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Tanks > T-80
T-80
Main battle tank
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The T-80 was the
first production main battle tank, fitted with a gas turbine engine |
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Country of origin |
Soviet Union |
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Entered service |
1976 |
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Crew |
3 |
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Dimensions and weight |
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Weight |
42 t |
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Length (gun forward) |
9.47 m |
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Hull length |
6.78 m |
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Width |
3.53 m |
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Height |
2.3 m |
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Armament |
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Main gun |
125 mm smoothbore |
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Anti-tank guided weapons |
1 x 12.7 mm, 1 x 7.62 mm |
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Machine guns |
x (x rounds) |
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Elevation range |
- 5 to + 14 degrees |
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Traverse range |
360 degrees |
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Ammunition load |
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Main gun |
40 rounds |
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Machine guns |
300 x 12.7 mm, 2 000 x 7.62 mm rounds |
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Mobility |
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Engine |
GTD-1000T gas turbine engine |
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Engine power |
1 000 hp |
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Maximum road speed |
70 km/h |
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Range |
335 km |
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Maneuverability |
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Gradient |
60% |
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Side slope |
40% |
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Vertical step |
1 m |
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Trench |
2.85 m |
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Fording |
1.2 m |
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Fording (with preparation) |
5 m |
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The T-80
main battle tank is a further development of the
T-64. The
tank was powered by a gas turbine engine. This was essentially a
modified helicopter powerplant, adapted for use on tanks. A number
of T-64 drawbacks were fixed. The T-80 was adopted by the Soviet
Army in 1976. Original version of the T-80 was produced only in
small numbers. This was also a more capable
and sophisticated alternative to the
T-72. The most significant features of
the T-80 over the T-72 are
its gas turbine engine. It was significantly faster. With the introduction of the
T-80 the Soviet Union operated 3 different main battle tanks, the
T-64, T-72 and T-80. All of these tanks had similar design and
broadly similar capabilities, though the T-80 was the most capable.
However major components of these 3 tanks were not interchangeable.
It was a tough task for the Soviet Army to support all of these 3
different tank types altogether. After the collapse of the Soviet
Union Russia operated around 4
500 T-80 main battle tanks of all variants. Due to expensive
maintenance most of these tanks were kept
in reserve. Some official sources
reported that all T-80 series MBTs were to be removed from active service
by 2015. At the time Russian Army operated
T-90 MBTs
and overhauled or upgraded versions of the T-72. So the tanks with
conventional diesel engines were less expensive to operate and to
maintain than the T-80s. However eventually Russian MoD signed a
contract for refurbishment and upgrade these tanks in order to keep
them in operational service. In 2022 Russian Army T-80 series tanks
were widely used during military invasion to Ukraine. By April 2023
it was documented that at least of 460 Russian T-80 series tanks
were lost. Other operators of the
T-80 and its variants are
Belarus (92), China (200), Cyprus (41), Kazakhstan, South Korea
(80), Syria (320) and Ukraine (271). |
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The T-80 has
a composite armor at the front arc. The T-80 tanks were originally
painted olive drab.
The tank is
armed with a fully-stabilized 125 mm smoothbore gun. It is fitted with
a carousel-type autoloader. The autoloader is similar to that of the
T-64 but differs from that on the T-72. The use of the autoloader
allowed to reduce internal volume, as well as external dimension of
the tank, as the crewman, who loaded ammunition, was no longer
required. If the autoloader fails, the gun can be loaded manually
the crew. Though in case of manual loading the firing rate is around
1-2 rounds per minute. |
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The improved
T-80B, which entered service in 1978, as well and later variants of
the T-80, can launch Kobra anti-tank guided missiles in the same manner as ordinary
munitions.
Secondary
armament consists of 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun and 12.7 mm
anti-aircraft machine gun.
The T-80 has
a crew of three, including commander, gunner and driver. |
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This tank is
fitted with the GTD-1000T gas turbine engine, developing 1 000
horsepower. Basically it is a modified helicopter power plant. It
runs on kerosene. Advantages of such engine are its compact
dimensions, high power output. The idea to install a gas turbine
engine on a tank was not new. However the T-80 was the first
production tank to use such engine. Due to its powerful engine the
T-80 was much faster than the T-72 and T-64, and had superior
cross-country performance. The engine can start when the temperature
is as low as -40�C. Also this engine is running more quiet than a
diesel engine. However the gas turbine engine has a number of
drawbacks. Most notable is a high fuel consumption. It can consume
up to 750 liters of fuel for 100 km driven. Other drawbacks are
troublesome maintenance and high unit price. The T-80 is also fitted
with auxiliary power unit, powering all systems, when the main
engine is turned off. Suspension of the T-80 was improved comparing
to that of the T-64. |
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Interestingly several years later the US Army deployed their new
M1
Abrams tank, which also had a gas turbine engine. Other
countries relied on diesel engines for their tanks. Furthermore in
the 1980s Soviets developed a conventional diesel-powered version of
the T-80, the T-80UD, which was planned to become the main MBT of
the Soviet Army. |
Variants
T-80B, first
version of the original T-80 produced in large numbers. It entered
service in 1978. This tank is
capable of launching Kobra anti-tank guided missiles (Western
reporting name
AT-8 Songster) in the
same manner as ordinary rounds. The missiles have radio guidance and
a range of up to 4 km. These missiles extend effective range of the tank, as its gun
was not
particularly accurate at long ranges. Latter variants of the T-80 also had this capability
to launch guided missiles.
T-80BK,
command version of the T-80B, with additional radios, navigation
equipment and some other specialized equipment. In order to free up
space for this specialized equipment this variant lost capability to
fire anti-tank guided missiles. Also a number of rounds carried for
the main gun was reduced. Production of the T-80BK commenced in 1984
and ceased in 1990. A total of 256 tanks of this type were built. |
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T-80BV is an
upgraded T-80B tank fitted with Kontakt-1 explosive reactive armor
for a higher level of protection. This add-on armor increases
protection against HEAT rounds. In 2011 a total of 66 refurbished
Belarusian T-80BV tanks were sold to Yemen. Later these tanks saw
combat. By 2020 this was the most numerous version of the T-80, used
by the Russian Army. The type was actively used during the 2022
Russian invasion to Ukraine. By April 2023 it was documented that
the Russian Army lost at least 275 of these tanks in Ukraine.
T-80BVK,
command version of the T-80BV, with additional communication
equipment.
T-80U,
improved and better protected variant. It was fitted with new
Kontakt-5 explosive reactive armor. It is estimated that armor
protection of the front turret armor on the T-80U is equal to 900 mm
against HEAT rounds and 1 100 mm against kinetic energy munitions. The T-80U MBT was originally produced
with the GTD-1000TF gas turbine engine, developing 1 100 hp. This
tank was adopted by the Soviet Army in 1985. Tanks
produced in the early 1990s were fitted with a more powerful
GTD-1250 gas turbine engine, developing 1 250 hp. This version was produced until
1992.
T-80UK,
command version of the T-80U. |
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T-80UD,
has gas turbine engine replaced by a conventional diesel engine,
developing 1 000 hp. Otherwise it is similar to the T-80U. This tank
was introduced in 1985 and adopted by the Soviet Army in 1987. It
was planned to become the main MBT of the Soviet Army.
However its production ceased
in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union. These tanks are currently in service with Russia and
Ukraine. A number of Ukrainian T-80UDs were exported to Pakistan in
the late 1990s.
T-90 uses
complete turret with all weapon systems of the T-80U, mounted on a
well proven chassis of the T-72 tank with a diesel engine, which is
more fuel efficient. The T-90 was developed after collapse of the
Soviet Union and officially adopted by the Russian Army in 1993. Its
low-rate production commenced in 1994. Currently the T-90 is the
most modern main battle tank, used by the Russian Army. Also it is
among the best 10 main battle tanks in the world.
T-80UM1 Bars, has a Shtora-1 countermeasures system, which
significantly reduces the chance of being hit by enemy anti-tank
guided weapons with semi-automatic guidance, and more
powerful engine. It was intended for export customers, but received
no production orders. |
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T-80UM2,
another improved version of the T-80U. As with the T-80U-M1 it was
also aimed mainly at export customers. However it had a new cast
turret and used a
Drozd-2 active protection system instead of the
Arena. Only a single tank was built and it never reached production.
T-80UE1 is
an upgraded version of the T-80U, fitted with a thermal sight. This
version was officially adopted by the Russian Army in 2005.
T-80BVM is a
recent upgraded version of the T-80BV, fitted with Relikt explosive
reactive armor and some other improvements. This upgraded version
was first publicly revealed in 2017.
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