The Russian army started using Terminator-2 tank support combat vehicles in Ukraine. A knowledgeable source told this to RIA Novosti.
“BMPTs, together with tank detachments, are involved in the fire destruction of Ukrainian positions, teams of armored vehicles and anti-tank missile systems,” the source said. According to the agency’s interlocutor, the participation of the “Terminators” in “special operations” will allow “finally to form the tactics of using these vehicles and to determine their place in the armored groups.”
The experience of local wars and armed conflicts has shown that the greatest danger to armored combat vehicles in combat conditions in dense urban areas and rough terrain is posed by hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers (RPGs) and anti-tank missile systems ( ATGMs).
Based on this, the designers of the Uralvagonzavod, on their own initiative, developed this combat vehicle as a means of covering tanks from fighters equipped with RPGs and anti-tank systems. The Terminator was created on the basis of the T-72 main battle tank in 2001 and began to be used by the troops in 2011.
It is equipped with an Ataka-T complex, which includes two rapid-firing 30 mm cannons, 7.62 mm PKTM machine guns, two AGS-17D automatic grenade launchers and anti-tank guided missiles (9M120-1) with a tandem HEAT warhead. ) and ATGMs with a high-explosive volumetric detonating warhead (9M120-1F).
In 2018, ten Terminator BMPT entered the 90th Guards Tank Vitebsk-Novgorod Division of the Central Military District (TsVO) in the Chelyabinsk Region, the permanent deployment point of the formation is the city of Chebarkul.
“Terminator-2” was first presented at the international military-technical forum “Army-2015”, and from 2021 it began to be mass-produced. The main difference from the first model of the machine is the updated sighting equipment, which includes laser rangefinders, ballistic computers and unified television and thermal imaging channels, and the reduction of the crew from five to three people.
It is noteworthy that it took a long time for the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation to decide whether to order this car and how to use it. There was also a certain spectrum of opinion in the Russian expert community. Many experts believed that the BMPT should have better detection and reconnaissance means to track dangerous tank targets than the tanks themselves. The capabilities of the “Terminator” in this sense do not exceed the capabilities of the tank’s observation and fire control means.
At the same time, in terms of firepower, the tank is significantly superior to the BMPT. It has a 125 mm gun with a high-explosive fragmentation projectile and an ATGM launched from the muzzle.
The military campaign in Syria helped demonstrate the advantages of the Terminator, where the Terminator proved to be a universal tool in the fight against RPG and ATGM teams in the city.
As for the armed conflict during a special military operation, units and units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are currently saturated to the limit with a wide variety of anti-tank weapons – FGM-148 Javelin and NLAW anti-tank systems, M141 grenade launchers. , Carl-Gustaf M2 / M3, Panzerfaust 3 and many other Western systems.
According to the Pentagon, there are currently five or more anti-tank guns for every Russian tank. In other words, it will be more than enough target for Terminators in Ukraine.
In this regard, there is every reason to believe that the experience gained in the use of BMPTs during the conflict in Ukraine will be carefully studied at the enterprise that developed this equipment, and all necessary changes will be made in the design of armored warfare. vehicle. And this will lead to a significant increase in the combat capabilities of the “Terminators” and the improvement of all the conceptual foundations for the use of such equipment.
The author’s view may not coincide with the editors’ position.
Author biography:
Mikhail Mikhailovich Khodarenok is a military observer for socialbites.ca, a retired colonel.
Graduated from the Minsk Higher Engineering Anti-Aircraft Missile School (1976),
Air Defense Military Command Academy (1986).
Commander of the S-75 anti-aircraft missile battalion (1980–1983).
Deputy commander of an anti-aircraft missile regiment (1986-1988).
Senior officer of the Air Defense Forces Chief of Staff (1988-1992).
General Staff Main Operations Directorate Officer (1992-2000).
Graduate of the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces (1998).
Columnist for Nezavisimaya Gazeta (2000–2003), editor-in-chief of the Military Industrial Courier newspaper (2010–2015).
Source: Gazeta
