T-80
The T-80 is a main battle tank (MBT) that was designed and manufactured in the former Soviet Union and manufactured in Russia. The T-80 is based on the T-64, while incorporating features from the later T-72 and changing the engine to a gas turbine. When it entered service in 1976, it was the first production tank to be powered solely by turbine.
| T-80 | |
|---|---|
T-80BVM, the latest variant of the T-80 | |
| Type | Main battle tank |
| Place of origin | Soviet Union |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1976–present |
| Used by | See Operators |
| Wars | |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Nikolay Popov, LKZ (T-80) KMDB (T-80UD) |
| Designed | 1967–1975 |
| Manufacturer | LKZ and Omsk Transmash, Russia Malyshev Factory, Ukraine |
| Unit cost | USD $3 million |
| Produced | 1975–2001; 2024? (T-80) 1987–present (T-80UD) |
| No. built | 5500+ |
| Variants | Engineering & recovery, mobile bridge, mine-plough with KMT-6 plough-type system and KMT-7 roller-type system. |
| Specifications (T-80B / T-80U) | |
| Mass | 42.5 tons (T-80B), 46 tons (T-80U) |
| Length | 9.9 m (32 ft 6 in) T-80B, 9.654 m (31 ft 8.1 in) T-80U (gun forward) 7.4 m (24 ft 3 in) T-80B, 7 m (23 ft 0 in) T-80U, (hull) |
| Width | 3.4 m (11 ft 2 in) T-80B 3.603 m (11 ft 9.9 in) T-80U |
| Height | 2.202 m (7 ft 2.7 in) T-80B, T-80U |
| Crew | 3 |
| Armour | |
Main armament | Smoothbore 125 mm 2A46-2 gun, 36 rounds and 4 9M112 Kobra ATGMs (T-80B) 2A46M-1 with 45 rounds and 6 9M119 Refleks ATGMs (T-80U) |
Secondary armament | 7.62 mm PKT coax MG, 12.7 mm NSVT or DShK or PKT antiaircraft MG |
| Engine | SG-1000 gas turbine T-80B, GTD-1250 turbine T-80U, or one of 3 diesel T-80UD 1,000 hp T-80B, 1,250 hp T-80U |
| Power/weight | 23.5 hp (17.6 kW) / tonne T-80B 27.2 hp (20.3 kW) / tonne T-80U |
| Transmission | manual, 5 forward gears, 1 reverse T-80B, 4 forward, 1 reverse T-80U |
| Suspension | torsion bar |
| Ground clearance | 0.38 m (1.2 ft) T-80B, 0.446 m (1.46 ft) T-80U |
| Fuel capacity | 1,100 litres (240 imp gal) (internal) 740 litres (160 imp gal) (external) |
Operational range | 335 km (208 mi) (road, without external tanks) 415 km (258 mi) (road, with external tanks) |
| Maximum speed | 80 km/h (50 mph) (T-80U) 48 km/h (30 mph) (cross country) |
The chief designer of the T-80 was Soviet engineer Nikolay Popov. The T-80U was last produced in 2001 in a factory in Omsk, Russia, but in 2023, the CEO of Uralvagonzavod announced that production would restart.
The Ukrainian T-80UD diesel engine variant continued to be produced in Ukraine. The T-80 and its variants are in service in Belarus, Cyprus, Egypt, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Russia, South Korea, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Ukraine further developed the T-80UD as the T-84.