The T-90 third-generation Russian main battle tank, designed and built by Uralvagonzavod, is equipped with a 125 mm smoothbore main armament, a top of the range fire-control system including thermal sights, and an upgraded engine.
It was hailed as the best tank in the world with its composite armor reinforced by “Kontakt-5” or “Relikt” explosive reactive armor (ERA), and the Shtora anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) jamming system claimed to provide the highest levels of protection.
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ERA consists of “tiles” made up of an explosive layer sandwiched between two metal plates, dozens of which are attached to vulnerable parts of the tank. When struck by an ATGM or other projectile, the explosive detonates to disrupt the attacking weapon, thereby preventing penetration of the main armor.
For months, pro-Ukrainian milbloggers have taken great delight in revealing how the Ukrainian military has been destroying Russian armored vehicles, particularly the “invincible” T-90M Model 2017 Proryv-3 main battle tank. This is amply demonstrated by a video compilation posted on “X” by the British blogger “Sytheruk” in July:
An article published on the military issues website BulgarianMilitary.com on Thursday has possibly revealed one of the reasons why the tank has performed so badly on the battlefield.
It cites an investigation into an almost completely destroyed T-90 in eastern Ukraine at the end of September, backed by images shared on social media. At first it was thought that the tank must have been hit by an anti-tank mine, a guided missile, first-person view (FPV) attack drones or a combination of the three.
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Those looking over the tank were shocked to find a more worrying and prosaic cause that many of the ERA tiles had been removed from supposedly protected parts of the tank. Others were simply empty and the rest of the explosive filling had been replaced by house bricks.
The BulgarianMilitary.com article said: “The irony is clear – this tank, which was supposed to be a fortress on the battlefield – had been sabotaged long before it ever reached the frontlines. Its armor, made of mere bricks, condemned it to certain destruction.”
It asks why this had happened. Had Russian forces run out of ERA tiles or removed them to fit to other vehicles whose need for protection was greater? The fact that bricks had been put in place of the explosives seemed to be a conscious attempt to camouflage the fact that the tiles were empty and suggest some nefarious purpose.
Whatever the reason, someone allowed the tank to go into battle deprived of an essential element of its defensive structure and raises the question of just how many more T-90Ms and other tanks that are fitted with Russian ERA have been sent on a suicide mission.
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