Russia's tank revival: Old models, new upgrades amid losses
The Russian company Uralvagonzavod in Nizhny Tagil has announced the shipment of the last tank delivery in 2024. Here's what the Russians' New Year delivery included.
The Russians suffered significant armoured losses in Ukraine, and their restoration is being carried out in two ways. On the one hand, old models such as tanks from the T-54/55 and T-62 families are being reactivated from the post-Soviet stocks, and on the other, the hulls of T-72 B tanks from deep storage are being used to accelerate the production of new T-72B3 and T-90M tanks.
On the official Uralvagonzavod channel on Telegram, a Russian video shows the production line at the Nizhny Tagil plant and railway transport containing at least five machines, four of which are T-90M tanks with additional anti-drone protection. In the background, another transporter is visible, most likely containing four tanks, although the official number of tanks produced is unknown.
It is also worth noting that the different colours of some elements or rust are most likely due to the use of previously used parts to speed up production. For example, one of the tanks shown has a barrel most likely taken from an old piece (different shade), and four tanks on the railway trailer have rusty tracks.
Additionally, at least some of the tanks have been equipped with elements characteristic of the Arena-M active protection system. This is surprising, as machines equipped with this system have not been seen at the front so far.
Arena-M system - an old idea adapted to new conditions
Due to their losses, the Russians were forced to return to developing the Arena active protection system, which had been under development since the 1980s. The result of this work is the Arena-M system, which was first showcased during the Army-2024 exhibition.
It is worth noting that the Russians were pioneers of active protection systems initially, such as the 1030M Drozd developed in the 1970s, which is seen on, among other tanks, the experimental T-80UM2 tank. However, the idea's implementation later failed due to the USSR's technological and financial issues.
The idea inspired designers in Israel, who developed the currently most effective and popular active protection system, Rafael Trophy. In Russia, the Arena system was developed, intending to include radar and countermeasure launchers.
The new Arena-M system is likely a modification of the old solution that considers the shortcomings of the old system. The old version could only detect objects moving at speeds over 250 km/h and ignored missiles attacking from above, such as the TOW-2B or FGM-148 Javelin.
Arena-M system - besides advantages, it also has drawbacks and limitations
The Arena-M system is lighter than the old version and may also be capable of shooting down FPV drones. However, the system must have some filter to distinguish between dangerous objects and, for example, birds. Drone pilots may potentially identify the system's activation point and, for instance, approach more slowly.
Another issue is repelling the attack of multiple objects quickly, which is likely to function less effectively in the Russian system than in the more refined Israeli Trophy. For instance, a T-90M with Arena-M may be insufficient to withstand a simultaneous attack by a swarm of 10 FPV drones.
Furthermore, in theory, the Russians had to address one key challenge when using the Arena and other similar systems. This is the risk to their soldiers near the tank, but given the current lack of regard for the lives of soldiers, it is doubtful that anything has been done in this regard.
