T-62M-1

T-62M-1

T-62

T-72A

T-62M-1

T-62

T-72A

USSR

VI Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
9.0	9.0	9.0

Class:

Medium tank

Research:94 000

Purchase:520 000

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Description

The T-62M-1 is a rank VI Soviet medium tank with a battle rating of 9.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.79 "Project X".

A modernized version of the famous T-62, the T-62M-1 chiefly features improved firepower, fire control, and protection in a similar manner to the T-55AM-1. The hull and turret feature add-on composite armour, including the conspicuous "brow" arrays on the turret cheeks. The gun is now equipped with a thermal sleeve and can fire improved APFSDS and HE shells in addition to a potent ATGM. A laser rangefinder is mounted in a large box above the gun barrel, smoke grenade launchers are added to the turret side, and a more powerful engine has been installed to compensate for the increased weight of all these new features. Though the T-62M-1's gun handling and speed are still inferior to most of its competitors, it has many tools at its disposal and can be a formidable opponent despite its old chassis and somewhat crude nature.

General info

Survivability and armour

The T-62M-1 has very similar armour to the T-55AM-1, having similar composite add-on armour. The turret cheeks are protected by large curved composite blocks, sometimes historically referred to as "Brezhnev's Eyebrows" due to their appearance. These mean the turret can withstand many kinetic rounds, including any APFSDS that has less than 400mm of penetration. The protection against chemical munitions is even greater, able to stop between 450-750mm of chemical penetration depending on the angle. The hull protection is less, although still relevant. The hull composite will stop APDS and HEAT rounds from the L7 105mm gun, but any more powerful rounds will penetrate. The hull sides are relatively well protected. 80mm RHA will stop most autocannon rounds, and the composite skirts as well as flaps can stop HEAT rounds at an angle.

Weak Points:

Frontal weak points include the cannon breech area, as it is not covered by the add-on composite. Additionally the lower front plate is not protected by composite. These areas are easy to penetrate. The hull sides also are only 20mm near the bottom, which is a weakness that can be exploited by autocannons. The rear armour is not worth mentioning, as it will not stop anything larger than a heavy machine gun.

The T-62M-1 also has wet ammunition storage bins. 24 rounds are placed within the fuel tank located beside the driver, acting as a spaced armour, protecting the ammunition from HEAT. In fact, rounds within the fuel tank are extremely unlikely to be detonated by HEAT.

Mobility

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)		Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse	Stock	AoA	Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	57	9	41.9	0.03	1,069	1,316	25.47	31.33
Realistic	51	8			610	690	14.53	16.43

Armaments

Main armament

115 mm U-5TS					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	40	-6°/+16°	±180°	Two-plane	15.20	20.97	__.__	__.__	__.__	12.00	_.__	_.__	_.__
Realistic					9.50	11.21	__.__	__.__	__.__

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
3BM21	APFSDS	420	415	405	390	380	370
3BM28	APFSDS	450	445	435	420	415	410
3BK15M	HEATFS	500	500	500	500	500	500
3OF27	HE	40	40	40	40	40	40
9M117	ATGM	600	600	600	600	600	600

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile Mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
3BM21	APFSDS	1,620	4.55	N/A	N/A	N/A	76°	77°	80°
3BM28	APFSDS	1,620	4.88	N/A	N/A	N/A	76°	77°	80°
3BK15M	HEATFS	800	12.20	N/A	0.1	2,280	65°	72°	77°
3OF27	HE	800	17.82	0.1	0.1	4,820	79°	80°	81°
9M117	ATGM	370	18.80	N/A	0.1	3,000	80°	82°	90°

Ammo racks

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	6th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
40	__ (+__)	__ (+__)	__ (+__)	__ (+__)	__ (+__)	__ (+__)	__

Machine guns

12.7 mm DShK
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Pintle	300 (50)	600	-10°/+60°	±180°

7.62 mm PKT
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	3,000 (250)	700	N/A	N/A

Usage in battles

The T-62M-1 should be played like other high tier Soviet MBTs, though with an higher emphasis on range and cover. Hide your hull and use your almost impenetrable turret armour to deflect hostile fire. If possible, try to use cover to conceal your cannon breech, as a well-placed APFSDS can disable your cannon and, depending on which side of tank you were hit from, kill your gunner or loader. A turret penetration may result in a one-shot kill if it hits your ammo. Do not allow yourself to fall into close-range combat areas if at all possible.

Those who have fought and/or used the T-55AM-1 will find the same tactics and assumptions work against the T-62M-1, as well. It performs similarly, mostly just having upgraded the strengths the T-55AM-1 is known for; the turret armour is even better, and the power of the variety of rounds these tanks are known for has been increased, thanks to the increased calibre of the cannon (from 100mm on the T-55AM-1 to 115mm on the T-62M-1). This allows the T-62M-1 to have ways of dealing with vehicles all the way up to 10.0.

Thanks to the incredible turret armour, and highly effective and varied ammunition choices, the T-62M-1 is highly suited for a long-range sniping and support role. Players of tanks such as the Chieftain will have an idea of the playstyle. Use your fast and powerful APFSDS rounds to quickly disable targets travelling quickly at ranges out to several kilometres, use your potent HEAT-FS to dispatch targets at closer ranges, or fire the breech-loaded ATGM for highly accurate shots against exposed targets, both ground and air (especially against helicopters).

Try to avoid close-range engagements at all costs. The T-62M-1 suffers in almost all regards compared to other tanks at closer ranges. Compared to other common tanks, such as the XM-1 (GM), the T-62M-1 has a far longer reload, worse acceleration and top speed, a larger and slower turning circle, and a poorer turret traverse speed. If you get caught out, try to take quick shots to disable the mobility of enemy tanks if you cannot out-right kill them, and make your goal of upmost importance to leave the area immediately. Use your smoke launchers to hide your retreat, and cover your upper frontal plate at all costs; a penetration on the left side of your front plate will spell instant death.

Beware of high tier American MBTs, as their mobility allows them to easily flank you and get a shot into your weaker side armour. The Type 90 also poses a grave threat, as they can easily penetrate your turret armour and cripple your tank.

Your tank also has a large amount of weak-spots from even the slightest angle above you, so make sure you take enemy helicopters seriously and deal with them as fast as possible. Your gun elevation isn't the greatest, so make sure you use terrain to help lift your gun as well as present thicker armour profiles.

Fighting the T-62M-1

The T-62M-1's core strengths lie in the frontal armour and versatile ammunition choices. Do not attempt to out-snipe a T-62M-1 in anything short of a hull-down British MBT. Instead, abuse the T-62M-1's inferior mobility to out-flank it and quickly disable the gun. At closer ranges with higher penetration shells (260mm+ penetration, chemical or kinetic), shooting the cannon breech can also serve to turn the T-62M-1 into an easy kill.

If you're engaging a wary T-62M-1 at closer ranges, try to bait out a shot or wait until he fires. The T-62M-1, depending on crew skills, has a reload of up to 12 seconds, giving a smart opponent plenty of time to take out a T-62M-1 after he fires. Using smoke to hide a quick change in your position can also work well, as both the T-62M-1 itself and its turret turn slowly compared to vehicles it will face, giving you time to drive around it in the confusion.

Modules

Tier	Mobility		Protection		Firepower
I	Tracks		Parts		Horizontal Drive	Laser rangefinder
II	Suspension	Brake System	FPE	Smoke grenade	Adjustment of Fire	3BK15M
III	Filters		Crew Replenishment	NVD	Elevation Mechanism	9M117
IV	Transmission	Engine	Side skirts	ESS	Artillery Support	3BM28

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Powerful and varied ammunition choices, comparable to several top-rank vehicles
• Access to a gun-launched ATGM with 600mm chemical, for long ranges or dealing with helicopters
• Laser rangefinder and high-velocity ammunition allows long-range sniping
• Tough turret cheek armour for the battle rating, as well as a composite addon on the glacis which may help in some cases
• Wet ammunition storage within the frontal fuel tank holds the ready ammunition, greatly reducing the chances of a penetrating HEAT jet detonating it
• Four crew members, compared to the three of most Soviet MBTs, increase its survivability on the battlefield

Cons:

• Upper front plate armour is inadequate against most enemies, especially in uptiers
• One of the most immobile top rank MBTs
• Three crew members lined-up on the right side of the tank, one shot may knock them all out
• Weak gun mantlet, leaving cannon breech highly exposed at closer ranges; there are also big gaps between the "eyebrow" addon armour and the gun
• Very long reload time compared to most contemporaries leaving you unable to deliver quick follow-up shots

History

By the early 80s, the USSR began deploying new tanks: the T-72s, the modernized versions of the T-64, and its derivatives, the T-80s. However, the country also had a rather large fleet of "old-school" models that were no longer a match for the newest tanks but still possessed some modernization potential. So, in 1981 the government approved a project on the complex modernization of the T-62s. The aim of the project was to upgrade the defenses and augment the tanks' firepower. Following several radical design changes, the tank's combat effectiveness – despite the resurfaced issues and substantial age of the model – was significantly increased, putting the modified T-62M-1 on the same level as the third-generation tanks.

- From Devblog

Media

The Shooting Range #103 - Metal Beasts section at 04:18 discusses the T-62M-1.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the vehicles;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

• [Devblog] Т-62М-1: the fight continues!