Russia's Deadly T-14 Armata Tank: Is It Worth It?
The Armata faces a special kind of challenge: all of its bells and whistles don’t come cheap.
The T-14 Armata boasts a bevy of best-in-class features, but can Russia produce enough of them?
By far the most anticipated product in the next-generation Armata Universal Combat platform, the T-14 Armata is a main battle tank (MBT) that clocks in at forty-eight tons and can reportedly reach speeds of ninety kilometers per hour. The tank is designed around an unmanned turret scheme, boasting a 125-millimeter 2A82-1M smoothbore gun with autoloader compatibility. The T-14 also sports the Kord 12.7mm heavy machine gun with a sophisticated “remote reloading” mechanism, in addition to the latest in Russian explosive reactive armor technology, laser-guided missile integration, partially automated targeting algorithms, and digitized onboard equipment. The tank’s other features may include future potential compatibility with laser weapons and hypersonic missile systems.