Despite the fact that the turret was concealed beneath the camo netting, it was immediately obvious that its design represented a radical departure from the traditional Soviet designs. Back then, this was nothing more than a full-sized turret mockup mounted on a production T-80U hull. The development of this project, designated in Omsk Obiekt 640, has continued.Īt the second VTTV-Omsk-97 International Exhibition of Armaments, MilitaryĮquipment and Conversion Products held in September '97 in Omsk, Siberia region, Russia, the prototype was first shown to the public, under the catchy name Chiorny Oriol (Black Eagle). Following the closure of the bureau the documentation has been transferred to Omsk which became the main maintainer of T-80 line of MBTs. In late 80s, the design bureau of Leningrad Kirov Plant (LKZ) under the leadership of Nikolai Popov developed a design of a brand-new tank based on a stretched and redesigned T-80U chassis. See the next page for specifications of the T-54/T-55 Main Battle Tank.BLACK EAGLE Main Battle Tank CHIORNY ORIOL (BLACK EAGLE) Main Battle Tank The T-54/T-55 series has proved so popular that an array of modernization packages are available around the world. The series is, or has been, used in some 47 other nations on both sides of the Iron Curtain. The T-55 is still in wide use with Soviet and Warsaw Pact forces - estimates range between 31,000 and 39,000. Estimates of total numbers vary from 42,000 to 57,000. The T-54 and T-55 were built in the Soviet Union, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the People's Republic of China. The T-55A was given an antiradiation lining, although no version of the T-54 or T-55 had true nuclear-biological-chemical warfare protection for its crew. The antiaircraft 12.7mm turret machine gun and the 7.62mm machine gun mounted in the bow plate were removed in the T-55A version to allow more room for main-gun ammunition. It was essentially an improved T-54: a more powerful version of the same V-12 diesel engine (580 horsepower), a rotating turret floor, the elimination of the loader's cupola, and an improved transmission. The T-55 model entered service in 1959 or 1960.
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