Russian military's 'Terminator' tank faces name change amid failure
The executives of the Uralvagonzavod corporation have admitted that they are considering changing the name of the heavy combat support vehicle BMPT Terminator to one "more familiar to Russians." The Ukrainian agency Unian emphasizes that the Kremlin praised machine has failed during the war and is plagued with many problems that a new name will certainly not overshadow.
"In addition to the constant improvement of combat parameters, BMPT may undergo one more significant change—the Terminator may change its name to one more familiar to Russians," the Uralvagonzavod statement read.
BMPT Terminator may change its name
According to a member of the corporation's board of directors, Igor Meshkov, "the issue of abandoning the American name of the powerful Russian machine has long been raised in society."
Looking at the BMPT Terminator's specifications, it is a machine capable of making an impression. The designers armed it with two 30 mm cannons, two 40 mm grenade launchers, a machine gun, and four Ataka-T anti-tank guided missile launchers. It is also quite well-armoured, as it uses the chassis of a T-72 tank.
Uralvagonzavod writes in its statement that "such vehicles play a very important role on the battlefield and can be used both in conjunction with tanks and as a standalone combat unit." However, the Ukrainian agency Unian reminds us that Ukrainian and Western experts have a completely different opinion, assessing the BMPT Terminator as equipment too expensive in relation to its capabilities and weaknesses, which were highlighted during the war in Ukraine.
The war in Ukraine also verified the capabilities of the BMPT Terminator
As explained by Łukasz Michalik, a journalist for Wirtualna Polska, clashes with Ukrainians have shown that the BMPT Terminator is not a superweapon but a flamboyant flop, something even some Russians occasionally admit.
The BMPT Terminator turned out not to provide any advantage over main battle tanks, even older ones, which are most frequently used by the Russian army. It is also more susceptible to damage (as confirmed by successful Ukrainian attacks), harder to repair, and requires a larger crew (five people, whereas in tanks three suffice), as noted by, among others, Topwar.ru author Yevgeny Fyodorov.
— The BMPT Terminator has shown itself only in a negative light. Due to its large mass and sluggishness, it was constantly threatened by artillery strikes. The support provided by this vehicle to tanks turned out to be poor, considering the specificity of combat operations and the armament capabilities of the BMPT — evaluated military expert Alexander Kovalenko.
