From Euronews comes this unusual footage of people running with tanks.
Photo of the Day 2/15/2016
February 15, 2016 by 1 Comment
Kurdish female fighters commandeer a tank during a battle for an air base in north Syria
Bored soldiers race T-72 vs T-64 in Ukraine
June 4, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The Daily Mail is reporting that video footage has emerged of Russian separatist troops conducting a race between a T-72 and a captured Ukrainian T-64 Bulat MBT. The contest, which took place over a distance of 402 metres, was filmed by drones as well as from inside the losing tank. The resulting video, complete with musical accompaniment (which we recommend muting), was placed on YouTube. Due to the similarity in appearance between the to vehicles, it can be a bit hard to tell which is which, but the T-72 can be seen clearly outpacing the Ukrainian T-64. It eventually finished a good distance ahead, much to the delight of the Russians. According to the Daily Mail article, both tanks emerged undamaged after the race. One of the tank-drivers’ call name was Boroda and the other’s was Syphon.
From the Editor: Unusual Soviet target vehicles
May 27, 2015 by Leave a Comment
In our earlier post today on Soviet auto-loaders, we posted a youtube clip about the T-72 tank. This clip includes a good deal of footage that appears to be of early model T-72 tanks being put through tests or exercises. In a couple instances, they show a T-72 firing at a target tank. The scenes are quite brief, but it is still possible to identify the model of the target tank. The vehicles used were rather surprising.
The first takes place at the 7:03 mark in the video and appears to show an Israeli M51 “Isherman” as the target vehicle.
The next scene showing a target tank takes place at the 9:17 mark in the video. This shows a cannon fired missile being launched at what looks like a German Panzer III.
Considering the price that WW2 German armor commands from collectors these days, it’s somewhat painful to see one used for target practice!
Soviet Autoloader videos
May 27, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Over at the tank-net forum, user “dyankov” pointed out this Russian youtube video showing how the autoloader in a T-72 tank works. We thought it was worth sharing.
For those interested in seeing how the autoloader of the T-72 differs from that of the T-64, this video includes some brief footage of both systems. The video is in Russian so it is a bit hard to follow for non-Russian speakers (setting youtube to translate the Russian close captioning to English will result in some real comedy.) The operation of the T-64 and T-72 autoloaders can be seen starting at the 5:15 mark in the video. T-64 autoloader is the one that turns the round from vertical to horizontal while the T-72 system keeps the shell horizontal through the entire process.
This video provides an even better look at the T-64 autoloader.
And here is a short clip showing the operation of the autoloader in the T-80, which is basically the same system as found in the T-64.
Czechs to sell T-72 tanks and APCs to Iraq
February 7, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Czech News Agency is reporting that Czech firm Excalibur Army will be delivering 100 T-72 tanks and BVP-1 armored personal carriers to Iraq. These vehicles are slated to help Iraq fight the Islamic State. This follows deal that Excalibur Army recently made to sell T-72 tanks to Nigeria to help them battle Boko Haram. Excalibur Army primarily deals with older former Warsaw Pact equipment such as T-55 and T-72 tanks, BMP-1 IFV, and OT-64 and BRDM-2 wheeled vehicles. They also produce the DANA M1 CZ self-propelled howitzer and the BVP-M2 SKCZ.
Nigeria purchases T-72 tanks from Czech Republic?
January 31, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Jane’s is reporting that Nigeria is taking delivery of a consignment of T-72 tanks and other armored vehicles. According to the article preview the vehicles are being transported by plane from the Czech Republic and that “The aircraft will make three trips between Ostrava-Mosnov and the end user to transport a total of 16 vehicles.” According to the website Global Security, Nigeria has ordered and/or received 77 T-72 tanks and 16 AMX-30 tanks in the period of 2001 – 2008 to add to their existing tank inventory, which is mainly made up of T54/55 vehicles. However, other reports state that Nigeria just recently added the 77 T-72 tanks to their inventory. Reportedly, these tanks are being used to fight Boko Harum. Pictures show that these vehicles are equipped with what appears to be Kontakt ERA.
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