Opinion Why India's T-90s Need Russia's Dual Armor Upgrade

The Indian Army, renowned for its substantial T-90 tank fleet, faces a pivotal moment in which strategic upgrades and tactical adaptations could significantly bolster its combat prowess.

Recent modifications to Russia's T-90M tanks, specifically the replacement of the conventional cope cage with dual armor plates, offer valuable insights and potential pathways for India to enhance its own armored capabilities.

The cope cage, initially conceived as a protective measure against anti-tank missiles and drone attacks, has been superseded by two armor plates on Russian T-90Ms.

This adjustment reflects a dynamic assessment of battlefield performance and the evolving nature of threats. The armor plates provide augmented protection, particularly against contemporary anti-tank munitions, while mitigating weight and mobility concerns associated with the cope cage.

The primary advantage of adopting the dual armor plate configuration is the heightened protection it affords. In the modern warfare landscape, where anti-tank weapons are increasingly sophisticated, ensuring the survivability of tanks on the battlefield is of paramount importance. The dual armor plates have demonstrated superior resilience against these threats compared to the cope cage.

Furthermore, the added weight of the cope cage can hinder the tank's mobility, a critical factor in combat scenarios. By replacing the cope cage with armor plates, the overall weight of the tank is better managed, thereby enhancing its maneuverability. This improvement is particularly crucial for the Indian Army, which operates in diverse terrains ranging from the deserts of Rajasthan to the mountainous regions along the northern borders.

Maintenance and operational efficiency are also key considerations. The cope cage, while effective, adds complexity to the tank's design, potentially increasing maintenance requirements. Armor plates, being simpler and more integrated into the tank's structure, can reduce maintenance burdens and increase operational uptime.

It is imperative that India, like Russia, adapts its T-90s based on real-world combat feedback. A systematic evaluation of the performance of Indian T-90s in various operational scenarios is essential. This feedback loop can drive iterative improvements, ensuring that the T-90s remain at the forefront of armored warfare.

While the exact specifications of the Russian T-90M armor plates are not publicly available, open-source information suggests that they are likely composed of advanced composite materials designed to defeat a wide range of anti-tank threats.

India could leverage its existing defence partnerships and indigenous research capabilities to develop similar armor solutions tailored to its specific operational requirements.

In conclusion, the Indian Army has a unique opportunity to learn from Russia's experience and modernize its T-90 fleet. By adopting the dual armor plate configuration and engaging in a continuous cycle of evaluation and improvement, India can ensure that its armored forces remain a formidable and adaptable force in the ever-evolving landscape of modern warfare.

 

[NSR]

India must conduct thorough analyses of Russian arms performance with the cooperation of Russia and do whatever they are doing and/or whatever we can do on our own to safeguard the tanks and precious soldiers operating them.

It is extremely important and must be done very fast as we do not know when a two front war breaks out.

 

[The Presence]

Okay, so I saw the image.

The "Double Armour Plate" thing is bs. There is only 1 armour plate on top of the turret, possible made of solid steel. But instead of a 4 foot gap, it's almost attached to the turret.

It's the protection on the rear side that's interesting. Ukrainians know that they can't penetrate the Proryv's frontal or side armour with FPV Drones, and the top side has a cope cage. So they have been cleverly targeting either the back side of the turret, or the engine exhaust.

Both these areas have very weak armour, and they either score an ammo cook-off or a mobility kill respectively. So to protect this whole general area, Russians have attached a cubical steel cage armour to the back of the tank.

 

[Aravind Raveendran]

T90s might not be the best, but since we have them aplenty the only way forward is to keep on upgrading them to be competitive. We also need to work hard on our metallurgical knowledge and engine technology.

 

[Sandeep]

India needs to upgrade the armour and add another thick layer on the top, front, back and sides. We need to bring the side armour more lower so it protects the tracks and side hull where it is weaker as losing the tracks means we can’t move the tank and we would be a sitting target. At the same time we need to install more modern ERA on the front, sides, back and on top so that can protect us more from modern ATGM which can defeat modern tanks.

Also we need to develop a top cage with a light armour plate on top and sides so that kamikaze drones or normal drones aren’t able to drop any grenades or explosives through the manhole as the war in Ukraine have highlighted the vulnerability.

If all of these changes increase the weight a bit more then we can replace the engine once it completes its lifespan with our own and install a more powerful indigenous engine which gives around 1500-1800HP power compared to the current 1000HP engine and also install a auxiliary power unit to cut down on engine use whenever it’s staying still.

 

[Pad UwU]

India must conduct thorough analyses of Russian arms performance with the cooperation of Russia and do whatever they are doing and/or whatever we can do on our own to safeguard the tanks and precious soldiers operating them.

It is extremely important and must be done very fast as we do not know when a two front war breaks out.

We should send Indian generals in Russia to assess their strategic planning inside Ukraine warzone so we can simulate our own exercise when China would go berserk 🙃

 

[NSR]

We should send Indian generals in Russia to assess their strategic planning inside Ukraine warzone so we can simulate our own exercise when China would go berserk 🙃

Not a chance as Russians would not want India to see how poorly they are executing the war, poor handling of weapons, poor performance of weapons, etc.
Good but no chance at all.