Poland does not hope for an alliance and is arming itself against the Russian FederationPoland has managed to be a European superpower in its history, and twice completely disappear from the political map of the world.
After the Second World War, it was in this country that the Warsaw Pact was signed. But it was she who ruined him.
THE SOCIALIST PASTDuring the Cold War, Poland, along with Czechoslovakia, was one of the two Warsaw Pact countries with a very powerful military-industrial complex.
He produced equipment of almost all classes both for the Polish Armed Forces and for export. Most of this equipment was produced, of course, under Soviet licenses. But they also created their own samples – of course, related to the Soviet ones.
So, only for the Polish Army itself, at least 1 thousand T-34–85 tanks were produced in the country under Soviet licenses. Then 1.5 thousand T-54 and T-55 each. And, finally, 759 T-72, of which 77 – with the help of Russia after the collapse of the USSR. 700 MTLB armored personnel carriers and 533 self-propelled artillery units (ACS) 2S1 were also produced on the chassis of this vehicle. Together with the Czechoslovak Republic, 600 OT-62 armored personnel carriers and vehicles based on them were produced, and then at least 1 thousand more advanced OT-64.
Also, up to 1.5 thousand Soviet MiG-15 (as Lim-1/2) and MiG-17 (as Lim-5/6) fighters were produced in Poland. The USSR handed over to Poland the production of light Mi-2 helicopters, which were produced for more than 20 years (of which more than 500 units were delivered to the USSR), and then "turned" into Polish W-3s, which are still being produced (both in commercial and combat versions), including on export.
Similarly, the production of the AN-28 light transport aircraft was transferred to Poland, which in the 1990s also "turned" into the Polish M-28, also still being produced, including for export. In addition, Poland has created its own TS-11 Iskra training aircraft, and is still in service.
36 launchers (PU) of operational-tactical missiles (OTR) R-17 and four PU "Tochka", 12 PU tactical missiles (TR) "Luna", 300 light tanks PT-76, more than 1.4 thousand armored reconnaissance and amphibious vehicles (BRDM), almost 1.5 were received directly from the USSR thousand infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs), at least 1 thousand wheeled armored personnel carriers (APCs).
As well as eight powerful 203-mm ACS 2S7 "Peony", up to 1 thousand towed guns (M-30, D-20, ML-20, D-1), several hundred mortars, more than 200 multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) BM-21, 43 divisions of anti-aircraft missile systems (SAM) S-75, 24 divisions of the S-125 air defense system, 2 divisions of the S-200 anti-aircraft missile systems, 9 batteries of the Krug air defense system, 25 batteries of the Kvadrat air defense system, more than 300 short-range air defense systems (Strela-1, Osa, Strela-10), more than 200 anti-aircraft self-propelled guns (ZSU).
As well as 80 Il-28 bombers, more than 170 Su-7/20/22 attack aircraft, more than 800 MiG-17/19/21/23 and 12 MiG-29 fighters, up to 40 Mi-24 attack helicopters and up to 60 multi-purpose Mi-8. In addition, 111 wheeled 152-mm self-propelled guns "Dana" and 30 122-mm MLRS RM-70 were received from Czechoslovakia.
The strongest branch of the Polish military-industrial complex was shipbuilding, which specialized in the construction of amphibious ships. Thus, more than 100 medium amphibious ships of 770/771/773 Ave. were built at Polish shipyards, including 23 for the Polish Navy itself and 68 for the USSR Navy. Then 28 large amphibious assault ships (BDK) of 775 Ave. were built for the Soviet fleet (the last of them was already received by Russia), they form the basis of the amphibious forces of the Russian Navy (" Amphibious problem of the Russian Navy ", "HVO", 03/22/19). In addition, the USSR Navy received from Poland more than 70 different auxiliary vessels.
For its own fleet, patrol and torpedo boats, minesweepers, landing ships of the Lublin type, as well as the Kazhub corvette were built in Poland (commissioned in the late 1980s, it was planned to build seven ships of this type, but limited to one). At the same time, a significant number of Polish Navy warships were received from the USSR. These are seven submarines (four pr. 613, two pr. 641, one pr. 877), three destroyers (two pr. 30, one pr. 57) and one large anti-submarine ship (BOD, pr. 61), 17 missile boats (13 pr. 205, four pr. 1241). In addition, three Orkan-type corvettes were ordered by Poland in the GDR and received from the united Germany in the early 1990s.
India became the most important buyer of Polish weapons outside the Warsaw Pact. Delhi has acquired and is acquiring from Warsaw landing ships 773 Ave., TS-11 training aircraft, as well as various engineering vehicles based on the T-72 tank (some of them are produced under license in India itself).
Saddam Hussein's Iraq received 400 T-55 tanks and four landing craft from socialist Poland, 771 Ave., the current Iraqi army received 600 Dzik armored vehicles from modern Poland (Poland could not sell this car to anyone else).
As you know, it was at the Gdansk shipyard, where landing ships for the USSR Navy were built, that the Solidarity movement was born, which overthrew socialism in Poland and made a huge contribution to its collapse in Eastern Europe as a whole.
WITHOUT THE WARSAW PACTWarsaw's military-technical cooperation with Moscow mostly ended in the first half of the 1990s - with the end of licensed production of the T–72 tank, the launch of the M-28 aircraft, the receipt of artillery weapons, engines and radar stations for Orkan-type corvettes, as well as Russia's assistance in creating a Polish portable anti-aircraft The Thunder missile system (MANPADS) based on the Igla-1 and Igla MANPADS.
In the 21st century, however, Poland acquired 12 Mi-17 helicopters from Russia for use in Afghanistan.
In addition, in the early 1990s, Poland conducted a very peculiar exchange with the Czech Republic, receiving from it 10 very modern MiG-29 fighters at that time and giving it 11 W-3 light helicopters (all 11 of these helicopters can hardly be considered equivalent to even one MiG-29, but for Prague this exchange was purely political in nature). Germany transferred 18 Mi-24s from the reserves of the former National People's Army of the GDR to Poland in the mid-1990s, and in the early 2000s actually donated 22 MiG-29s. These German MiG-29 and Russian Mi-17 became the last weapons of Soviet origin received by the Polish Armed Forces at the moment.
At the same time, in the 1990s and in the XXI century, Poland quite actively sold Soviet weapons from the presence of its own armed forces, as well as a certain amount of equipment of new production. In particular, 104 new-built T-72 tanks were received from Poland by Iran (now it sounds absolutely amazing). In addition, 146 T-72s were sold from the presence of the Polish Army (143 to the Czech Republic, one to Switzerland, Latvia, the USA), another 135-140 were converted into a Polish modification of this machine – PT-91 (93-98 PT-91 were built from scratch, a total of 233 such tanks were produced). Malaysia became the only foreign recipient of the PT-91 in the amount of 48 units of new construction. Poland sold all the BMP-2s it had to Angola and Togo, while leaving the much older BMP-1s in service. Cambodia, Mauritania, Sudan purchased up to 100 T-55s, at least 30 2S1 self-propelled guns went to Finland, Germany and Bulgaria.
A significant amount of equipment was disposed of, including 35 T-72 and at least 20 BM-21. Another 75 BM-21s were converted for the Polish army itself into the WR-40 Langusta MLRS with a new chassis and fire control system.
Indonesia, Lithuania and Georgia became recipients of MANPADS "Thunder", and several Georgian MANPADS were captured by Russian troops during the "five–day war" (" War 08.08.08 - afterword ", "HBO", 03.08.18). At least a hundred more "Thunder" were sold to the United States. The Ugandan Air Force received seven Polish MiG-21 fighters, another 25-30 machines of this type were acquired by the American private company Draken International (" Private threat hanging in the air ", "HBO", 18.11.22).
In 1999, during the "first wave" of NATO expansion, Poland joined this alliance. For the rest of Eastern Europe, a similar step became the basis for "relaxing" and starting total disarmament (however, almost all "old" NATO members from Western Europe behaved the same way). Poland was the only exception. Suffering from a severe form of Russophobia, she immediately began to prepare for war with Russia. Since Warsaw took this process seriously enough, they quickly realized that the current NATO could not protect anyone from anything and they would have to prepare for defense on their own.
THE NATO PRESENTThe efforts made made the Polish Army the strongest army in Europe (from among NATO members) in a number of parameters.
In addition to the T-72 and PT-91, 247 German Leopards-2 (142 A4 cars, 105 A5 cars) were purchased. Poland has become one of the last buyers in the world of American fighter-bombers F-16C /D of new production in the amount of 48 cars. In addition to other high-precision weapons, AGM-158 JASSM air-to-surface missiles are being purchased for these aircraft, which, in addition to the United States itself, are still in service only with Finland and Australia. It is planned to purchase four batteries of the American Patriot-RAS3 air defense system with partial production in Poland itself. An improved MANPADS "Piorun" has been created on the basis of "Thunder" (Norway has already ordered it). The Poprad air defense system is also produced, which is four "Thunder" or "Piorun" on an automobile chassis.
Since 2004, licensed assembly of the Finnish armored personnel carrier AMV (under the local name "Wolverine") has been conducted in Poland. The total production of these machines should reach almost a thousand units in a variety of variants. At the moment, more than 700 "Wolverines" have been collected. At the same time, however, Poland is experiencing problems with the integration of the Israeli Spike ATGM on the APC, as well as with the production of auxiliary variants of the machine. In addition to 359 linear APCs with the Italian HITFIST combat module, about 200 self-propelled mortars, ATGMs, engineering, medical and command and staff vehicles have entered service so far, more than 100 corps are still waiting to be equipped with the necessary equipment.
There were also problems with the production of the new 155-mm ACS "Crab". It was supposed to build 120 such self-propelled guns with a tower produced in Poland under an English license from the British self-propelled gun AS-90. However, in Poland itself, it was possible to produce only eight chassis for "Crabs". After that, it was decided to purchase in Turkey the chassis from the T-155 self-propelled gun, which is a licensed copy of the South Korean K-9 self-propelled gun. Then it was decided to produce in Poland immediately under a South Korean license the chassis from the K-9 proper. All these changes have led to a serious delay in the execution of the program.
In addition to the aforementioned F-16s, American C-130 and Spanish C-295 transport aircraft, Italian M-346 training aircraft and their own PLZ-130 were purchased for the Air Force. For its Air Force and for export, the country has started licensed production of American S-70 helicopters (as if a commercial version of the multipurpose UH-60).
Poland took an active part in the Afghan war ("The Afghan Trap of America ", "HBO", 27.04.18). Specifically for these purposes, more than a hundred armored vehicles of the MRAR class of three types were purchased in the United States (at least one of them was lost at least one MahhRgo and M-ATV; in addition, up to eight Wolverine armored personnel carriers were lost" and the Mi-24V helicopter).
All Soviet-built ships and boats were decommissioned and disposed of from the Polish Navy, except for the only submarine pr. 877. For purely political reasons, obsolete Western ships were purchased – four Norwegian Cobben–type submarines (another one as a training on shore) and two American Oliver Perry-type frigates. Corvettes of the Orkan type are armed with Swedish RBS-15 RCC.
Quite anecdotal was the story of the construction of seven missile corvettes ave. 621. The lead ship was laid down in November 2001, the entire series was supposed to be completed by 2012. As a result, however, the lead ship was handed over to the fleet in November 2019 as a patrol ship (without missile weapons), the construction of the remaining ships was canceled.
The current state of the Polish Armed Forces, changes in connection with the Ukrainian events of 2022 and plans for further development will be the subject of a separate description.
Alexander Khramchikhin
