The rapid offensive of Ukraine in the Kharkiv direction, to the north-east of the country, brought many worthy rewards: the Armed Forces of Ukraine not only recaptured important sections of Ukrainian territories, but also captured a lot of military equipment from fleeing Russians. This number included even one tank – the T-90M. It is one of at least 380 Russian tanks captured by Ukraine since the start of the war, but it is extremely useful as it provides very important data.
The capture of weapons can provide valuable information about the state of enemy military equipment, which is why countries take the protection of their weapons in wars very seriously.
The Americans made many unsuccessful attempts to study the T-72 throughout the Cold War. Until a cunning Romanian arms dealer sold one to American agents in 1987, presumably under the guise of scrap metal. The deal was later uncovered and made public by the KGB.
The valuable T-72 was in service with the Russian Federation for 14 years before America finally got the opportunity to inspect it – but by then it had already been replaced. In turn, the T-90M has been in service for only two years.
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The T-90M, also known as Proryv-3, is Russia’s best battle tank. This is an upgrade of an earlier T-90 model introduced in the early 1990s. Both models, of which there are several hundred in the army, are far superior to Soviet tanks, which are still widely used in both Russia and Ukraine.
Breakouts were not used during the initial invasion, which led military analysts to believe that they were reserved for a possible war with NATO. However, the tanks did appear after a couple of months.
T-90M has several levels of protection. The first is the so-called “invisibility cloak”, which, according to the Russian Federation, can “absorb” both heat and radio signals. Theoretically, such coverage hides the T-90M from NATO airborne radars, which can track Russian vehicles at long range, and also discourages the use of guided anti-tank missiles, which rely on thermal imaging for target acquisition.
On top of that, the tank is equipped with the Afganit active protection system, which fires projectiles to intercept attacks at short range, as well as dynamic protection, used in many models of Russian tanks, which can disrupt the detonation of anti-tank missiles. Finally, there is the tank’s physical armor, about which little is known.
In addition to high-tech protection, the captured tank is equipped with the latest Russian offensive weapons, including a computerized fire control system and a cannon capable of firing guided projectiles.
The T-90M cannot be called invulnerable: the Ukrainian military has already destroyed one such tank. However, capturing another, whole, can bring much more useful information. Being able to take it apart and analyze it will make it easier to defeat more T-90Ms in the future. The captured sample will also give the military an opportunity to evaluate Russia’s claims about its military capabilities.
As the war in Ukraine continues, intelligence will receive even more useful data. The West has already gained access to many Russian radar, intelligence and command vehicles with their valuable secrets.
Source: Economist
