The T-90AM "Breakthrough" tank and its export version of the T-90SM are the latest modification of the T-90A combat vehicle . Work on its improvement started in 2004. The first prototype of the T-90AM tank was presented in early September 2011 in Nizhny Tagil at the "Prospector" military training ground. The display of new military equipment was held as part of the XIII international exhibition REA-2011.
Improvement Details
T-90AM, the characteristics of which are now available only in general terms, was created on the basis of the T-90 tank. The developer of the novelty was Uralvagonzavod. The main object of the machine’s modernization turned out to be the old tower, which was replaced by the latest combat module with an improved SUE “Kalina”, which has a combat integrated information and control system of tactical level. In addition, the T-90AM (photos are presented in the article) is equipped with a modernized 2A46M-5 gun, a new automatic loader and an anti-aircraft gun TDPB05-1 with remote control. Also replaced "Contact-V" on DZ "Relic".
The developers paid special attention to increasing the capabilities of the commander regarding fire control and search for targets equally effectively regardless of the time of day. For the first time, the Russian T-90AM tank was equipped with steering wheel controls and an automatic gear shift system. It makes it possible to switch to manual mode as soon as this becomes necessary.
The T-90AM has ammunition with two stacking groups - one outside and the other inside. At the same time, 22 shots are located in the lower part of the hull, in the AZ, and the rest, as well as the charges to them, are in a special armored box, which is located at the rear of the tower. Specialists took care of improving the maneuverability and mobility of the T-90AM (SM) tank. To do this, the latest combined night vision devices were installed, as well as a camera for rear view of the area.
The new T-90AM Breakthrough tank weighs 48 tons, which is one and a half tons more than the base model, but at the same time significantly less than its German or American counterparts. This machine is equipped with a monoblock power unit V-93, with a capacity of 1130 liters. with., developed on the basis of -9222. It was also decided to replace the antineutron breakdown with a more reliable anti-fragmentation fireproof material like qivlar and to improve the fire extinguishing system.
Summing up the results of modernization, we can say that the mobility and security of the T-90AM tank has improved markedly, and the dimensions have remained virtually unchanged, so it still remains in the class of combat vehicles up to 50 tons.
Comparison of military equipment
It is no secret that many people are concerned about the question of how effective the latest Russian tanks are compared to their foreign counterparts. For example, take the American M1 Abrams. But in order to compare two combat vehicles, one should know that in our time there are practically no situations when they converge face to face on the battlefield.
In modern conditions of warfare, in order to survive, the tank crew will have to fight with a variety of enemies, ranging from infantry equipped with anti-tank missiles and ending with airplanes and helicopters. But, despite this, experts are constantly trying to compare military vehicles of the same class with each other. At the same time, some of them believe that a theoretical comparison of tanks is impossible in principle, since even real military operations will not give a final answer to the question of who is better. Here it will be necessary to take into account a host of other criteria, such as tactics of use, technical maintenance of the machine, the level of training of the crews, the interaction of various military units, etc. All this can be of much greater importance than the technical characteristics of the tanks themselves.
Comparison of the T-90 and Abrams
Before you begin to compare the technical characteristics of these combat vehicles, it is necessary to take into account that the T-90 tank was developed 20 years ago, and has since been modernized several times. Naturally, each new model was significantly different from the previous one both structurally and in terms of combat effectiveness. The same thing happened with the Abrams tank, which entered service with the American army in 1980. Therefore, it is only meticulous to compare all of their parameters for specific modifications that were released at the same time period.
The technical characteristics and other parameters of the Russian T-90AM tank against the Abrams M1A2 are practically impossible to compare due to the highest level of secrecy surrounding this military equipment. It is only known that the reservation of the towers in their front part is made similarly - in the pockets available on the frontal armor, packages of so-called reflective sheets are installed.
The use of technology in combat conditions
The American Abrams tank was already used in the Iraq Desert Storm military operation. As for the Russian machine, its participation in hostilities has not yet been documented. Although some experts suggest that the T-90 tank has already been tested during the First and Second Chechen companies in both Chechnya and Dagestan. Others claim that these cars were lit in August 2008 in South Ossetia during the Georgian-Ossetian conflict.
For example, some media outlets reported that the T-90 was seen during the withdrawal of Russian troops from Gori (Georgia). But while direct evidence of this fact does not exist. In addition, the T-90 tank, the characteristics of which will be given in comparison with the American Abrams below, looks similar to the T-72B with the “Contact” dynamic protection, which could have caused its identification error.
It is impossible to determine exactly how the T-90AM tank will prove itself in a real battle, since it has not been used anywhere else.
Design comparison
It should be noted that the United States and the Soviet Union, and subsequently Russia, always had a completely different approach to the design of military equipment. It is clearly seen that the American M1 tank is much larger than the T-90. It was possible to achieve a reduction in the size of the machine due to the refusal of the loader, who needed about 1.7 m from the height of the fighting compartment to fulfill his duties. The result was the removal of the restrictions on reducing the tank level. In addition, a denser layout made it possible to make a well-protected machine with a relatively light weight and low silhouette, as well as a small cross-sectional and longitudinal section.
The result of such transformations is the fact that the reserved volume of Abrams is 19, and the T-90 is 11 cubic meters. But a denser layout has its drawbacks. They are a certain tightness of tank calculation and the difficulty of interchangeability of each other if necessary.
Protection Comparison
Many may think that if the Abrams is much heavier, then the armor on it is thicker, which means it is more reliable. This is not entirely true. Reducing the weight of the armor on the T-90 tank helped to reduce the reserved internal volume, which provided the necessary level of external protection. Due to the fact that the frontal projection of a Russian car is only 5 m², and that of Abrams is 6, it becomes less vulnerable, since the likelihood of such a hit in this particular piece of equipment is very high.
The Russian tank is equipped with “reflective sheets” made of steel, and Abrams, starting with a certain modification, from depleted uranium. This material has a high density (19.03 g / cm³), therefore, with a relatively small thickness of the plate, it provided a literally explosive nature of the destruction of the cumulative jet.
The T-90 tank, in addition to the traditional one, also has a complex of dynamic protection. This is not on most modifications of the "Abrams". Contact-5 is a dynamic defense of Russian tanks that works both against armor-piercing sub-caliber charges and cumulative weapons. This complex gives a strong lateral impulse, which allows you to destroy or at least destabilize the core of the BPOS before the impact on the main armor begins.
According to Russian manufacturers, the frontal armor of the T-90A tank can easily withstand the hit of the most used BPS in the West. For this, a special experimental screening was conducted. The T-90 tank, whose characteristics were tested back in 1995 at the Kubinka firing range, was fired by another machine. Six Russian cumulative shells were fired at it from a distance of about 200 m. As a result of the shelling, it turned out that the frontal armor had successfully passed the tests, and the tank was able to independently reach the observation deck.
In turn, American officials said that the frontal armor of their M1A1 car also successfully withstood the shelling fired by the Iraqi military from T-72 tanks. True, these were obsolete BOPS, withdrawn from service in the early 70s. last century.
Comparison of weapons and ammunition
As you know, the main weapon of this military equipment is the gun. The Russian machine has a 125-mm smoothbore tank gun 2A46M / 2A46M5. Abrams is armed with a standard 120 mm M256 gun for NATO. As you can see, there is some difference in caliber, but, despite this, both guns have similar characteristics. However, it is worth noting that the effectiveness of tank fire directly depends on the ammunition used.
The Russian T-90 tank, the Breakthrough, probably also can fire, using four types of ammunition: high-explosive fragmentation, armor-piercing-submunition, shaped-charge shells and guided missiles. "Abrams" has a standard kit, consisting of only two types of ammunition: cumulative and armor-piercing subcaliber.
To combat the enemy’s equipment, mostly somewhat obsolete BOPs ZBM-44 and ZBM-32 are used, having tungsten and uranium alloy cores. Not so long ago, more advanced shells were developed that could withstand the frontal armor of the best western tanks. Among them - and ZBM-48 "Lead".
The main ammunition of "Abrams" is considered to be an M829A3 shot with an armor-piercing projectile, which was put into service in 2003.
Powertrain Comparison
It must be said right away that they are fundamentally different for both machines. The T-90A and T-90CA tanks are equipped with a 1,000-horsepower diesel engine, while the Abrams has a 1,500-horsepower gas turbine made in one unit with a hydromechanical automatic transmission. The specific power of the engines of the T-90 and Abrams is 21 and 24 liters, respectively. s / t The Russian car has a significantly greater range (550 km) than the American (350 km). This was due to increased diesel efficiency compared to a more insatiable gas turbine.
The T-90 powerplant has another very important advantage - it is highly reliable and unpretentious. Take, for example, a test of cars in the conditions of the Indian desert of Thar, where not a single engine failure was recorded. As for the American M1A1 tanks participating in Operation Desert Storm, in the three days that they moved on the sands, 16 out of 58 units were out of order. And all this happened due to engine damage. If we compare the complexity of maintenance of the engines of these machines, then to replace it, teams of qualified technicians will need: Russian - 6, and American - only 2 hours.
The drawback of the transmission of Russian cars lies in the rather low reverse speed - only 4.8 km / h, and with American equipment it reaches 30 km / h due to the installation of a hydrostatic transmission on them. The fact is that the T-90 tanks that are mass-produced are equipped with a mechanical transmission based on the already outdated scheme of the turning mechanism, where its duties are assigned to the step-side final transmissions. "Abrams" is equipped with a hydrostatic transmission, as well as swing mechanisms with a digital automatic control system.
Overall rating
Based on the available data on the technical and other characteristics of the T-90 and Abrams tanks, we can conclude that the main advantages of the Russian machine compared to the American are:
- good protection, which includes the dynamic system "Contact", as well as KOEP "Shtora-1";
- the availability of target shooting with guided missiles at a distance of up to 5 thousand m;
- a greater number of types of ammunition, which include HE shells (including those with ready-made striking parts and remote detonation);
- excellent rate of fire, which is maintained throughout the battle, provided by the use of A3;
- decent depth of overcoming water obstacles, good range and excellent mobility;
- unpretentiousness and high reliability during operation.
Abrams also has its merits. It:
- strong protection;
- automation of battle management tools, which provides an influx of various data in real time;
- reliable isolation of the crew from the location of the ammunition;
- good maneuverability;
- high power density.
Expert opinion
In 2012, the press published an article by V. Stepanov, who is a doctor of technical sciences and general director of VNIItransmash OJSC. It talked about the analysis of comparative methods for evaluating the technical characteristics of tanks. And, above all, estimates of the military-technical level (WTU) of the best combat vehicles, including the Russian T-90A and T-90MS, as well as M1A2 and M1A2 SEP, were given here.
VTU was calculated according to several indicators: security, operational capability, firepower and mobility. Then, the performance indicators of all of the above machines with a certain reference tank. He was chosen T-90A, which means that his VTU = 1,0. The data of American cars M1A2 and M1A2 SEP were estimated at 1.0 and 1.32, respectively. The VTU indicator of the new T-90MS Tagil tank was identified as 1.42. The calculations may have a slight error of not more than 10%. From this we can conclude that there is a real closeness between the levels of the best foreign counterparts with the Russian T-90A and its modernized model - the T-90AM tank.