T-72AVR
| T-72AVR Mughwar / Asad 'Adra | |
|---|---|
| File:T-72avr.jpg A T-72AVR in the standard "sand and stone" pattern of the Riysian Joint Ground Forces. | |
| Type | Main Battle Tank |
| Place of origin |  Riysa |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1996 - present |
| Used by | Riysa |
| Production history | |
| Designer | 'Adra Tank Factory INA Design Bureau |
| Designed | 1995-1996 |
| Manufacturer | Riysian High Command |
| Unit cost | £L 3,500,000 new tank £L 2,300,000 upgrade kit (export) |
| Produced | 1996 - present |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 43.5 tonnes without ERA |
| Length | 9.63 m gun forward |
| Width | 3.62 m |
| Height | 2.23 m |
| Crew | 3 (Commander, driver, gunner) |
| Armor | Steel and composite |
Main armament | 125 mm 2A46M-5 smoothbore cannon |
Secondary armament | Coaxial 8.54 mm RAMD machine gun or 7.62 mm PKTM machinegun, Cupola mounted 15.7 mm RAKD machine gun or 12.7 mm Kord machine gun |
| Engine | Amerit MDK multifuel diesel 12-cylinder, 1,200 HP. |
| Transmission | Semi-automatic transmission, seven forward and one reverse gears |
| Suspension | Torsion bar (converted vehicles) Hydropneumatic suspension (brand-new) |
Operational range | 550 km on internal fuel |
| Speed | Up to 70 km/h on road, 45 km/h off-road |
The T-72AVR Mughwar (Arabic: مغوار , English: Commando) is an upgrade and derivative of the T-72 produced in Riysa, also known by its nickname of Asad 'Adra (Arabic: أسد عدرا, English: Lion of 'Adra), referencing the factory where it was designed and first built. It is notable for being the first tank designed and produced in Riysa independent of licensing, as well as being the most numerous tank in active service. The Mughwar is an upgrade of the venerable T-72AV, formerly available in plentiful quantities in the Riysian Joint Ground Forces, to a rough equivalent of the T-72B2 and T-72BU/T-90 tanks, with improvements to nearly every portion of the tank.
History
Following unification in 1973, and the low intensity conflicts in 1974 and 1975, plenty of Soviet-made equipment found their way into the newly formed Riysian Armed Forces. Among these were some early T-72Us, which were appreciated by the tankers that drove them. However, due to the Cold War, there was no way for Riysa to directly acquire more of these tanks, or even their spare parts. Therefore, in 1977, the 'Adra Tank Factory was tasked with reverse engineering the T-72U and producing ammunition and parts for the Riysian military.
Design
Armament
The T-72AVR uses the stabilized 125 mm 2A46M-5 gun, an improved derivative of the original 2A46 found on the T-72 and T-72A, which has been equipped by the T-80, T-90, and retrofitted to the T-72B. The gun boasts a higher barrel life of around 500 rounds, improved performance with accuracy on the halt past five kilometers, and a simplified method of changing out a worn barrel in the field. The 2A46M can still fire all Soviet and Russian 125 mm rounds, such as the 3BM44 APFSDS and 3BK21B HEAT rounds, which can penetrate 650 mm and 750 mm armor steel equivalent respectively, and in fact many T-72AVRs practice on older ammunition to use up the massive stockpile of rounds. In addition to typical 125 mm rounds, an indigenous Riysian long-rod sabot round has reportedly been developed for use on the tank in recent years, designated Sultan Yacoub. Very little has been publicly released about it to date.
Among the biggest changes to the tank were made in regards to the autoloader and ammunition capacity, with the amount of stored rounds being increased from 39 to 44, and the autoloader being significantly redesigned. The new autoloader can store up to 22 rounds at a time, and has been enlarged to accommodate the newer long-rod kinetic penetrators coming into service, such as the 3BM48 Svinets. Rate of fire has been increased, with a minimum of five seconds to load a round depending on the location in the carousel and type, and a "sequence" mode was introduced, where the autoloader can be set to continuously load ammunition of the same type repeatedly, without the need of human intervention. Theoretically, operating in this mode could lower the load cycle time to even below five seconds. The autoloader also contains the modified Ainet electronic fusing system, which is used with specially-made programmable HE-FRAG rounds.
The T-72AVR has received the indigenous 1N85 Zaytoun optics system and the Farsa fire control system. The 1N85 consists of two sets of a standard day sight, image intensifier, and a thermal imaging camera, for the gunner and the commander. In addition, a panoramic sight for the commander can be mounted, but is not found on all vehicles. The driver is fitted with a day/night sight with a low-intensity infrared searchlight. Most T-72AVRs also mount an indigenous Qanas infrared searchlight to replace the old Luna-M searchlight; the Qanas can illuminate out to 2-3 kilometers depending on local conditions.
The standard ammunition load for a T-72AVR in Riysian service consists of ten sabot rounds, six anti-tank missiles, eight shaped charge rounds, and twenty high explosive rounds. This is subject to change depending on the tank's mission and enemy units expected to be faced.
A lesser-advertised upgrade was to the stabilizer. While the 2E28M on the T-72A was considered sufficient for its time - late 70s/early 80s - and principal battlefield - central Europe - the stabilizer was inaccurate on the move past 500 meters, making it unsuitable for the large swaths of open terrain in Riysa. Two stabilizers were developed to replace it; the MMD-1 and MMD-2 stabilizers, with the latter being used on all current T-72AVRs and the former being the first replacement stabilizer, used for a while before being replaced by the MMD-2 in 2006. The MMD-2 is a hydroelectric/electric system which keeps the gun accurate enough to hit a tank-sized target at up to 2 kilometers on the move, a significant increase compared to the old 2E28M. The turret traverse rate has been increased as well, with a maximum horizontal slew rate of 50 degrees a second and a vertical elevation rate of 3.5 degrees a second, bringing it in line with most modern tanks. A third one, the MMD-3, was stated for production in 2010, which keeps the gun accurate to three kilometers while driving 30 kilometers an hour or less.
Armor and Protection
The armor composition of the T-72AVR remains the same as the T-72A it was derived from, a mix of STEF fiberglass, alumina, and steel. Additional armor plates have been added to increase its protection to be competitive in the modern environment, increasing its baseline protection to roughly that of the T-80U at the expense of weighing roughly a tonne more. The original composition was kept due to ease of maintenance and lower cost than the newer titanium or aluminum-based compositions found in the T-90 and the T-80U, as well as backwards compatibility with the baseline T-72As.
Actual thickness values are classified by the Riysian High Command, and several curious military hobbyists have been arrested on suspicion of espionage over the years, after attempting to measure the line of sight thickness of T-72AVRs at war memorials. Public data suggests that the glacis armor provides 560 mm of resistance against kinetic penetrators and 630 mm of resistance against shaped charges. The lower hull is thought to provide 270 mm of resistance against both kinetic penetrators and shaped charges, and the turret front ranges from 570/990 mm around the mantle, to 470/780 mm in the "weakened zone", to 450/650 mm on the turret edges. If correct, this makes it slightly better than the T-90A in some aspects but worse than the T-80U, without factoring in ERA.
The T-72AVR can mount a pair of rubber and steel side skirts to increase the side hull's protection against shaped charged warheads, with improved bracketing to the hull and for ERA based on feedback from older models. Also, a rubber flap is sometimes fitted to the the front of the tank to cover the lower hull, providing a slight increase in resistance to kinetic projectiles and acting as as sort of non-energetic reactive armor panel. This is estimated to provide 10-20 mm of kinetic resistance, and up to 150 mm of resistance to shaped charges.
The T-72AVR relies on multiple levels of protection, beyond the hull armor. Modern, domestically produced reactive armor is integrally attached at the factory to T-72AVRs, though it can and is often removed when additional protection is not necessary or when in transit, to lighten the weight of the tank. The protection level provided by the ERA depends on what type is installed.
Interior and Features
Comfort
Driver's Station
The driver's station is the least changed out of the three main stations. Little could be done in regards to legroom, so the main focus was on reducing the driver's workload. The hydraulic steering system was kept, but the tiller bars were replaced by a handbar arrangement similar to that on the M1 Abrams or the T-84 Oplot. The manual transmission was also replaced with a semi-automatic transmission, and the now unnecessary clutch pedal was removed, freeing up the driver to focus on manipulating the two main pedals.
Replacing the spartan indicator panel in the old T-72 is a new Yabrud digital control panel and console, offering control over the tank's main functions, presenting standard indicators such as fuel, speed, temperature, etc., plotting courses over a virtual map, and providing diagnostics, for the driver's knowledge. It also replaces the GPK-59 gyroscopic compass with a new inertial and satellite navigation-based system for more accurate navigation.
Despite the cramped conditions, the driver has access to a very spacious viewing device. The TNPO-168 found on the original T-72 was replaced by the 1N85S periscope, which consists of a single-channel color camera and image intensifier, eliminating the need for the driver to carry a separate TVNE-4 periscope for night driving. The field of vision for the 1N85S is 120 degrees horizontal, and 48 degrees vertical, giving the driver a wide field of view both in daylight and in night driving. At night, the image intensifier can generally see around 300 meters in a moonless, clear, starry night, with the range affected by ambient lighting. The driver can also turn on his IR headlights, which illuminate up to 100 meters in front of the tank, or have his vision range increased by the coaxial IR searchlight.
Gunner's Station
The gunner's station has been changed the most out of the three crew stations, reflecting the passage of time and the associated increase in technology. While the simple and cheap TNPO-165 and TNPA-65A have been kept - it was deemed unnecessary by the designers to replace the little-used gunner's periscopes, especially since they presented a smaller profile than contemporary units - the old 1A40 system has been completely replaced by the Farsa' system.
The bulk of the Farsa' system in the gunner's station consists of the monocular 1N85A sighting complex, stabilized in the vertical plane, and whose external sighting components are protected by an armored cover and ballistic glass on the roof of the tank. This is the main sight for the gunner, used to aim the main gun and coaxial machinegun, and consists of a day channel, thermal imaging night channel, and image intensifier. The reticle here contains a stadiametric rangefinder and distance markers for manual operation, which can be illuminated with a red lightbulb for better contrast. The day and night sights have two magnification settings, wide - 7x magnification and a 12 degree field of vision, and narrow - 14 x magnification and a 4 degree field of view. The range of detection for a vehicular target, like a tank, is no less than twelve kilometers in the narrow setting and no less than five kilometers in the wide setting. The range of identification for the same target is no less than six kilometers in the narrow setting, and no less than three kilometers in the wide setting.
For standard automatic operation the JQL-1 laser rangefinder is used, with a maximum range of seven kilometers. The gunner can lase a target for anywhere from one to three seconds, whereupon it will provide its user with the range information on a small digital display. This information is channeled directly into the sight block's range input unit for the convenience of the gunner, allowing him to not need to take his eyes away from the sight in order to adjust the bearing.
In addition to the laser rangefinder, the gunner has access to an accelerometer, which keeps track of the speed and direction of the tank and automatically adjusts the distance to the laser-designated target based on this information, allowing the gunner to accurately fire on the move without having to repeat the acquisition and rangefinding procedure. Assisting this is a lead calculator; based on the turret traverse speed and data while lasing the target, the lead needed to hit a moving target is calculated and provided to the gunner. Additional information is provided from the meteorological sensor mast at the rear of the turret, and the muzzle reference system for measuring barrel deformity and heat expansion.
Actual physical control of the gun and turret is provided through the use of two control sticks, as opposed to levers. Buttons for turning the rangefinder on and off, controlling the Ainets system, the autoloader sequence mode, and for firing the main gun and coaxial weapon are found here. To assist the gunner, a turret dial is located at the bottom of the sighting block, showing the direction and traverse rate of the turret. To load a shell, the gunner must first select the shell types on a 6N96 control unit. The control unit is programmed with the ballistic data of the rounds in the tank's loadout, and adjusts the sight based on the round. Afterwards, he selects the shell to be fired - kinetic, HEAT, HE, etc. - and can depress a trigger button to turn the sequence mode on or off. The autoloader circles around to find the correct round, and loads it into the breech.
The gunner has a secondary sight, the 1N85TS, used as a backup but primarily intended for guidance of GL-ATGMs such as the Kobra or Svir series. It is a thermographic camera fixed at 7x magnification, with a field of view of nine degrees. The maximum sighting range is five kilometers, and it can be used for normal targeting of the main gun, but it lacks the stadiometric rangefinder in place of a simpler reticle assembly.
Commander's Station
The commander's station is an upgrade from the earlier T-72 versions, allowing the commander to better fulfill his function in the tank crew. His main sighting device is the 1N85Q periscope, with a day channel, thermal night channel, and image intensifier. It operates in two magnifications; search - 3x magnification and a 20 degree field of vision, and focused - 7x magnification and a 12 degree field of vision. The sight is independently stabilized allowing for accurate spotting and targeting on the move, and contains a JQL-1 laser for independent rangefinding by the commander. The reticle provided consists of a basic stadiometric arrangement, which allows the commander to manually estimate the range in lew of the JQL-1, and can be illuminated with a red lightbulb for contrast.
Backing it up are the TNPO-165 and TNPA-65A periscopes retained from the original T-72 design, providing all-around visibility to the commander. Much like the gunner's periscopes, these were also left in as they were deemed sufficient enough for their role. Alternatively, the commander may use a 1N85PQ panoramic sight, but the added cost of the panoramic sight means that the T-72AVRs generally go without one for each individual tank; instead, usually platoon or company command tanks mount it.
Supporting the commander's decision-making are his multi-function consoles, providing him with diagnostics, navigation aids, and awareness and battle management as per the Riysian NIQM (Arabic: ألنظام الاتصالات للقطعات المدرعه, English: Communications System for Armored Units) system. The NIQM system is only found in Riysian tanks; export T-72AVRs can be fitted with a simplified version known as Zahra, which is more of a universal system than NIQM, or the receiving nation's own system. In the Riysian system, there are different networks with different architecture for different levels; the NIQM system is split into platoon-level, company-level, battalion-level, and regimental-level networks. The end result has been called "klunky", as it throttles the flow of information from bottom to top, as opposed to more universal systems such as Zahra or BFT. Despite the usefulness of such systems regardless, Riysian tank crews - particularly more experienced ones - use the battle management portions sparingly, preferring the use of radio instead. In fact, Riysian tank training emphasizes the effective use of radio over reliance on the battle management system, though ideally both would used together depending on the tactical situation.
Engine and Mobility
The T-72AVR is fitted with an Amerit MDK diesel-multifuel V-12 engine, weighing roughly 1,100 kilograms and giving an output of up to around 1,200 horsepower. Compared to the T-72A's 780 hp V-46 engine, the MDK is significantly more powerful, allowing it to reach high speeds comparable to the latest of modern designs. It is a turbocharged intercooled engine.
Fuel capacity