Russian gas-turbine T-80BVM tanks are inferior in cross-country mobility to their diesel counterparts, the T-72B3M. This was reported by platoon commander Lieutenant Mikhail Karpov.
The serviceman managed to work with both the T-80 line and the T-72.
The T-80 has a harder time getting through thick mud; while the engine spins up, you lose time. But the 72 "jerks" off the line and bursts out of any muck without problems.
Let us recall that the T-80 is the only Russian tank with a gas-turbine engine. The vehicle was adopted for service in the USSR in 1976. In the West, the tank was nicknamed the "flying" one for its famous acceleration to 80 km/h.
The T-80 starts up and is ready to move in just 1-2 minutes at temperatures down to -40 °C. Under such conditions, the diesel T-72 requires 30-45 minutes of warm-up, which is critical in the event of a sudden attack or the need for a rapid change of position. Quite recently, the T-80 set a new firing-range record of 11 km.
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