Russian tank production dwindled in the years before and after the breakup of the Soviet Union. Production and service history An early series T-90 with cast turret during a military exercise in Russia, demonstrating deep fording Work on the Object 187 was simultaneously stopped for unknown reasons. In March 1991, the Soviet Ministry of Defense recommended that the Army adopt the Object 188. An improved variant (called the T-72BU) was delivered beginning in June 1990.

The first four of these were delivered for trials in January 1989. The Object 188 was initially designated as the T-72BM. The biggest change was the integration of the 1A45 fire-control system of the T-80U. The Object 188 was engineered by a team under V.N. The vehicles resulting from the Object 187 program have not been declassified to this date. Development work was approved in 1986 and the first prototypes were completed by 1988. The Kartsev-Venediktov Design Bureau from Nizhny Tagil was responsible for the design work and prepared two parallel proposals-the Object 188, which was a relatively simple upgrade of the existing T-72B tank ( Object 184), and the far more advanced Object 187-only vaguely related to the T-72 series and incorporating major improvements to the hull and turret design, armor, powerplant and armament. The T-72 platform was selected as the basis for the new generation of tank owing to its cost-effectiveness, simplicity and automotive qualities. The T-90 has its origins in a Soviet-era program aimed at developing a single replacement for the T-64, T-72 and T-80 series of main battle tanks. It entered service with the Russian Army in 1992. The T-90 was designed and built by Uralvagonzavod, in Nizhny Tagil, Russia. Standard protective measures include a blend of steel and composite armour, smoke grenade dischargers, Kontakt-5 explosive reactive armour (ERA) and the Shtora infrared anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) jamming system.

It uses a 125 mm 2A46 smoothbore main gun, the 1A45T fire-control system, an upgraded engine, and gunner's thermal sight. The T-90 is a third-generation Russian main battle tank developed to replace the T-72. Steel-composite-reactive blend APFSDS: 550 mm + 250–280 mm with Kontakt-5 = 800–830 mm USD 2.5 million in 1999, USD 2.77–4.25 million in 2011 (varies by source) ġ,400 units of T-90S/SM built in India under licenseĤ6 tonnes (45 long tons 51 short tons) (T-90)Ĥ6.5 tonnes (45.8 long tons 51.3 short tons) (T-90A)Ĥ8 tonnes (47 long tons 53 short tons) (T-90SM)

Top modern light tanks