T-Rex (tank)
| T-Rex | |
|---|---|
| Type | Project MBT |
| Place of origin | Ukraine |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Arey Engineering Group[1] |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 39 ton[2] |
| Length | 6.57 m 9.23 m gun forward[3] |
| Width | 3.56 m[3] |
| Height | 2.50 m[3] |
| Crew | 3[1] |
Main armament | 125mm gun[2] |
| Engine | Diesel |
T-Rex (Ukrainian: Тірекс) was a Ukrainian main battle tank announced in 2016.
Development
[edit]The vehicle was announced in 2016[4] and was developed by the Arey Engineering Group,[1] an engineering group belonging to the Azov Battalion.[4] It was named after Tyrannosaurus rex.[4] Its main competitor was the Russian MBT T-14 Armata. Sergei Stepanov, the chief designer for Arey, claimed that the tank would have a "conceptually new system of fire control and a high level of personnel protection," along with "many features include high maneuverability, 360-degree vision, and a high-bandwidth counteraction analytics system."[1]
The vehicle would be based on the T-64[2] and hulls of T-64 and T-72, inherited by the thousands from the Soviet Union, would be reused in the production of the tanks.[1] The Azov Battalion estimated that up to 20 tanks could be upgraded every month.[4]
Design
[edit]The tank would be based on the T-64[2] and would feature an unmanned turret.[2] The three crew members would be seated in an armored capsule at the front of the hull, where they could remotely-control the cannon, the automatic loader and the machine guns[1] T-Rex would weigh 39 tons and be equipped with a 125mm main gun with "high-power projetiles". The armor would utilize both Nizh and Duplet (Ukrainian: Дуплет) explosive reactive armor.[2] The combat capability was said by the Ukrainian press to be exceeding those of the Ukrainian Oplot and Bulat,[1][2] while at the same time being more cost-effective than the Bulat.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g Kapnik, Olena (2017-01-18). "New Ukrainian main battle tank to give new life to old Soviet T-64 and T-72 tank hulls". Euromaidan Press. Translated by N., A. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Sovershit li Ukraina tankovuyu revolyutsiyu?" Совершит ли Украина танковую революцию? [Will Ukraine make a tank revolution?]. Naked Science (in Russian). 2016-05-02. Archived from the original on 2021-02-26. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ a b c Zgurets, Sergey (2016). "Vremya «Tirexa»" Время «Тирекса» [T-Rex Time]. Defense Express (in Ukrainian). No. 3–4. Kyiv: Defense Express. pp. 16–27.
- ^ a b c d Shudrya, Albiy (2016-04-22). "Ukrainskiy tank "Tireks": khishchnik na bumage" Украинский танк "Тирекс": хищник на бумаге [Ukrainian tank "Tirex": a predator on paper]. BBC News (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2017-05-28. Retrieved 2021-08-15.