The escalation path in the Novorossia theater is back in force. Memo to counter Ukrainian T-80BV
Contrary to the ineffective “Minsk agreements”, the Ukrainian military formations again use the BM-21 “Grad” multiple launch rocket systems, as well as the barrel artillery in 122 and 152 caliber mm. Both the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the extremist nationalist units of the Right Sector Public Administration (banned in the Russian Federation) conduct regular provocative night shelling of the outskirts of Donetsk, as well as localities controlled by Kiev on the contact line with a view to further accusations of the DPR People’s Militia Corps. The most significant incident occurred on 25 on May 2017 of the year, when the pravoseki, in order to force the escalation situation, fired 20 shots from 122-mm guns (obviously, D-30) from the locality. Nevelskoye on Krasnogorovka
BRIEF REVIEW OF THE OPERATIONAL-TACTICAL SITUATION AT THE THEATER OF MILITARY ACTIONS OF DONBASS ON THE BACKGROUND OF THE GROWING COUNTERPRODUCTIVITY OF “MINSK AGREEMENTS”
The civilian population, as well as the military personnel of the People’s Militia of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics for more than 2,5 of the ongoing tragic incidents related to the deaths of hundreds of artillery strikes from the Ukrainian regular formations and paramilitary units of the nationalist organization “Right Sector”, clearly understood that the Minsk Agreements, which had completely discredited and outdated themselves, were to blame. Let's call things with these names! Every time after concluding any “deals” with the Ukrainians, after only a few days of the illusive “operational silence”, active hostilities flare up with a new force, which begin with artillery attacks from the ukropovskiy units that are still occupying the western and northern regions of the LDNR.
The activity of the patrols of the special monitoring mission of the OSCE also raises enormous doubts, because far more than once there was a clear interaction between representatives of the OSCE SMM and the Ukrainian side. For example, patrols often “take their feet off” a few minutes or even hours before the active work of the Ukrainian artillery in this or that operational direction, or are not present at all during the massive use of heavy weapons by the junta. Naturally, violations are fixed only by representatives of the ministries of defense of the republics, which the so-called “world community” does not listen to at all.
As provocations with the further accusation of the Armed Forces of Novorossia, Ukrainians regularly open fire on the territories under their control, for example, the shelling of the private sector of Avdiivka 13 in May 2017 of the year, where in the 53 house on ul. Sapronov, from the X-NUMX-mm D-122 howitzer projectile or the 30-2 self-propelled gun "Carnation" killed an 1 person. As many remember, even more terrible shelling from the Ukrainian “Grads” and “Cornflowers” had to endure the Eastern microdistrict of Mariupol, where, according to unofficial data, more than 4 people died. For us, residents of Mariupol, Avdiivka, Konstantinovka, Artyomovsk, Kramatorsk, Slavyansk and other cities occupied by the Ukrainian security forces, Ukraine as a state ended in the spring of 100, after the events in the Mariupol GUVD and its surroundings, where weapons and RPGs of the central Ukrainian and Western Ukrainian scum killed more than 30 people.
However, the expected release of Mariupol by 6 on September 14 from the then nationalist battalion “Azov” (now this regiment) and the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was stopped by the so-called “Minsk Protocol”, which can be considered the “foundation of problems and torment” of the Russian people of Donbass. At that stage, when Crimea successfully entered the Russian Federation, the “Big Game” condemned the Donbass to long-term problems and hardships. And now, in order to avoid condemnation from the same “world community”, the command of the “corps” of the republics is forced to wait for an offensive from the Ukrainian side, after which the measures we all expect should follow. When this happens, it is impossible to say for sure to this day, but the operational-tactical situation in the Donbass theater of military operations already indicates a slow way out of the stagnation process.
For example, if earlier meetings of the contact group in Minsk led to the establishment of a temporary operational silence, today it is almost impossible. The next similar consultations that took place in the Belarusian capital of 15 in May ended with groundless accusations towards the LDNR about the shelling of the territory controlled by Kiev, as well as the need to "withdraw the Russian contingent from the territory of Ukraine", which is not even close there. Such statements alone indicate the inadequacy of the Ukrainian side and the absence of the possibility of concluding any agreements with it. The second indicator of the upcoming escalation can be considered the meeting of the illegitimate Ukrainian President Poroshenko with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, which resulted in the search for "leverage" pressure on Russia to "force" the implementation of the "Minsk agreements".
A rather interesting opinion on the radically changed position of Merkel was expressed by Vasily Stoyakin, director of the Ukrainian Center for Political Marketing. According to him, if initially Merkel tried to position herself as a politician-peacemaker who “nullifies” the conflict in the Donbas, using various methods, then today there is a diametrically opposite picture. Her point of view more and more agrees with Poroshenko’s extremely inadequate jumps about the “Russian aggression”. If you put it in more understandable language, Merkel "puts an end" on the "Minsk agreements" and goes to the so-called anti-Russian "accusatory method" inherent in the West, inherent in the British Foreign Office. That is, Europe, exactly like 3 a year ago, is completely far from an objective assessment of what is happening in the Donbas.
According to the resources of the “Militia reports” and the Kharkov edition nahnews.org, citing the former Verkhovna Rada Deputy, Aleksei Zhuravko, the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine again deployed significant offensive resources in the direction of the sector “M” (Mariupol IT). This time, the train echelon, coming out of Nikolaev in the direction of Mariupol on the morning of May 25, was represented by 9 MBT, 12 ACS, 13 armored personnel carriers, several BRDMs and a large number of additional repair equipment and shells that are more than 10 trucks (currently, the train already unloaded and distributed in the southern operational direction)
The Ukrainian side at this time is increasing the daily number of shelling of LDNR cities (from 400 to 800 shells and mines in 1 day), again using rocket artillery (on the night of October 23, the use of BM-21 Grad MLRS began at the Donetsk ON), and is also preparing offensive operations in the Novoazovsk and Telmanovo directions, in which it is planned to use units of the so-called "marine infantry of the Armed Forces of Ukraine" (in particular, the 36th brigade), the formation of the Azov and PS regiments. This is confirmed by another 10-hour high-altitude reconnaissance operation of heavy drone radio-technical and optical-electronic reconnaissance RQ-4A "Global Hawk", carried out near the line of contact in the Donbass on May 14, 2017. The trajectory of the UAVGH000 based at the Sigonella airbase passed at an altitude of 15,5 km over the territories of Romania and the central regions of Ukraine, after which the RQ-4A loitered about 60 km from the territory of the LDNR along the Kuibyshevo-Krasnoarmeysk-Novoaidar line, approaching the air border of Russia at a distance of 70 km.
On this day, a powerful atmospheric front with thick cloudy clouds was established over most of the Donbass, which resulted in only the Global Hawk radio-technical operation. All reconnaissance was carried out using an onboard radar complex with an AFAR AN / ZPY-2 MP-RTIP in the mode of synthetic aperture (SAR), as well as passive means of electronic intelligence. Apparently, using MP-RTIP, RQ-4A carefully scanned the relief of the territory of the republics, revealed a few positions defending the artillery batteries of the LDPR people's militia corps (most of the systems were assigned to the rear areas of the republics), after which the coordinates were transferred to the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It was after this reconnaissance flight that the Ukrainian militants with new force began to fire at the positions of the fortified areas of the DPR army in the area of Gorlovka, Donetsk and Dokuchaevsk.
From this conclusion: despite the refusal of the White House Office of Management and Budget to continue providing gratuitous military assistance to Kiev, Washington will continue to provide the Armed Forces of Ukraine with the widest information support, starting from radio engineering and optoelectronic data of strategic intelligence drones RQ-4A to spy satellite data. For your information: 2 days after the electronic reconnaissance by the UAVGH000 board near the line of contact, the TV tower near Telmanovo, broadcasting Russian digital TV channels in DVB-T2 format, to Mariupol temporarily occupied by the Kiev regime, part of the Sea of \uXNUMXb\uXNUMXbAzov and Volnovakha, was disabled by pinpoint artillery fire of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
And finally, the most important indicator indicating the approach of the active phase of hostilities in the Donbass is the situation at Debaltsevo ON and in the area of the Stanitsa Luganskaya. For example, on the western bank of the Svetlodarskoye reservoir (the settlement of Novoluganskoye), the 53-I separate mechanized brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine seized several residential buildings with the aim of conducting a counter-battery fire in the Gorlovka and Debaltsevskoy operational areas. 11 positions 120-mm mortars 2B11 with full ammunition are located in the houses. Moreover, various sources report a difficult situation in the area of 223 height and the Kikimora stronghold (Svetlodar Arc, between the villages of Lozovoe and Logvinovo). Have you managed to keep the units of the Armed Forces of the DPR this opornik. Additional armored vehicles, artillery and personnel are also being transferred to Svetlodarsk with the aim of a possible local offensive in the “gray zones”, as well as distracting from the impending large-scale offensive in the Telman and New Azov areas.
Very serious and disturbing information came in the last two days from the servicemen of the 7 th Slavic brigade of the Armed Forces of the DPR at the Svetlodar arc. As one of the fighters of the 7 Brigade of the Radius Correspondent reported, the 54-th separate mechanized brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine changed the division of Azov, which, unlike the first, behaves more aggressively and motivatedly, often using highly trained snipers, from whose actions the militia have already suffered the first losses. From a distance of 600 m, with rather windy weather, the nationalists managed to “take off” from the position of a young DPR armed forces fighter who leaned out from the shelter for a second. According to the militia, north of Uglegorsk, the APU began to use 240-mm "Tulips".
In the village of Lugansk also there is a pronounced pre-escalation situation. Apart from the fact that all attempts by the People’s Police of the LPR to withdraw large-caliber artillery from the contact line on a “mirror” basis were not crowned with success because of the constant ignorance from the Ukrainian side, the latter also regularly commits egregious crimes against the local population. In particular, dill unwrap batteries of ACS and mortars directly on the land plots of the civilian population knowing full well that the militiamen are not firing in these areas. In the areas of the private sectors of Stanitsa Luhanska and neighboring settlements, an impressive network of trenches and dugouts is being created to deter the LPR army after its counteroffensive in the northern headquarters.
As for the counteroffensive of the armies of the DPR and the LPR, after “stopping” Kiev’s offensive actions on the Northern Front, it can’t be called a successful strategic action. Here, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, volunteer territorial natsbats, mercenaries and NATO instructors have an extensive network of large settlements and cities, which are 2 powerful defensive lines with already erected strong points and fortified areas. The first frontier are the cities with developed infrastructure closest to the contact line: Konstantinovka, Artyomovsk, Soledar, Novoaydar. The second frontier is represented by the cities: Druzhkovka, Kramatorsk, Slavyansk, Lysychansk, Severodonetsk, Starobelsk. To advance on these directions, the Armed Forces of the LDNR need numerical superiority of assault units, which is not currently observed.
On the Southern Front, where right after the ukr contact line does not have a serious network of large settlements with fortified areas, it will be an order of magnitude easier to attack the National Police Corps. The main task will remain only the initial deterrence of the Ukrainian forces that advanced from Mariupol and Volnovakhi, with a total of about 7 - 8 thousand people (the remaining 8 - 10 thousand will remain in the urban infrastructure). Successful capture of Mariupol in the "pot" will be possible only after the defeat of the APU grouping in Volnovakha. This is the main key to the further liberation of the whole of Azov region. The likelihood of an escalation of the conflict in the Donbass during the summer period remains extremely high regardless of the outcome of the meeting of the contact group in the framework of the “Minsk Agreements” 24 in May 2017.
ASSESSMENT OF THE OPPORTUNITIES OF THE RESTORED UKRAINIAN T-80B / BV SENDED TO DONBASS. COUNTER MEASURES
In this photo you can see the Ukrainian T-80BV. While the armored units of the LDNR Armed Forces, guided by the operational experience gained during the hostilities tanks T-64BV and T-72B, dismantled infrared spotlights from most cars, instantly revealing their own positions and weakening the resistance of the frontal armored plate of the tower, "Kharkov Armored Plant" installed a spotlight! And this despite the fact that the resistance of the frontal armor plate in this section of the T-80BV is even worse than that of the T-72B. Moreover, a completely exposed projection of the frontal plate is observed both to the left and to the right of the spotlight
Separate item for consideration is sending by Kiev to the Donbass TVD repaired main battle tanks T-80B / BV. The restoration of major overhaul and modernization of gas turbine MBTs of the T-80B family on the basis of the State Enterprise “Kharokovsky Armored Plant” became known as early as in May 2015 of the year from a statement by the director of the enterprise Victor Kozonak. According to the information of the directory “The Military Balance”, 123 T-80B and 25 modification machines of more modern machines in the T-80BV version were in storage of the APU, and they stood in the open air for about 30 years. Previously, T-80B / BV were in service with advanced armored units of the Group of Soviet Forces in the GDR. There they performed the role of a “breakthrough backbone” capable of reaching the English Channel in 2 - 2,5 days (with battles). But at that time, the legendary "Eighties" had not reached this and returned to the storage bases in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. And so, the Ukrainian "Eighties" decided to quickly restore and send to the Donbass against the peaceful Russian population and military personnel of the armies of the young republics.
What is even more unpleasant is that, by some miracle, the most sophisticated 1250-powerful gas turbine engines GTD-1250B were at the disposal of the Kharkiv Armored Plant and at the Ukrainian storage bases, while the T-80B / BV was usually equipped with an early version of GTD- 1000TF horsepower 1100 This engine will give ukropovsky tankers unprecedented mobility on the battlefield, which the DPR armored units currently do not have. As is well known at the moment, the so-called "High-Mobile" troops of Ukraine (according to the standard - Airborne Forces) are armed with about 20 similar tanks, transferred as early as 2015. The number of cars in the new installment was not officially announced, it is obvious that about the same.
The main distinctive qualities of the “resurrected” and upgraded T-80Б / БВ with GTD-1250 engines will be: high specific power in 27,8 hp / t, speed in 75 - 85 km / h, good accelerating qualities and ease of replacing the gas turbine power plant (about 5 - 6 hours in the field). In the people's militia corps of the LDPR, the main armored "fist" is represented by MBT T-64BV, a number of captured Ukrainian T-64BM Bulat, T-72А / АВ / Б. Most of these machines have a mass of 42,4 t (T-64BV) to 44,5 t (T-72B) and are equipped with 5TDF (700 hp) and B-84-1 (840 hp) engines, respectively, and therefore The power density hardly reaches the 16 and 18,9 hp / t, and the travel speed is only up to 60 km / h. Moreover, these types of diesel engines have a much lower stock of torque and traction capabilities compared to the GTE-1250. "Flying" T-80B / BV will be much "nimble" main battle tanks, which are in service with the armies of the republics. Intended for a sudden and lightning “breakthrough” of the enemy’s defensive lines, the reconstructed Ukrainian Eighties will mostly be sent to those units of the High Mobility Troops of the Ukrainian Armed Forces that the command of the Army “Square” will throw in the offensive “backbone” on the Telman and Novo-Azov operational areas. Will the DPR People’s Police Corps be able to withstand, for example, the X-NUMX battalion T-1B / BV (80 tank) supported by a similar number of T-31BVs in the Kominternovo region?
Naturally, they can, but they will have to “sweat” well. If only ordinary T-80A or T-72BB are set against T-64B, then you should not rely on a quick superiority. In 1,5, the speeding Eighties more than once are quite capable of even breaking through the “tactical corridor” in the defense of the Armed Forces of the DPR through the October-Sakhanka line, and then advance to the point of view. Mitkovo-Kachkary. Following the T-80BV, the Ukrainian T-64BV and T-72 can also pass through the “corridor”. Further offensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in this direction will be stopped by the additional armored units advanced from Telmanovo, Novoazovsk and Bezmenny, as well as with the receiver and rocket artillery batteries of the 1-th AK of the DPR People's Militia. Despite the fact that the Ukrainian tank battalion will eventually be crushed, the military units of the NM of the DPR will have a temporary huge “gap” that will need to be immediately closed. Only a quick counteroffensive with the release of new settlements on the nearest approaches to Mariupol (Lebedinskoe, Vodyanoe) can solve the issue.
In order to avoid significant losses of the DPR Armed Forces during a collision with the Ukrainian Eighties, tank crews and anti-tank calculations of the republic’s army, it should be remembered that despite the excellent speed and responsiveness of the T-80B / BV gas turbines, they have a list of design flaws that can be exploited during the battle. Firstly, this is a very mediocre armor-proof turret and tank hull. The upper frontal part with built-in elements of dynamic protection 4C20 "Contact-1" has an equivalent resistance from BOPS of the order of 400 - 450 mm and from the "kuma" (cumulative shells) of the order of 850 - 900 mm. Consequently, the Ukrainian-Ukrainian T-80B / BV WLD can be pierced with such a list of armor-piercing shells: ZBM-22 “Hairpin” (at a distance of about 1200 m), ZBM-26 “Nadezhda-R” (near 1,8 km), ZBM-32 “Vant ”(2,5 - 3 km), LMS-42М“ Lekalo ”and more modern BPS from a greater distance. The list of cumulative projectile 80K7 missiles of the Reflex complex, etc. "Metis" of the early version of 9K131, as well as "Baby" with WLD of this tank will not cope.
Now with regards to the security of the frontal projection of the tower T-80B / BV. The cast turret with a combined armor is resistant to armor-piercing feathered sub-caliber shells of the order of 540 mm with a DZ "Kontakt-1" (this DZ practically does not provide protection against kinetic cores) and against cumulative projectiles - about 900 mm. Consequently, the tank front plates can be confidently punched only by the BOPS with the following indexes: GRAU ZBM-29 “Nadfil-2” (with 900 - 1100 m), ZBM-42 “Mango” (at a distance of 1,3 km and less) and ZBM-42M “Lekalo” "(Up to 2,5 km). The list of cumulative projectiles piercing the forehead of the T-80B / BV turret is approximately the same as for the upper frontal hull detail. The nomenclature of the BOPS, tank guided missiles and the CS at the armored units of the Armed Forces of the DPR fully contributes to the destruction of the English Channel gas-turbine "English Channel" tanks into the front projection on the 1500 - 3000 distance. Meanwhile, during the "confusion" of active combat operations it happens that in a convenient perspective regarding the Ukrainian T-80B / BV, which are bursting through, there will be no T-64BV and T-72B of the DPR army, or 100-mm anti-tank “Rapier” cannons. It is here that knowledge of weak points in the side and stern projections of the tank will be very relevant.
One of the main disadvantages of booking T-80B / BV hull side cuts is the small diameter of the road wheels (670 versus 750 mm and T-72B), resulting in significant sections of the hull side armor plates with a thickness of about 80 mm. These sites may be affected by the following methods: 30-mm AP 2А42 fire using BMP-2 using KURNER ZUBR8 armor-piercing podbarimeter shells at a distance of about 500 m, fire boots (LNG-9) using anti-tank grants using anti-gantry gates using anti-tank grenades, using LNG-9 anti-tank grants using anti-tank grenades using anti-tank grenades, using LNG 73 anti-tank grenades using anti-tank grenades, using LNG-2 anti-tank grenades using anti-tank grenades 28-mm guns 1А15 "Thunder" (BMP-1) using PG-30В shots. In favor of the DPR army, the fact that elements of Dynamic Contact-72 protection are not placed on the thin anti-cumulative screens of the Ukrainian Eighty, and therefore you can immediately hit the unprotected board with any weapon with a caliber larger than 80 mm, which will cause the sheet to break through and detonation ammunition. For example, with the T-XNUMXА / B (being in service with the Armed Forces of the DPR), in which large support rollers cover a large area of the lateral projection of the hull, such manipulations will be more difficult to make. The loading mechanism of the T-XNUMXBV provides for the vertical placement of ammunition, which several times increases its area; consequently, the chance of its detonation increases several times in the event of at least one penetration by an enemy projectile.
The side armor plates of the tower are represented by a steel envelope smoothly thinning to the stern of the tower from 320 - 340 to 70 - 90 mm. In the central and front parts of the tower, this figure is increased by 20 - 30 mm taking into account the EHL, and is of the order of 360 - 800 mm due to the rounding of its “zygomatic” elements. Irreparable damage to the “zygomatic” part from the side projection is rather difficult, and therefore impractical. The back of the side sheets of the turret, exactly like a thin stern bronelist, can be broken through with any RPG-7 or LNG-9 shot. Elements of dynamic protection are absent here. Also, aft turret armor plate is vulnerable to Kerner projectiles used in 30-mm AP 2-42.
Finally, another detail of the T-80B / BV family is the rather low security of the aft hull, due to the presence of large duct channels. This can cause damage to the engine with large-caliber machine guns, automatic guns, as well as fragments from exploding high-explosive fragmentation projectiles. Moreover, for long-term operation in the theater of operations, T-80B / BV tanks with an 1250-strong gas turbine powerplant will need 4 times more fuel per hour consumption and 3,7 times - as compared with T-72B. This fact will create for the Ukrainian formations a lot of problems with the supply of fuel to the active site of hostilities, which will unfold under Vlnovakha and Mariupol. Even the American tankers, with their decent level of material and technical support on the battlefield, are expressing dissatisfaction with the “voracity” of their gas-turbine Abrams. Imagine what the situation will be for the troops of the Ukrainian junta at the time of the 1-th AK NAM DNR otdelka from “Gradov” and artillery, when the normal operation of fuel-servicing trucks will be barely possible: their “Eighties” tritely turn into a “pile of a fixed metal”, first of all in a figurative ( due to the lack of fuel), and then in the direct meaning of this expression.
A very controversial situation develops with the MBT T-80BV control complex. The machine uses the automated control system 1А33 "Ob", which is represented by the stabilizer 2E26М (the same set is installed on T-64BV). However, on the "Eighties" it is much more efficient than on the T-64BV, due to a softer and more perfect undercarriage. Thus, even the first experimental modification of the T-80 (“219 Object”) demonstrated very high fire and dynamic capabilities during tests in the distant 75 year. In particular, according to the testimony of the command of one of the experienced battalions of these machines in the Baltic VO, the "Eighties" with the GTD-1000T engine differed by the following characteristics: 30% had a longer range of effective fire, maintaining accuracy at 2 times greater speed, 2 times greater travel speed on 15-degree rise, on 70% acceleration time, 2 times lower losses on TVD due to the highest mobility, 2,1 times less time to prepare the first shot, etc. Moreover, MTO with the selection of the torque to the drive wheels (through the gearbox) from the free turbine makes it possible to save work even in the event of a collision with a “critical” obstacle. Neither the T-72B nor the T-64BB similar abilities are not observed.
Let us return to the Ob system with the stabilizer 2E26M. According to various sources, as well as military personnel, despite the automation of this system and a successful undercarriage, it absolutely cannot with the more advanced weapon stabilizer 2E42-2 "Jasmine" (installed on T-72B), which allows the enemy units to correctly "lead" even at higher intrinsic speeds, and therefore the accuracy of firing on the move, the T-72B is insignificant at least slightly, but higher than that of the T-80BV. Here, the armored units of the Armed Forces of the DPR will gain an advantage over the Ukrainian tank crews.
Rather little-known and “exotic” version of the modernization of the armor protection MBT T-72B1, which is in service with the Kopus of the national militia of the DPR. It is worth paying attention to the fact that two methods of overlapping frontal and onboard projections of the tower were applied at once. The first is partially borrowed from the T-64BV and T-80BV and is an ENZ 4X20 pair of wedges, the second is completely characteristic of Contact-1 NDZ on all T-72B. For the protection of the onboard projections, large rendered welded panels with fixed EHR 4C20 are provided. Anti-cumulative screens are also completely covered by "Contact".
No less interesting fact is the superiority of T-72B over T-80B / BV in terms of armor protection of the frontal projection, as well as on the security of individual components and assemblies of the machine. For example, in addition to the light-protected early versions of the T-72 "Ural" and T-72A, the DPR army has the MBT T-72Б / Б1 / 3 equipped with the "Kontakt-1" and "Kontakt-5" dynamic protection kits. Moreover, Nizhny Tagil machines of this modification received a completely new type of armor protection of a “semi-active” type, represented by special niche containers with “reflective sheets”. These niches make up about 50% of the physical dimension of the frontal armor of the turret and are tilted at an angle 54-55º relative to the longitudinal axis of the tank gun. Each niche contains an 390-kilogram armor package consisting of 20 3-x-layer special booking units with a thickness of 30 mm, each of which contains an 21-mm armor plate and an 6-mm rubber sheet for the “early loading” effect of a thin 3-mm plate on the penetrating sheet. cumulative jet. Such reservations increase the equivalent resistance to cumulative projectiles 1,4 times.
Thus, even without dynamic protection, the frontal projection of the T-72B is well protected from shots from the LNG-9. With dynamic protection "Kontakt-1", it increases to 950 mm from the CS and can protect the crew from the fire of most of the monoblock anti-tank weapons in service with the Ukrainian formations. Quite a large number of T-72B in the army corps of the LDNR are equipped with a DZ "Kontakt-5". And in this case, the Ukrainian T-80BV with their first "Contact" generally turn out to be "below the plinth". Not only are the 4C22 elements of the built-in dynamic protection “Contact-5” not initiated by small arms bullets and 12,7 - 14,5 - 30-mm projectiles, they also do a good job of reducing the penetration effect of the armor-piercing sifting projectiles, reducing their effectiveness on 25 - 30%. While the resistance of the T-80BV tower (with “Contact-1”) is about 560 mm from BOPS and 850 mm from KS, T-72B with a similar attachment kit has a good protection against BOPS (560 - 570 mm) and some better protection against KS (900-950 mm). Tower T-72B with “Contact-5” gets 650 - 900 mm equivalent from BOPS and 1100 mm from KS! How do you care?
As for the protection of the upper frontal part (VLD), here T-80BV is inferior to T-72B by about 100 mm (450 vs. 550 mm, respectively) for protection against kinetic shells even if the Ural has “Contact-1”, “Contact-5” VLD gets 690 resistance - 720 mm from kinetic projectiles and 1100 from cumulative. As you can see, there is a complete superiority over T-80BV. The final element confirming the overall superiority of the T-72B in terms of security is its compact carousel-type automatic loader, located at the bottom of the tank hull: it is securely closed by the frontal and side projections, and also has a much smaller projection area, which is additionally overlapped by large support rollers; hitting her is not as easy as with T-80BV.
One of the radically modernized T-72B in Novorossia with dynamic protection on MTO
At the moment, new Russia’s skilled defenders are also developing new cover configurations for vulnerable zones of T-72 tanks with the help of the “Contact-1” and “Contact-5” dynamic protection elements. In particular, a sample of T-72B was observed with a radical expansion of the overlap by the 4 – 20 “Contact-1” dynamic protection elements. They are placed not only in the traditional configuration (on the tower, VLD and the front of the anti-cumulative screens), but also on the wings, rear parts of the SCE, aft hull armor plate (partially), as well as above the ejector cooling system grille. This solution is optimal for use in a complex urban environment with a huge number of high-rise buildings, from which the enemy attacks in the most vulnerable (thin-sized) sections of the upper projection, including logging. It is unlikely that such a modification of the T-72B could be hit in the section of the power plant from the first RPG shot (we do not take into account the shot with the tandem cumulative warhead PG-7BP "Summary" and powerful ATGM).
The next two modifications of the T-72B can be considered cars, seen near one of the landfills of the Donetsk People's Republic. The first tank is equipped with a combined DZ on the basis of "Contact-1 / 5" (photo above). Standard EHL 4C22 installed on the front armor plates of the tower with a wedge under the slope of 60 - 70 hail. to normal. This moment can be considered very positive, since there is a rebound from the lid and / or a larger envelope of the 4 – 22 module plates opposing the cumulative jet and the core of the armor-piercing projectile. The negative point is that due to the “wedge-shaped” placement of the EHD, the vulnerable part of the junction of the lower part of the tower with the hull remains open for destruction by armor-piercing, cumulative and high-explosive fragmentation projectiles.
The specialists of the DPR solved this technical problem in a very original way: on the bottom element of each “wedge-pair” 4С22 (near the edge of the joint with the top element), with the help of bolt-on fastening with a steel pressure plate, a thick rubber skirt was fixed at the end of it 4C20 "Contact-1". The latter is precisely at the level of the vulnerable junction of the hull with the tower. The undeniable advantage of this design is the ability of the tank to squeeze through difficult areas of urban infrastructure with rubble and wooded areas with branchy treetops without damaging the suspension elements of the DZ Kontakt-1 due to the flexible and movable rubber skirt.
The second tank has a similar combined DZ (photo above), but with the difference that the EHR 4C20 is fixed not on rubber skirts made from conveyor belts, but on rigid steel brackets fastened at the wedge-pair “Contact-5”. This design, of course, is not so flexible, but with the active movement of T-72B with the rotation of the tower, it allows to keep the projection of the body and tower interface under protection, because the 4C20 modules will not “teleply” randomly, creating slots for the enemy's shells.
The engineering thought of craftsmen from the Donbass and Russia, awakened by the barbaric attacks of aggression by the Kiev Nazis against the age-old Russian mentality of our population, continues to create more and more new highly effective means of waging war against the invader. And, judging by the results of the negotiations of the 24 contact group on May 2017, these funds may be useful to the LDNR armies in the near future.
Information sources:
http://otvaga2004.ru/tanki/tanki-concept/t-64-t-72-ili-t-80-chto-luchshe/
http://artofwar.ru/w/wechkanow_i_w/vivboewyetanki-semejstwot-72t-80t-90wtoroeizdanie19122011.shtml
http://x-true.info/45681-vse-luchshee-srazu-t-72b1-nm-dnr.html
http://btvt.narod.ru/4/t-80.htm
http://andrei-bt.livejournal.com/364103.html
https://ru.slovoidilo.ua/2017/05/19/novost/bezopasnost/ukrainskie-desantniki-poluchat-novuyu-partiyu-tankov-t-80
Information