The National Interest: Russia's T-95 tank could have been nightmare for NATO

By Caleb Larson

The T-95 is a tanker’s dream: highly mobile, well armored, with firepower — lots of firepower. Equipped with a 152-millimeter main gun, the T-95 would have outclassed any other tank it faced.

By comparison, the German firm Rheinmetall’s L/44 and upgraded L/55 main gun, both of which are 120 millimeters in diameter, are installed in all American M1 Abrams tanks and variants, all German Leopard 2 tanks, and virtually every other tank in NATO arsenals, as well as in Japan’s Type 90 main battle tanks, and in

South Korea’s K1A1 main battle tank.

With ammunition in the 152-millimeter class, not only would the gun’s range be greatly extended, but would, in theory, enjoy greater ammunition flexibility and logistical simplicity. 152 millimeters is a common artillery caliber, and by utilizing the same barrel diameter, the T-95 could potentially fire artillery shells in addition to tank-specific ammunition.

In addition to the gargantuan main gun, the T-95 turret was a departure in Soviet/Russian tank design. While nearly all Soviet/Russian tanks hug the ground by utilizing both a low hull and a squat, compact turret to reduce their silhouette, the T-95 does not. Instead, the T-95 has a relatively tall turret, partly to accommodate the massive main gun.

One advantage of a taller turret is in the hull-down position, in which a tank is just behind the crest of a hill, with only the turret and main gun exposed and able to fire. Most NATO tanks, and the M1 Abrams in particular, are able to utilize a more advantageous hull-down position, with their more vulnerable hull and hull belly out of sight and protected.

Soviet/Russian tanks, on the other hand, cannot effectively employ a hull-down position, due to their lower turret, which reduces the angle they can raise or (in hull-down position) lower their main gun. While Soviet tanks would thus be at a disadvantage in a defensive position, doctrinal planners accepted this drawback, envisioning Soviet tankers fighting in fluid, dynamic battles over flat terrain, where defensive positions would be less common.