The reason for the wave of reports about the Ukrainian tank "Tirex" was the publication of the corresponding patent. The developers position the project as a competitor to "Armata".
The new tank, as experts said, has a revolutionary layout: an armored capsule for three crew members in the front of the hull, an uninhabited turret with a 125-mm gun and an automatic loader, modular dynamic protection "Knife" or "Doublet". In addition, a new control system and advanced optics have been installed.
This suggests a parallel with the Russian T-14 tank undergoing military trials. Ukrainian developers are positioning Tirex as a response and competitor to Armata.
This is, of course, ridiculous. And not even because the T-14, in addition to the revolutionary layout, has the same active protection complex, the target detection and fire control system is unique, there is a phased array radar, armor made of metal-ceramic composite is unusual … The point is different: "Armata" is a new heavy platform, on the basis of which two dozen models of military equipment will be created. Tirex is simply a deep modernization of the solid Soviet T-64.
These projects are opposites and do not compete. And now we need to get used to constructive borrowing. Russian engineers opened a new direction for the development of tanks, and we will see an armored capsule in foreign products more than once.
The statements of the Ukrainians about the creation of a competitor to "Armata" can be understood - this is a marketing ploy in an attempt to advertise their project. The fact is that the authors of "Tirex" from the engineering group "Arey", which until recently was called "Azov", started in 2014 as volunteers: they bought and repaired equipment for the punitive battalion of the same name that fought in the Donbass. And the Tirex project is their chance to get serious funding, get access to real tanks, and not engage in sheathing bulldozer chassis with armor. Tirex is a project that has more media than technical significance, but if you look closely at it and others, you will find that Ukrainian developments are not devoid of originality.
According to Soviet patterns
Tank T-84 "Oplot" - the result of deep modernization of the Soviet T-80. The car turned out to be successful and at one time competed with our T-90A. In particular, in 2011, Thai Defense Ministry officials chose the Ukrainian tank, preferring it to Russian, German and American vehicles.
The choice seemed logical. At the heart of "Oplot" is a very good development for its time: the Soviet T-80 was created as a response to the German "Leopard". The Ukrainians have hung the Duplet reactive armor on the tank, which, according to the declared characteristics, is capable not only of fighting shaped-charge missiles, but also breaking sub-caliber shells. There is a "Varta" smokescreen setter, which responds to laser irradiation of a tank, and an active protection system "Zaslon" - an expensive and ambiguous in terms of efficiency, but an original way to cover the upper hemisphere of a tank from ATGM.
The main armament is a 125-mm cannon with an automatic loader and a quick-detachable barrel. Strikes at a distance of five kilometers ATGM "Kombat", piercing the armor of 650 millimeters. The turret traverse speed is 45 degrees per second. A new fire control system and a good firing system, including a thermal imager, rangefinder, panoramic sight. From auxiliary weapons - machine guns: remote-controlled anti-aircraft 12.7 mm and coaxial with a 7.62 mm cannon.
In general, not revolutionary, but a normal tank with its pros and cons.
In the line of armored vehicles "Bucephalus" let us pay attention to the BTR-4MV model of 2013. Its protection is seriously increased, its frontal armor can withstand a 12.7mm bullet hit from 30 meters. As a result, the mass of the standard armored personnel carrier increased to 17.5 tons, and in the case of enhanced armor, up to 22 tons, but the buoyancy was not lost. Instead of bulletproof glasses in the nose of the car for the driver and commander, there are now small turrets, the middle of the hull is occupied by the engine compartment, and in the aft compartment there are seven paratroopers who leave the car via the ramp. The armament of three Ukrainian-developed combat modules includes a wide choice of means: a 30-mm automatic cannon, a 7, 62-mm machine gun paired with it, an AG-17 automatic grenade launcher and an ATGM "Barrier". "Bucephalus" will not survive a hit of a serious caliber, but this does not mean that it will be possible to get close to the car within the range of a shot.
Such, albeit a deep modernization, does not cancel the obsolescence of the concept of Soviet armored personnel carriers, but still "Bucephalus" is a worthy example of an upgrade of a proven platform.
An example of an armored vehicle developed from scratch is the Dozor-B. Provides protection against small arms fire from 30 meters and 155-mm land mine fragments from a distance of 50 meters. The capacity is three crew members and six to eight paratroopers. There are half a dozen weapon options. An interesting remote-controlled combat module "Blik-2" consisting of a 12.7-mm machine gun, a 30-mm automatic grenade launcher and a device for shooting grenades to create smoke screens.
Initiative without encouragement
Ukrainian weapons have several characteristic features. First, the potential of Soviet developments is used to the maximum. A good example of this is the Stugna-P anti-tank missile system, which was put into service in 2011. It is installed on cargo ATVs, like the American BGM-71 TOW on the Humvee. Structurally, the rocket is in many respects similar to the Soviet Kustet. KAZ "Zaslon" was created on the basis of a similar Soviet complex "Barrier".
This is normal, in Russia they did the same in the first decades after the collapse of the USSR. And even now, in many, even the most advanced developments, such as the T-14 tank, Soviet ideas can still be traced.
Secondly, it is export oriented. The country's budget almost never got money for the development of new weapons. Therefore, the Ukrainian military-industrial complex survived by clinging to every opportunity. For example, he provided a wide range of services for the modernization of Soviet technology to countries where it is still used or stored. This is a huge market. Largely thanks to him, Ukraine until recently was included in the Top 20 arms exporters.
Thirdly, a predominantly proactive order - a lot of equipment was created with developer funds. Some of this is later put into service, but most of it goes to the catalogs of export products and is promoted at exhibitions. In recent years, the Ukrainian defense industry has been gushing with new projects, desperate for funding and trying to attract it in this way.
The state of the industry as a whole can be defined as a deep crisis. The Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine Stepan Kubiv said that the defense industry enterprises, which are not efficient and have gone bankrupt, and there are more than a thousand of them in the independent, will be liquidated.
"Stronghold" made of songs and words
Let's go back to the history of the Oplot tank. The Ministry of Defense of Thailand has ordered a trial batch of 54 vehicles and crew training with plans to extend the contract and increase the volume of supplies to 200 units.
The Thais have recently canceled the contract. In five years, the Ukrainians were able to assemble only 25 tanks. The reason for the delay is that the serial assembly of Oplots does not seem to exist. Each copy is made by hand and, apparently, from what is: some of the mechanisms are taken from old Soviet T-80s. One could say about the ubiquitous corruption, but this is Openel's secret, let's leave it behind the scenes.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces have never ordered large quantities of these tanks - there are only ten Oplots in service in the army.
There were also difficulties with the operation. The modernized "Oplots" are distinguished by ill-conceived ergonomics. Ukrainian tankers demonstrated excellent shooting performance, but only because they are aces with many years of experience, and it is impossible to teach Thai guys this in a few months.
In 2009, the Americans gave the Ukrainians a decent - 420 vehicles - order for the delivery of Bucephalus armored personnel carriers to the Iraqi army. But only 100 cars were exported, of which 42 were returned by the Iraqis, after which the contract was terminated. The reasons are the delay in delivery and the quality of the products: "They are very old, the bodies are rusty, the machines are unusable." A typical story.
Ukrainian designers are former Soviet engineers, plus a generation of young people has grown up. Obviously, under the right conditions, they are capable of much. However, there are no conditions. Therefore, the Ukrainian military-engineering thought and the independent defense-industrial complex are not competitors of the Russian defense industry. But, unfortunately, they are not partners either.
