BTR-T Russian Heavy Armored Personnel Carrier (APC)

The BTR-T ‘Armoured Transporter–Heavy’) is a Russian heavy infantry combat vehicle, designed by the Design Bureau of Transport Machine-Building (Omsk Transmash) state-run production association. It is based on the hull of the T-55 tank and answers the need for a heavy, well protected and well armed vehicle adapted to urban combat. The need for a heavy IFV appeared after the First Chechen War during which APCs such as the BTR-80 and BMP-2 suffered heavy losses in urban areas at the hands of Chechen rebels using RPG shoulder-launched anti-tank weapons. As a result, the design incorporates thicker armour, with built-in reactive armour. It also has heavier armament with sufficient elevation to engage targets in multi-story buildings. The choice of the T-55 hull rather than that of a more modern tank was decided as a cost-cutting measure and also probably in order to validate a conversion solution for the many T-55s in use around the world. It was influenced by Israel's IDF Achzarit that created virtually the same modifications in the 1980s. However, no export contracts have been signed.