The modified T-90S tank has become one of the most successful export products of the Russian military-industrial complex and, perhaps, remains the most commercially successful tank of its time. This opinion was expressed by the columnist of The National Interest, Mark Episkopos.
The tank, which became known as the T-90, was conceived as a deep modernization of the T-72 and was adopted in 1992. The 48-ton car in the" basic " version developed a speed of up to 60 kilometers per hour and could overcome 550 kilometers without refueling. Externally, it looked like a "seventy-two", but the chassis has undergone significant changes.
The T-90 protection system is three-level-welded composite armor, the Kontakt-5 complex and the Shtora-1 optoelectronic suppression complex.
The tank's armament is an upgraded 125-mm 2A46M smoothbore gun, capable of using a wide range of ammunition, including guided anti-tank missiles, as well as a 12.7-mm remotely controlled machine gun and a paired 7.62-mm machine gun.
Over the past decades, many characteristics of the tank have changed significantly with the advent of its new variants. To a large extent, this is due to the steady foreign demand - the modified T-90S has become one of the most popular defense products on the international market.
The T-90 has also been repeatedly improved in the Russian armed forces. For example, a more powerful engine was installed on the T-90A and the onboard electronics were modified. The T-90M received a wider list of updates, including the Relict dynamic protection, a more accurate gun, the Kalina fire control system and the latest V-92S2F engine with a capacity of over a thousand horsepower.
Timur Alimov
