Cate's Research-Investigation Bureau

The delivery of 65 T-90M "Proryv" tanks to the RF Ground Forces is stipulated to be completed by the end of 2021.  Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexei Krivoruchko visited Uralvagonzavod in Nizhny Tagil on Friday during a working trip, where he checked the production of T-14 and T-90M tanks, and also held a meeting on the development of armoured weapons and equipment of the Ground Forces. "By the end of the year, it is planned to deliver the last batch of 65 T-90M tanks this year. Up to 8 T-90M tanks will be delivered," - RF MoD  Taken from: TASS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Discord   ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

20 new T-14 Armata tanks will be delivered to the RF Ground Forces by the end of 2021, stated by the acting head of the 47th military distric, Major Dmitry Repin.  Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexei Krivoruchko visited Uralvagonzavod in Nizhny Tagil on Friday during a working trip, where he checked the production of T-14 and T-90M tanks, and also held a meeting on the development of armoured weapons and equipment of the Ground Forces. "It is planned to deliver tanks based on the Armata T-14 heavy interspecific tracked platform in the amount of 20 units by the end of 2021," said a military representative at the enterprise, specifying that these vehicles will go to combat units. "According to the terms of the state contract, serial delivery of the vehicle to the troops is carried out before the end of state tests. Now the production of a pilot batch is underway before the end of state tests in order to gain experience in military operation," Repin explained. He di...

 In the newspaper "Krasnaya Zvezda", published for the professional holiday of the employees of the Main Armored Vehicle Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Russia, a photo of the newest DT-BTR was shown, and it was told about the work on creating a highly passable armoured personnel carrier for operations in difficult climate conditions. "Employees of the Main Armored Vehicle Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Russia are actively involved in the implementation of projects to create military armoured vehicles necessary for the diverse fleet forces to protect communications of the Northern Sea Route, protection and defence of the Arctic region of Russia," reported by the newspaper.  We are talking about combat vehicles created on the platform-chassis of the tracked all-terrain vehicle DT-30 "Vityaz", modified for use in the Armed Forces of Russia. This version of the modification was called the DT-30PM "Omnipresent". In particular, th...

Splinters are produced by kinetic energy projectiles such as APFSDS after penetrating the main armour and creating spalling fragments that not only disable internal equipment but also disable the crew inside. Occasionally spalling is also created after a projectile does not penetrate a vehicle armour plate but causes the internal layer of armour to crack and shatter, causing a dense cloud of splinters that can reach weights of up to 500 grams.  Fragmentation is also created after the main armour is penetrated by shaped-charge ammunition (HEAT-FS). This can create a burst of splinters of around 140 to 260 fragments in an 80 °-100 ° cone. Lightly armoured vehicles being hit by smaller calibre ammunition such as 7,62mm/12,7mm undergo the same effect, just at a smaller scale, due to thinner armour plates and generally smaller projectiles.  The probability of the crew being incapacitated by splinters is high due to the density of fragments and the wide dispersion angle. 2 groups of...

It became known about the successful completion by the Uralvagonzavod Research and Production Corporation of factory tests of the newest universal minelayer "Klesh-G" based on the T-72 tank chassis. "The factory tests of the UMZ-G on a tracked chassis created by Uralvagonzavod within the framework of the "Klesh-G" have been successfully completed. Currently, prototypes of the latest machines are being prepared for state tests," a source told RIA Novosti. For the first time, samples of universal minelayers were presented at the International Military-Technical Forum "Army-2019". In total, as part of the development work under the name "Klesh-G", three variants were created; a version based on the T-72 tank chassis, on the "Asteis-70202-0000310" armoured vehicle chassis and on the chassis of the armoured vehicle "Typhoon-VDV". There are 9 special launchers installed in the armoured body of the "Klesh", which ...

 One way to improve the combat effectiveness of AFVs is the utilization of an inbuilt air-conditioning unit. Back in the 1960s-1970s, the development of an air-conditioning unit for BMP vehicles was troublesome. Consisting of providing the crew and troops with an internal microclimate. The complex requirements that were set, required an AC unit to be compact, powerful and easy to be integrated without the need for heavy hull modifications.  In addition to the requirements, development was based around the already existing thermal input points; hull roof, engine radiator, live crew compartment and troop compartment. All these points generated a significant amount of heat. In climates with an ambient temperature of 40 °C and internal compartment temperatures of 28 °C, the total energy production would reach 41,9 MJ/h.  Calculations showed that mounting an AC unit powerful enough to even out the 41,9 MJ/h heat generation would be impossible due to the needed size and weight....

 In 2003, a company by the name "Peleng" (Belarus) showcased 2 different T-72A MBTs equipped with thermal imaging sights. Those being the "Tisas" and "Рассвет-ГП" - "Dawn-PG".  The main direction of the modernization of the T-72 tanks carried out by 'Peleng' was to expand the combat capabilities of the vehicle's weapon systems during different weather conditions and different times of the day.  On both T-72A tanks, the TPN-3-49 passive night sight was entirely removed and replaced with "Tisas" and "Dawn-PG". Both new sights were paired together with the TPD-K1 tank sight rangefinder. Interestingly enough, the T-72A fitted the 'Tisas' TIS, and kept its Luna IR lamp. The turret and TPD-K1 do not have to be modernized or changed when the vehicle is equipped with one of the TIS's.  T-72A equipped with "Рассвет-ГП" - "Dawn-GP" "Рассвет-ГП" - "Dawn-GP" T-72AV equipped w...

Mikhail Osyko, a member of the Board of the Military-Industrial Commission of the Russian Federation, announced the introduction of serial deliveries of T-14 main battle tanks into the new state armament program for 2024-2033. According to Mikhail Osyko, serial deliveries of T-14 tanks are provided for in the new state armament program, and quantitative indicators of tank purchases on the Armata platform under the new state program will be determined in 2023. The state armament program for 2024-2033 will receive funding in the amount of at least 21-22 trillion rubles, stated by the first deputy chairman of the Military-industrial Complex Board Andrei Yelchaninov in mid-April. Taken from: ANNA , Interfax ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Discord   ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a continuation post, primarily expanding on the history of the AGAVA-2 thermal imaging sight.  Considering that all the information regarding the sight has been compiled in the previous articles, this small post simply expands on the collection with some extra schematics that were provided by the UVZ archives for an old magazine.  Relevant topics: T-90 demonstrator and its uncommon sight , AGAVA-2 History , Soviet Union/Russian thermal sight development history Open image in new tab for full resolution Editor's Note: I have no idea when I will close this topic, considering additional information regarding AGAVA-2 occasionally appears and seems to be a relevant addition in the expansion of this topic.  Taken from: Sergei Suvorov Tank T-90   ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Discord   -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------...

A batch of T-72B3M tanks entered service with the motorized rifle unit of the army corps of the Baltic Fleet near Kaliningrad.  This was reported by the information support department of the press service of the Western Military District for the Baltic Fleet. "The new vehicles will increase the combat potential of the compound due to  improved manoeuvrability and armour protection of the crew." Taken from: TV Zvezda ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Discord   ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  Additional sources: RosOboronExport ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Discord   ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The GTA-18A gas-turbine-driven electric generator is designed for installation in vehicles to supply them with 18kW DC power without having the need to keep the main engine running. In addition to the standard utilization, the GTA-18A can be used to kick-start the main engine.  The GTA-18A APU provides a constant supply of power to all onboard electronic devices of a tank. This drastically reduces the overall fuel consumption of the vehicle.  To minimize the additional operation pressure on the crew, the entire generator pack is fitted with automatic safety devices. These devices monitor the generator and can safely shut it down, whenever one or several key components reach critical operation limits, such as pressure, oil temperature and gas temperatures exceeding recommended limits.  The entire generator set consists of the GD-40 gas-turbine engine, GS-18MO/GS-18BT starter-generator, fuel system, oil system and electrical equipment. The APU is connected to the vehicle's ...