HISTORY OF THE T-55AM2 MAIN BATTLE TANK

OVERVIEW

Over 95,000 T-54/55 series tanks were produced, making it the most-produced tank in history. It remains in service throughout the world, especially by armies of client States of the former Soviet Union. There is only one T-55AM2 in the UK.

CURRENT NON-COMBAT USES

The T-55 tank has been used in many war films made in the former Yougoslavia, the UK and Hollywood. A T-55 has been used in a 1995 film version of Shakespeare’s Richard III, smashing through a wall in the opening scenes. A modified T-55 features in the famous extended chase sequence in the James Bond film Goldeneye, and a T-55AM2 tank ‘co-stars’ in a 2007 Snickers UK advertising campaign with Mr T from the ‘A-team’.

COMBAT HISTORY

Hungary in 1956: T-54 tanks served in the 1956 invasion of Hungary. A few were knocked out by Molotov cocktails and Hungarian anti-tank guns.

Czechoslovakia in 1968: The Prague Spring was ended by the Soviet invasion which included 5,000 to 7,000 tanks.

Israeli-Arab wars of 1967 and 1973: During the 1967 Six-Day War U.S M48 Patton tanks, Centurion tanks and T-55s faced each other. The Centurions and Pattons were more than capable of dealing with the T-54, outperforming the T-54/T-55 series. By the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the T-54A and T-55s gun was inferior to the 105 mm Royal Ordnance L7 gun mounted in Israeli Centurion Mk V and M60A1 tanks, and was unable to penetrate the armour of these tanks. Even the newer T-62, a modernised T-55, was outperformed. Most Israeli tank losses were due to anti-tank missiles.

1971 Indo-Pakistani War: During this war India operated T-55s in the northern and eastern sector against Pakistan's Pattons, Chaffees and Chinese T-59s. The individual performance of the T-55 alone is not known as the Indian Army also operated AMX, Chafee, Centurions and PT-76s.

Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia): During the Vietnam War, the T-54 was used by North Vietnam, where its light armour proved to be vulnerable to both M72 LAW infantry anti-tank rockets as well as South Vietnamese M41 Walker Bulldog light tanks and M48 Patton medium tanks. South Vietnamese M48 Pattons (former worn-out US M48s) were able to destroy T-54s at 2,500 to 3,000 m, in many cases without losses to their own. The South Vietnamese M41 Walker Bulldogs, despite being lightly armored, also proved to be very effective against the T-54. Its 76 mm gun proved to be very capable of penetrating the T-54s armour.

Afghanistan: The Soviet tanks were often ineffective and vulnerable in the mountainous areas.

Balkans War: Being the most numerous in former Yugoslavia's military (JNA) inventory, it was the mainstay of armoured combat units during the Yugoslav Wars where it proved vulnerable to infantry equipped with anti-tank rockets; exacerbated by miss-employment in urban areas and unfriendly terrain, but it was replacable due to its high numbers. During the battle of Vukovar alone, where the JNA grouped most of its tank force, many were destroyed almost exclusively by infantry-carried anti-tank weapons.

Iran-Iraq War: China sold thousands of Type 69 tanks to both Iran and Iraq during their war in the 1980s. (see above)

First and Second Gulf Wars: Some Type 69s saw action in the 1991 Gulf War. T-55 derivatives were used by Iraqi Brigade commanders and had appliqué armour on turrets and hulls composed of steel filled with concrete. They were intended to, and in many cases successful at, defeating shaped charge warheads. One example is reported to have survived several hits form Milan missiles before being dispatched by a helicopter.

Ethiopia: The T-55 has also been used by Ethiopia in the current conflict with the Islamic Courts in Somalia.

ANCESTRY OF THE T-55 SERIES TANK

The T-54 and T-55 main battle tanks (MBTs) were the Soviet Union's replacements for the World War II era T-34 tank. When first produced, the Soviet T-34 medium tank of 1940 had the best balance of firepower, protection and mobility of any tank in the world. Its development continued throughout the Second World War and it continued to perform well, but the production rates that war demanded prevented its designers from incorporating the latest technologies. In 1943, the Morozov Design Bureau resurrected the pre-war T-34M development project and created the T-44 medium tank. Thanks to a space-efficient torsion-bar suspension, a novel transverse engine mount, and the removal of the hull machine-gunner's crew position, the T-44 performed at least as well as the T-34, but with substantially better armour. However a larger gun firing heavier high-explosive ammunition for better armour penetration was desired. But the T-44's turret, a development of the T-34-85 turret, was still incapable of mounting more powerful armament than its predecessor's 85 mm tank gun, a considerably weaker gun than the 88 mm and long 75 mm guns found on the newer German tanks.

Only 1,823 T-44s were ever built while Morozov proceeded with further development. A series of experiments on the T-44 hull led to the T-54 tank. It mounted the same 100 mm D-10 tank gun used in the World War II SU-100 tank destroyer (modified for the tank's fighting compartment as the D-10T, but with identical performance). The gun was housed in a new turret with a bigger turret ring and very well-protected mantlet, incorporating 200 mm of front-facing armour. Steering was made easier by the new V-54 engine's two-stage reduction gearbox.

The T-54 replaced the T-44 in production from 1947 at Uralvagonzavod (UVZ) in Nizhny Tagil, and from 1948 at Kharkov Diesel Factory No. 75 (KhPZ). Though based on design and prototype work begun in 1943, the T-54 had superior armour protection to many late-war German tanks. However, It’s 100 mm L53 gun produced less effective armour penetration than the 88 mm L71 gun on the Tiger II but was superior to the 88 mm L56 gun on the Tiger I, and comparable to the 75 mm L70 gun of the Panther medium tank. Due to its revolutionary design, this performance was achieved in a tank weighing four-fifths that of the Panther, two-thirds that of the Tiger I, and only just more than half that of the Tiger II. The T-54's light weight, powerful engine, and robust suspension gave it excellent cross-country mobility. At the time it was better armed and armoured than its Western counterparts; the British Centurion and the American M26 Pershing.

The T-54B started production in 1957, with a new D-10T2S gun and 2-plane stabilizer. Active infrared "night-fighting" equipment for the gunner and driver were installed on new tanks and retrofitted to older ones, starting in 1959. In addition, modern APFSDS ammunition was developed, dramatically enhancing the penetrative performance of the gun to keep it competitive with NATO armour developments.

The T-54’s gun, however, fell behind Western developments, and its kinetic-energy penetration soon ceased to be competitive due to the round's low velocity and the tank's simple fire-control system. However, the T-54 was able to rely on HEAT shaped-charge ammunition to engage tanks well into the 1960s, despite the relative inaccuracy of this ammunition at long ranges. The Soviets considered this acceptable for a potential European conflict, until the development of Chobham armor began reducing the effectiveness of HEAT warheads. Before this point was reached, Morozov had already decided to proceed with a new generation of main battle tanks. Having moved back to Ukraine from the Urals (the design bureau and factory had been evacuated from Kharkov, Kharkiv Ukraine
, to Nizhny Tagil during the German advance in 1942), he began development which would lead to the T-64. The Kartsev design bureau at UVZ took over responsibility for the T-54, starting with the T-54A, which added single-plane gun stabilization and night-driving equipment.

In 1958, The T-54 was redesigned for the nuclear battlefield as the T-55, with a thicker turret casting, more powerful engine, and basic NBC protection against the deadly blast overpressure of a nuclear explosion, but not against radiation or fallout. The roof-top anti-aircraft machine gun was dropped, because it was deemed worthless against high-performance jets (it would be reintroduced in the 1970s to deal with helicopters). The T-55 also had the T-54B's improved two-axis gun stabilization and added night-fighting equipment.

The T-55 was also significantly superior to the IS-2 Heavy Tank in all respects. Despite somewhat thinner frontal turret armor (200 mm rather than 250 mm), it also compared favorably with the IS-3, thanks to its improved anti-tank gun and better mobility. Heavy tanks soon fell from favour, with only 350 IS-3s produced and future Soviet heavy tank designs remaining as prototypes. The old model of highly mobile medium tanks and heavily armoured heavy tanks was replaced with a new paradigm: the "main battle tank". Parallel developments in the West would produce similar results. During the 1950s, the T-55 remained a significantly smaller and lighter tank than its NATO contemporaries; the U.S. Patton and British Centurion tanks, but with comparatively excellent firepower and protection.

The Israelis captured over a thousand T-55s from the Syrians and Egyptians in the 1967 Six-Day War and the 1973 Yom Kippur War, keeping many of them in service. They were upgraded with a 105 mm/L68 NATO-standard main gun replacing the old Soviet 100 mm D10, and a General Motors diesel replacing the original Soviet diesel engine. The Israelis designated these: Tiran-5 medium tanks, and they were used by reserve units until the early 1990's. Most of them were then sold to assorted Third World countries, some of them in Latin America, and the rest were heavily modified, converted into heavy armoured personnel carriers designated the IDF Achzarit.

T-54 and T-55 tanks continued to be upgraded, refitted, and modernised into the 1990s. Advances in armour-piercing and HEAT ammunition would improve the gun's anti-tank capabilities from the 1960s into the 1980s. The T-54/55 and the T-62 were the two most common tanks in the Russian inventory; in the mid-1970s the two types together comprised approximately 85% of the Warsaw Pact tanks.

T-55 production continued to 1981 in the Soviet Union The tank was also produced in Poland, Czechoslovakia, and in China (as the Type 59, a copy of the T-54A), and Romania. In China, it was further developed as the Type 69, which is still manufactured for export today, and the Type 79, a version equipped with a 105 mm main gun. The Chinese sold thousands of the Type 69 to both Iran and Iraq
during their war in the 1980s.

The T-55 is considered to be the single most common tank type in the world today. Although the basic T-55 is outdated, it remains the tank of choice for many Third World
nations who find it fits within their limited budgets. A wide array of upgrades in different price ranges are provided by many manufacturers in different countries, including new engines, explosive reactive armour, new main armament such as a 120 mm or 125 mm gun, active protection suites, laser range-finders, and thermal sights such as the French AGAVA. These improvements make it a potent main battle tank for the low-end budget, even to this day. The T-54/55 has been employed by Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Bangladesh, Central African Republic, China, Congo (Type 59), Cuba, Cyprus, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Finland, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, India, Iraq, Israel, North Korea (Type 59), Libya, Mali, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan (Type 59), Peru, Somalia, Syria, Uruguay,Yemen, South Yemen, Yugoslavia, Vietnam, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

The ex Warsaw Pact T-55s and T-62s are now mostly in reserve status. Active-duty units of many or the former Warsaw Pact countries mainly use the T-72 and T-80, with a smaller number of T-90 tanks in service.

During the 1990s and 2000s, hundreds of refurbished and upgraded T-55s were resold by Belarus, Bulgaria, the CzechRepublic, Israel, Slovakia, Poland, Ukraine, Angola, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Latvia, Macedonia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Uganda, Uruguay, and Yemen
.

A wide array of upgrades (eg T-55AM2) in different price ranges are provided by many manufacturers in different countries. The upgrades are intended to bring the T-54/55 up to the capabilities of newer tanks such as T-72s, at a lower cost. Upgrades include new engines, explosive reactive armour, new main armament such as 120 mm or 125 mm guns, active protection systems, and fire control systems with range-finders or thermal sights. These improvements make it a potent main battle tank (MBT) for the low-end budget, even to this day.

MODERNISATION

T-55M : Modernisation with ATGM launcher and new fire control system, improved gun stabilization, engine, increased armour. Visual differences include side skirts, smoke grenade launchers, and appliqué armour.

T-55AM : T-55M with a "bra armour" band around turret front.

T-55 AMD : T-55M with Drozd APS.

T-55AM2 : T-55AM with "bra armour" and Merida
fire control system but no new ATGM.

T-55 AD Drozd : T-55AM with with Drozd APS.

T-55 AMV : T-55AM with explosive reactive armour (ERA) instead of bra armour.

T-55 AMV-1 : T-55AMV with V-46 engine as T-72.

T-55 AM2PB : mostly made in USSR for East Germany, reactive armour and ATGM, most sold back to Russia
in 1992, other T-55 tanks in Russian army upgraded to T-55AM2PB standards during 1992-2000.

International derivatives

Israel: Tiran-5 – an upgraded Israeli version built on tanks captured in 1967 and 1973; no longer in service in Israel
, but many were sold off.

China: Type 59 – a copy of the T-55. Type 69 - redesigned Type 59.

Iraq: T-55 Enigma - T-55, Type-59, and Type-69 tanks. T-55QM: had a NATO-standard 105 mm/L68 gun installed replacing the old 100 mm gun, along with a French laser range-finder. T-55 QM2: a T-55 upgraded by Russian technicians with a Russian 125 mm/L80 smoothbore gun and French laser range-finder, 1986-1991. Type 69-QM: a Type 69 upgraded with NATO standard 105 mm gun and laser range-finder, 1984-1988. Type 69-QM2: a Type 69 upgraded with Warsaw Pact standard 125 mm/L80 smoothbore gun and laser rangefinder, 1986-1991.

Romania: TR-77, or M-77 (1977-1991) unlicensed redesign exported very widely.

DESCRIPTION

Like many post-World War II tanks, the T-54 and T-55 have a conventional layout with fighting compartment in the mid-front, engine compartment in the rear, and a dome-shaped turret in the centre of the hull. The driver's hatch is on the front-left of the hull roof. The commander's hatch is on the turret left, the gunner sits forward and below him and the loader's hatch is on the turret right. The tank's suspension has the drive sprocket at the rear and a slack track (not suspended by return rollers). Engine exhaust is at the left rear. There is a prominent gap between the first and second road wheel, a distinguishing feature from the derivative T-62 tank, which has progressively larger spaces between road wheels towards the rear.

The T-54 and T-55 tanks are outwardly very similar and difficult to distinguish visually. Many T-54s were also updated to T-55 standards, so the distinction is often downplayed with the collective name T-54/55. Soviet tanks were factory-overhauled every 7,000 km and often given minor technology updates. Many states have added or modified the tank's equipment; India
, for example, affixed fake fume extractors to its T-54s and T-55s so that its gunners wouldn't confuse them with Pakistani Type 59s. The older T-54 can be distinguished from the T-55 by a dome-shaped ventilator on the front-right of the turret and a driver-operated SGMT 7.62 mm machine gun mounted to fire through a tiny hole in the centre of the hull's front. Early T-54s lacked a gun fume extractor, had an undercut at the turret's rear, and a distinctive "pig-snout" gun mantlet.

T-55 AM2 specification

Crew 4

Combat Weight (mt) 42.0

Chassis Length Overall (m) 6.20

Height Overall (m) 2.32

Width Overall (m) 3.60

Ground Pressure (kg/cm 2 ) 0.89

Automotive Performance:

Engine Type 620-690 hp Diesel, 457 Kw

Cruising Range (km) 390/600 with extra tanks

Speed (km/h):

Max Road 50

Max Off-Road 35

Average Cross-Country 25

Max Swim N/A

Fording Depths (m) 1.4 Unprepared, 5.5 with snorkel

Radio R-173, R-173P, R-124 intercom

Protection

Armour, Turret Front (mm) 200 (base T-55 armour)

Applique Armour (mm)

Bra armour and extra front/under protection (100mm approx) Rubber sidescreens

Active Protective System Russian Drozd APS available

Mineclearing Equipment Roller-plow set, and plows available

Self-Entrenching Blade No

NBC Protection System Yes

Smoke Equipment

Smoke grenade launchers (8x 81-mm each side of turret)

and 24 grenades. Vehicle engine exhaust smoke system

ARMAMENT:

Main Armaments:

Caliber, Type, Name 100-mm rifled gun, D-10T2S

Rate of Fire (rd/min) 5-7

Loading Method Manual

Ready/Stowed Rounds 30 approx

Elevation (°) -5 to +18

Fire on Move Yes (gun rounds only--ATGMs require a short halt)

Auxillary Weapons:

Caliber, Type, Name 7.62-mm (7.62x 54R) Machinegun PKT-T

Mount Type Turret co-ax

Maximum Aimed Range (m) 2,000

Max Effective Range (m):

Day 800 Night 800

Fire on Move Yes

Rate of Fire (rd/min) 250 rpm practical, 800 cyclic, 2-10 rd bursts

Caliber, Type, Name 12.7-mm (12.7x108) AA MG DShKM

Mount Type Turret top

Maximum Aimed Range (m) 2,000

Max Effective Range (m):

Day 1,500 Night N/A

Fire on Move Yes

Rate of Fire (rd/min) 80-100 practical, 600 cyclic, 2-10 rd bursts

Laser detection:

Name Bobrawa

Type 1 Unit/quadrant

Guidance SACLOS, Infrared laser-beam rider

Command Link Encoded laser-beam

FIRE CONTROL:

FCS Name Merida

Main Gun Stabilization yes

Rangefinder Laser

Infrared Searchlight L-4

Gunner's sights w/magnification:

Day TShSM-32PV, 3.5x and 7x

Field of View (°) 18 and 8

Acquisition Range (m) 4,000

Night N/A

Field of View (°) N/A

Acquisition Range (m) 800-1,300, gun rounds only

Commander Fire Main Gun No

MAIN ARMAMENT AMMUNITION:

Caliber, Type, Name

100-mm BM-8 Russian

Maximum Aimed Range (m) 2,500 Max Effective Range (m)

Day 1,500 Night 800-1,300

Armor Penetration (mm) 200 at 1,000 meters

100-mm APFSDS-T, BM-25

Maximum Aimed Range (m) 2,500

Max Effective Range (m)

Day INA Night 800-1,300

Armour Penetration (mm) INA

100-mm APFSDS-T, BM-412M, Romanian:

Maximum Aimed Range (m) 2,500

Max Effective Range (m)

Day 2, 000+ (est) Night 800-1,300

Armour Penetration (mm) 418 at 2,000 m, 380 at 3,000 m

100-mm APFSDS-T, M1000, Belgian:

Maximum Aimed Range (m) 2,500

Max Effective Range (m)

Day 2,500 (est) Night 800-1,300

Armour Penetration (mm) NATO triple heavy target, 4,500 m

100-mm HEAT, BK-17:

Maximum Aimed Range (m) 2,500

Max Effective Range (m)

Day 1,000 (est) Night 800-1,000 (est)

Armour Penetration (mm) 380

100-mm Frag-HE, OF-32:

Maximum Aimed Range (m) 4,000

Max EffectiveRange
(m)

Day 2,500 Night 800-1,300

Armour Penetration (mm) INA

Other Ammunition Types

A variety of other rounds within the range noted above are available.

They include the GIAT NR 322/ NR 352 APFSDS-T and Slovak

PrSv AP-T with ranges beyond 2,000 m. Antitank Guided Missiles

Name AT-10/BASTION

Warhead Type Shaped charge (HEAT)

Armour Penetration (mm) 650 (RHA)

Range (m) 4,000 (day only)

Name AT-10 Improved

Warhead Type Tandem shaped charge

Armor Penetration (mm) 700 (RHA) behind ERA

Range (m) 4,000 (day only)

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