A brand new video is prone to go viral on the web and throughout social media within the coming days. A Russian Military T-90M Proryv tank was brutally blown up, with its turret capturing into the air like a rocket, reaching an estimated top of 20–30 meters.
The video originates from the Ukrainian entrance. The precise time and site of the incident are unclear from the Conflict Report’s documentation. The footage begins with the tank’s explosion, leaving unanswered questions on the way it was hit. More than likely, an anti-tank missile struck the turret, the place the Russians have compromised security by storing the tank’s ammunition.
The T-90M makes use of varied varieties of tank ammunition, together with high-explosive fragmentation [HE-FRAG] shells such because the 3OF19 or 3OF26, high-explosive anti-tank [HEAT] rounds just like the 3BK29 or 3BK31, armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot [APFSDS] projectiles just like the 3BM42 Mango or 3BM60 Svinets-2, and guided missiles such because the 9M119 Refleks or 9M119M Invar.
In different phrases, the first reason behind the turret’s “launch” is the detonation of saved ammunition, primarily HE-FRAG and HEAT shells, mixed with the compact design of the Russian tank, which doesn’t isolate the ammunition from the crew and turret.
Incidents involving the destruction of Russian tanks just like the T-90M Proryv proceed to spotlight the numerous flaws within the design of those autos. One of many best weaknesses of the T-90 and its predecessors is how ammunition is saved—compactly positioned in an automatic carousel on the base of the turret.
This design alternative goals to cut back the tank’s general measurement and enhance its firepower however represents a trade-off that locations your entire crew at immense threat.
When the armor is breached, significantly if an anti-tank missile or shell strikes the fight compartment, the ensuing excessive temperature and strain can immediately detonate the ammunition.
The shortage of remoted and guarded storage, as seen in Western fashions just like the American M1 Abrams, triggers a series response that successfully destroys the tank. Essentially the most hanging and dramatic result’s the turret being ejected to heights of 20–30 meters, a phenomenon that has turn into grimly attribute of Russian tanks in Ukraine.
The T-90M, as a modernized model, consists of Relikt reactive armor, which is simpler than older programs like Kontakt-5. Nevertheless, its main position is to defend in opposition to the preliminary influence.
If the armor is penetrated—for instance, by fashionable anti-tank weapons such because the Javelin or NLAW—the reactive armor can’t stop catastrophic penalties contained in the tank.
This vulnerability isn’t just a technical concern but in addition a strategic one. In fashionable warfare, the place moveable anti-tank programs are available to infantry, tank designs should prioritize crew safety within the occasion of an armor breach.
Whereas Western fashions isolate ammunition from the crew utilizing protected compartments with blow-out panels, the Russian method focuses on compactness and cost-effectiveness—one thing that vastly reduces the crew’s possibilities of survival in a direct hit.
Fashionable Western tanks just like the M1A1 Abrams, Challenger 2, and Leopard 2 are thought of a few of the most superior fight autos, but they don’t seem to be resistant to destruction in modern warfare.
Regardless of their high-tech safety programs and superior armor, the evolution of anti-tank weapons and the complexity of the battlefield make them weak, particularly in opposition to a well-prepared adversary.
The M1A1 Abrams, one of the vital famend Western tanks, options remoted ammunition storage with particular blow-out panels to direct explosions away from the tank.
This considerably will increase the crew’s survival possibilities within the occasion of a breach. Nonetheless, throughout intense fight, the Abrams has confirmed weak to fashionable anti-tank missiles just like the Kornet or precision strikes from drones.
Its heavy armor and energetic safety programs can defend in opposition to some varieties of assaults however not in opposition to direct hits to its flanks or the highest, that are its most uncovered areas.
The Challenger 2, recognized for its resilient Chobham armor, can also be considered extremely protected. Nevertheless, fight expertise in Ukraine has proven that even this armor could be breached with the appropriate ways or fashionable weapons.
One of many few documented circumstances of a destroyed Challenger 2 in Ukraine occurred after a exact strike that ignited its gasoline and ammunition. Though the British tank has a superb survival status, its complexity and the necessity for specialised upkeep make it difficult to make use of in dynamic fight situations.
The Leopard 2, thought of one of the vital balanced Western tanks, additionally suffers from vulnerabilities in particular areas, significantly across the turret and facet armor. In Ukraine, the Leopard 2 has been destroyed by anti-tank missiles and improvised explosive units regularly employed by Russian forces.
Whereas its frontal armor is powerful, the tank’s facet and rear sections are much less proof against strikes, making it weak to ambushes. Its energetic safety programs, similar to Trophy, additionally don’t assure full immunity in opposition to massed assaults or coordinated strikes.
What these tanks have in widespread is their emphasis on crew safety. But in fashionable warfare, the place drones, anti-tank missiles, and artillery dominate, even essentially the most superior armored autos are simply uncovered to destruction.
Their effectiveness depends closely on correct deployment—in coordination with infantry, air help, and reconnaissance. The absence of such synchronization, as usually noticed in chaotic fight conditions, can flip even essentially the most superior tank into an costly goal.
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