The tank of the future may receive an unmanned turret with an intelligent control system and become a control center for a group of drones. Alexander Potapov, General Director of the Uralvagonzavod concern, spoke about these areas of armored vehicle development on the eve of the company's 90th anniversary.
With full robotization of the turret, the crew can be placed in a protected hull of the vehicle, and the turret systems will be able to automatically engage targets. This solution not only changes the layout of the tank: it allows separating the crew's workplace from the weapons and automating part of the processes of detecting and engaging targets.
The second direction is the integration of unmanned aerial vehicles into combat systems. According to the head of UVZ, the tank should not only perform its own fire missions but also coordinate the work of drones. This expands its role on the battlefield: the vehicle becomes a control node that connects the crew, weapons, and aerial robotic assets.
UVZ has not yet disclosed the specific technical characteristics of the new vehicles, the composition of unmanned systems, and the timing of the appearance of finished samples. Therefore, the unmanned turret and the tank — a command center for drones — should be considered as development directions indicated by the manufacturer, and not as ready-made serial solutions.