M.

VEHICLES BASED ON THE T-10 TANK SAU "object 268" Self-propelled artillery mount "object 268" with a 152-mm M-64 gun and a 14.5-mm anti-aircraft machine gun "with a 152-mm M-64 gun. To place it on the body of the installation, they mounted

From the book Heavy tank "Panther". The first complete encyclopedia author Kolomiets Maxim Viktorovich

Creation of a promising tank in Russia The creation of a promising tank within the framework of the Improvement-88 R & D, in the early, mid-2000s, was considered a priority direction for the development of armored weapons and armored Russia.

From the book Medium Tank T-28. The three-headed monster of Stalin author Kolomiets Maxim Viktorovich

Tests of experimental and serial samples of the T-72 tank The experimental tanks "Object 172M" had to pass the tests, which were brought to the attention of the Central Committee of the CPSU, the military-industrial complex, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Defense Industry and a number of other ministries and many enterprises.

From the book Tank T-80 author Borzenko V.

SELF-PROPELLED ARTILLERY UNIT BASED ON THE Pz.I Panzerj?ger I TANK possible ways prolonging the life of "ones", on the prospects of a combat career which was put an end to even before the start of World War II, was the creation on their basis of light self-propelled artillery

From the book ABC of Single Rope Technique author Nedkov Petko

DEVICE OF THE PANTER TANK Ausf.D The design of the Panther tanks of all modifications is almost identical, with the exception of a number of changes. Therefore, below is a description of the device "Panther" Ausf.D, and changes in the machines of modifications Ausf.A and Ausf.G will be discussed in the relevant

From the author's book

DEVICE OF THE T-28 TANK The T-28 tank passes through Uritsky Square. Leningrad, May 1, 1937. Vehicle manufactured in 1935, early-type road wheels (ASKM) are clearly visible. TANK BODY. For the entire time of mass production, T-28 tanks had two types of hulls: welded (from homogeneous armor) and

From the author's book

EVALUATION OF THE T-28 TANK In general, the design of the T-28 tank can be considered quite perfect for its time. The composition and arrangement of weapons, in relation to the concept of a multi-turret layout, were optimal. Three towers placed in two tiers, with their independent

From the author's book

CREATION OF A TANK WITH GTE Tank T-80UD of the 4th Guards Kantemirovskaya Tank Division on one of the streets of Moscow. August 1991 April 19, 1968 by a joint resolution of the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR "On the creation of gas turbine power plants for armored vehicles"

From the author's book

MODIFICATIONS OF THE T-80 TANK "Object 219 sp 1", 1969 - the first version of the prototype of the T-80 tank, modification of the T-64A: running gear like the T-64, gas turbine engine GTD-1000T; development of SKB-2 LK3. "Object 219 sp 2", 1972 - the second version of the prototype of the T-80 tank: a new undercarriage with a torsion

From the author's book

SPECIAL VEHICLES BASED ON THE T-80 TANK The BREM-80UBREM-80U armored repair and recovery vehicle was created on the basis of the T-80 tank and retains all its capabilities in terms of speed, maneuverability, overcoming obstacles, and armor protection of the crew. It is designed for complex

From the author's book

2.3 construction The construction of modern ropes is cable type. It was first used by the firm "Edelrid" in 1953. Such a rope has a bearing core and a protective sheath (Fig. 7). The core consists of several tens of thousands of synthetic threads. They are divided into two, three or

The T-80 is the world's first mass-produced tank with a gas turbine engine capable of running on aviation kerosene, diesel fuel and regular gasoline. He entered service with the Soviet Army in 1976 and was four years ahead of the American "" with a similar power plant. The development of a highly improved version of the tank was carried out by the Design Bureau of the Leningrad Kirov Plant.

Tank T-80 - video

Due to the strengthening of the armor, the mass of the tank increased to 42 tons, but the GTD-1000T engine with a capacity of 1000 liters. With. provided the T-80 with a speed of 70 km / h. It was a record speed for combat vehicles with such a mass. The design of the T-80 used the units of the T-64A tank: a 125-mm smoothbore gun with a hydroelectromechanical automatic loader, an optical rangefinder sight TPD-2-49, ammunition, armor protection elements. The gun is equipped with a heat shield barrel. From the new tank borrowed the chassis - due to the increase in the dynamic qualities of the machine, the track rollers became smaller in diameter, and the track tracks were rubberized.
Similarly, in 1978, the tank received the Cobra guided weapon system and a fire control system consisting of a 1G42 laser rangefinder sight, a 1V517 ballistic computer, a 2E26M stabilizer and other elements. This made it possible to undermine high-explosive fragmentation shells at the most advantageous point of the trajectory. In addition, the complex ensured the defeat of enemy tanks with a Cobra guided missile at a distance of 4 km with a probability of 80%.

In 1985, many Soviet tanks received an additional letter B in their designation, which indicated the installation of a dynamic protection system on them. Many rectangular boxes covering the turret, hull and sides of the tank contained small charges of a special explosive. When a cumulative enemy projectile hit the box, it detonated and reduced the effectiveness of the projectile to zero.

In the same year, the T-80U was put into serial production with the Reflex guided weapon system, the GTD-1250 engine with a power of 1250 hp. and advanced multilayer combined armor with built-in reactive armor. The 2A46-M1 gun and the Irtysh weapon control system (1G46 laser rangefinder sight, electronic ballistic computer, 2E42 stabilizer, etc.) increased the range of enemy tanks to 5 km.

Since 1987, they began to produce the T-80UD with a 6TD diesel engine with a capacity of 1000 liters. With. instead of gas turbine. This tank was better adapted to fighting in the desert, where the air is saturated with dust. Early engines had a short life in such conditions due to increased wear from exposure to sand dust.

The latest version of the tank was the T-80UM of the 1992 model, equipped with the Agava-2 thermal imaging observation and aiming device, radar-absorbing coating, and the Arena active protection complex (T-80UM1). began to enter the western military districts and foreign groups of troops in the late 70s and did not take part in hostilities as part of the Soviet Army, but Russia used these tanks in the Chechen military conflict.

The performance characteristics of the T-80

Crew, people: 3
Layout scheme: classic
Developer: Kirovsky Zavod
Producer: Omsktransmash, Plant named after Malyshev
Years of production: 1976-1998
Number of issued, pcs.: more than 10,000

Weight T-80

- T-80: 42.0
- T-80U: 46.0

Dimensions T-80

– Case length, mm: 6982
- Length with gun forward, mm: 9654
- Hull width, mm: 3525
– Height, mm: 2193
— Clearance, mm: 450

Armor T-80

- Type of armor: rolled and cast steel and combined, anti-cannon
- Dynamic protection: Contact-1, Contact-5

Armament T-80

- Caliber and brand of gun: 125 mm 2A46-1
– Type of gun: smoothbore gun
– Barrel length, calibers: 48
- Gun ammunition: T-80: 38; T-80U: 42
– Firing range, km: ATGM: 5.0; BOPS: 3.7
- Sights: optical sight-rangefinder TPD-2-49, periscope night TPN-3-49
- Machine guns: 1 × 12.7 mm NSVT; 1 × 7.62 mm PKT

T-80 engine

— Engine type: GTD-1000T

Engine power, l. With.
- T-80: 1000
- T-80BV: 1100
- T-80U: 1250

T-80 speed

— Highway speed, km/h: T-80: 65; T-80U: 70
- Speed ​​​​over rough terrain, km / h: T-80: 50; T-80U: 60

- Range on the highway, km: 350
- Power reserve over rough terrain, km: 250
- Specific power, l. s./t: T-80: 23.5; T-80U: 27.1
– Suspension type: individual torsion bar
— Specific ground pressure, kg/cm²: 0.84
- Climbability, degrees: 32 °
– overcome wall, m: 1.0
- Crossable moat, m: 2.85
- Crossable ford, m: 1.2 (1.8 with preliminary preparation; 5.0 with OPVT)

Photo T-80

The T-80 is a prime example of how heavily armored tanks can hide significant weaknesses. At one time, the T-80 was considered by the Russian military establishment as a premium tank, but a large number of them were lost in battles with partisan formations equipped with light weapons during the first Chechen war. His reputation was lost forever.

However, it was originally assumed that a completely different fate would await him. The T-80 tank was the last main tank developed in the Soviet Union. It was the first Soviet tank to be equipped with a gas turbine engine, and as a result, it was able to move on the roads at a speed of 70 kilometers per hour, and also had an effective power-to-weight ratio of 25.8 horsepower per ton.

This made the standard T-80B the fastest tank produced in the 1980s.

The fighting prowess of the Chechens - and the failed Russian tactics - is more responsible for the loss of T-80 tanks than its own characteristics. However, he had a significant drawback. Ultimately, the T-80 was too expensive and, in addition, it consumed too much fuel. After some time, the Russian military made a choice in favor of the more economical T-72 tank.

The T-80 was a further development of its predecessor, the T-64 tank. Being the most modern model of the late 1960s and early 1970s, the T-64 tank represented a departure from the Soviets' penchant for making simple armored vehicles like the T-54/55 and T-62.

So, for example, the T-64 was the first Soviet tank in which the functions of the loader were transferred to an automatic system, and as a result, its crew was reduced from four to three people. The second trend-setting innovation of the T-64 was the use of composite armor, which used layers of ceramic and steel, and as a result, protection was improved compared to using steel sheets alone.

In addition, the T-64 was equipped with light steel road wheels of small diameter compared to the large rubber-coated T-55 and T-62 rollers.

The first mass-produced T-64A model was produced with the 125 mm 2A46 Rapira cannon, which became so popular that it was installed on all subsequent Russian tanks, up to the T-90. Surprisingly, in the end, the weight of the T-64A was only 37 tons, which is relatively small for a tank of this size.

But as remarkable as these innovations were, it must be admitted that the T-64 had a capricious 5TDF engine and an unusual suspension - and the engine and suspension often broke down. As a result, the Soviet Army deliberately sent these tanks to areas close to the factory in Kharkov where they were made.

But that's not all. There were rumors that the new automatic loading system was capable of drawing in and injuring the hands of crew members who were located too close to it. This is a very likely scenario given the small interior space of the T-64.

Simultaneously with the attempts to cope with the problems of automating the T-64, the Soviets began to think about the development of a new tank with a gas turbine engine. Gas turbine engines are highly responsive and have a good power-to-weight ratio, they are able to start quickly in winter without preheating - this is important in the harsh Russian winters - and, in addition, they are light.

On the downside, they consume a lot of fuel and are more susceptible to dirt and dust, which is a result of their higher air intake compared to conventional diesel engines.

The original basic model of the T-80 tank was adopted only in 1976, much later than planned. The Soviet tank industry was busy fixing the shortcomings of the T-64 tanks and moving towards the production of the T-72, which was a cheaper fallback. At the same time, the Soviets were more tanks T-55 and T-62 for their Arab allies, who lost hundreds of armored vehicles during the war doomsday in 1973.

Early models of the T-80 also had their problems. In November 1975, Andrey Grechko, then Minister of Defense, stopped further production of these tanks due to their excessive fuel consumption and insignificant increase in firepower compared to the T-64A. And only five months later, Dmitry Ustinov, Grechko's successor, allowed the production of this new tank to begin.

The production of the original T-80 lasted two years - not so long, since it was surpassed by the T-64B tank, which had new system fire control, which allowed him to fire 9M112 Cobra missiles from the main gun. Even more important was that the T-80 was almost three and a half times more expensive than the T-64A.

The main model was replaced in 1978 by the T-80B tank. It was considered the most modern "premium" tank in the East, and therefore most of the T-80B was sent to the highest-risk garrison - the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany.

For its high speed, it was nicknamed the "Channel tank". In Soviet war games, it was generally accepted that the T-80s were capable of reaching the shores Atlantic Ocean in five days - provided that they do not experience problems with fuel.

The new Soviet tank borrowed something from the T-64. In addition to sub-caliber ammunition, shaped charges and anti-personnel fragmentation shells, its 125 mm 2A46M-1 smoothbore gun was capable of firing the same 9K112 Cobra missiles.

Since guided anti-tank missiles were considered significantly more expensive than conventional tank rounds, this tank's ammunition load included only four missiles and 38 rounds. The missiles were designed to shoot down helicopters and hit installations equipped with ATGM systems outside the firing range of conventional T-80B tank projectiles.

A 7.62-mm PKT machine gun coaxial with a cannon and a 12.7-mm NSVT "Utes" on the commander's turret completed the anti-personnel armament of this tank.

While the T-80 already boasted modern composite armor, it was further protected by the Kontakt-1 dynamic system. Equipped with active armor at the same horizontal levels as the latest T-72A models, the T-80 tanks began to be designated as T-80BV.

In 1987, instead of the T-80B, the T-80U began to be produced, although total they have not surpassed their predecessors.

The T-80U tank was equipped with the Kontakt-5 dynamic protection system. It was an improved version of the Contact-1 system, which consisted of additionally installed containers with explosives. Whereas the Kontakt-5 system had a set of factory-made containers directed outward to maximize the angle of reflection of the projectiles. The "Kontakt-1" system was effective only in the case of the use of cumulative projectiles, while the "Kontakt-5" system also protected against the kinetic energy of sub-caliber ammunition.

Inside the T-80U, instead of the 1A33 fire control system, which was equipped with the T-80B models, a more modern 1A45 system was installed. Engineers have replaced the Cobra missiles with laser-guided 9K119 Reflex missiles, a more reliable weapon with greater range and greater lethality. The T-80 was loaded with seven more shells for the 125mm gun than the T-80B.

However, the T-80U tank was not produced for long. His GTD-1250 power plant still consumed too much fuel and was difficult to maintain. Instead, they began to produce a diesel model T-80UD. It was the last version of the T-80 tank produced in the Soviet Union. It was also the first model to be seen in action outside of the training center... if by "in action" we mean the tank gun fire on the Russian Parliament in October 1993 during the constitutional crisis.

In December 1994, the war against the separatists in Chechnya was the first time the T-80 was used in a situation where shells were flying in both directions ... and this was a disaster of epic proportions for the T-80.

When the rebels in Chechnya declared independence, Russian President Boris Yeltsin ordered troops to return this former Soviet republic to Russia by force. The created group included T-80B and T-80 BV. The crews had no special training on T-80 tanks. They did not know about his gluttony and sometimes completely burned the fuel supply at idle.

The advance of the Russian armed forces towards the Chechen capital city of Grozny was more like a bloody massacre organized for the interventionists - about a thousand soldiers died and 200 pieces of equipment were destroyed between December 31, 1994 and the evening of the next day. The most modern Russian tanks T-80B and T-80BV in the Russian strike force suffered terrible losses.

Although the T-80s are protected from direct frontal hits, many tanks were destroyed in catastrophic explosions, and their turrets flew off after numerous volleys fired by Chechen rebels from RPG-7V and RPG-18 grenade launchers.

It turned out that the loading system of the T-80 "Basket" had a fatal flaw in the design. In the automatic loading system, the finished projectiles were in a vertical arrangement, and only the road wheels partially protected them. An RPG shot fired from the side and directed above the road wheels caused detonation of the ammunition and led to the collapse of the tower.

In this regard, the T-72A and T-72B were similarly punished, but they had a slightly higher chance of surviving a flank attack because their autoloader system used a horizontal position of ammunition that was below the level of the road wheels.

The second main drawback of the T-80, like previous Russian tanks, was associated with the minimum levels of vertical guidance of the gun. It was impossible to fire a cannon at the rebels who fired from upper floors buildings or basements.

In fairness, it should be said that, most likely, poor crew training, insufficient training and disastrous tactics were the cause of large losses. Russia was in such a hurry to start fighting that the T-80BV tanks entered Grozny without filling the dynamic protection containers with explosives, which made it useless. It was even said that the soldiers were selling explosives in order to increase their salaries in this way.

The Soviet army had long forgotten the hard lessons of urban fighting during World War II. During cold war only spetsnaz units and the Berlin garrison were trained for urban combat. Without expecting significant resistance, Russian troops entered Grozny, while the soldiers were in infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers. Their commanders were losing their bearings because they had no correct cards.

Since Russian soldiers were reluctant to step out of their armored personnel carriers and clear buildings room by room, their Chechen adversaries - who knew the weaknesses of Russian armor from their military service during the Soviet Union - were able to turn tanks and armored vehicles into crematoria.

It is easy for the Russian command to blame the Chechen disaster on design errors in the creation of the T-80 and not pay attention to rough operational planning and tactical miscalculations. But ultimately, it was the lack of money that caused the cheaper T-72s to replace the T-80s, becoming the preferred choice for Russian exports and for the post-Chechen war effort.

When the Soviet Union collapsed, Russia lost the plant in Kharkov, which became the property of Ukraine. The plant in Omsk, where the T-80U was produced, turned out to be bankrupt, while the Leningrad LKZ no longer produced the earlier T-80BV model.

It no longer made financial or logistical sense for Russia to have three types of tanks - T-72 (A and B), T-80 (BV. U and UD) and T-90. All these models had one 125-millimeter 2A46M gun and missiles of the same characteristics, launched through the gun barrel. But they all had different engines, fire control systems and chassis.

To put it simply, these tanks had common capabilities, but differed in spare parts, instead of having common spare parts and different capabilities. Since the T-80U was much more expensive than the T-72B, it was logical that cash-strapped Russia chose the T-72.

However, Moscow continued to experiment with the T-80 by adding an active defense system that used millimeter-wave radar to track incoming missiles before the active defense system went off. As a result, the T-80UM-1 Bars appeared in 1997, but it was not put into production, probably due to budgetary constraints.

Russia did not use T-80s in the second Chechen war in 1999-2000, nor did they use them in a brief conflict with Georgia in 2008, to the best of our knowledge. So far, T-80 tanks have not participated in the war in Ukraine.