T-72A

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T-72A
ussr_t_72a.png
T-72A
AB RB SB
9.3 9.3 9.3
Class:
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Description

GarageImage T-72A.jpg


The T-72A is a rank VI Soviet medium tank with a battle rating of 9.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.85 "Supersonic".

General info

Survivability and armour

The T-72A's hull armour is practically the same at the T-64A's; textolite middle sandwiched between two RHA plates. The only difference being the extra degree that the T-72 is sloped at while having 10 mm more of composite armor. Soviet main battle tanks having carousel auto loaders means that a center shot will almost always be a detonation. With the T-72 this will be less likely because both pieces of ammunition are stored horizontally while in the T-64 and T-80s the powder charge is stored vertically. However ammo not within the 22 shell carousel system is stored more haphazardly. There is two diesel ammo racks within the tank- one to the right of the driver and one between the engine and fighting compartment (with some loose ammo above it). It doesn't take much to realize that like most Soviet MBTs, the T-72 is rather explosive if extra ammo is taken, so great care is needed when showing the hull. The driver should also be aware of having only 3 crew members; if one is knocked out they should be sure to return to an objective point as soon as possible to get a new one.

Mobility

Mobility characteristic
Weight (tons) Add-on Armour
weight (tons)
Max speed (km/h)
41.0 0.9 67 (AB)
60 (RB/SB)
Engine power (horsepower)
Mode Stock Upgraded
Arcade 1,209 _,___
Realistic/Simulator 690 ___
Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
Mode Stock Upgraded
Arcade 28.49 __.__
Realistic/Simulator 16.83 __.__

Armaments

Main armament

Main article: 2A46M (125 mm)
125 mm 2A46M
Capacity Vertical
guidance
Horizontal
guidance
Stabilizer
44 -6°/+13° ±180° Two-plane
Turret rotation speed (°/s)
Mode Stock Upgraded Prior + Full crew Prior + Expert qualif. Prior + Ace qualif.
Arcade 19.0 __.__ __.__ __.__ __.__
Realistic 11.9 __.__ __.__ __.__ __.__
Reloading rate (seconds)
Stock Prior + Full crew Prior + Expert qualif. Prior + Ace qualif.
7.10 7.10 7.10 7.10
Ammunition
Penetration statistics
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Penetration in mm @ 90°
10m 100m 500m 1000m 1500m 2000m
3BM9 APFSDS 321 317 303 285 268 249
3BM22 APFSDS 425 420 415 405 393 380
3BM15 APFSDS 440 430 420 410 405 400
3BK12M HEATFS 440 440 440 440 440 440
3OF26 HE 42 42 42 42 42 42
Shell details
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Velocity
in m/s
Projectile
Mass in kg
Fuse delay

in m:

Fuse sensitivity

in mm:

Explosive Mass in g
(TNT equivalent):
Normalization At 30°
from horizontal:
Ricochet:
0% 50% 100%
3BM9 APFSDS 1,800 3.6 N/A N/A N/A +1.5° 72° 73° 75°
3BM22 APFSDS 1,760 4.83 N/A N/A N/A +1.5° 76° 77° 78°
3BM15 APFSDS 1,780 3.88 N/A N/A N/A +1.5° 76° 77° 78°
3BK12M HEATFS 905 19 0.0 0.1 2,530 +0° 65° 72° 75°
3OF26 HE 850 23 0.1 0.1 5,240 +0° 79° 80° 81°

Machine guns

12.7 mm NSVT
Pintle mount
Capacity (Belt capacity) Fire rate
(shots/minute)
Vertical
guidance
Horizontal
guidance
300 (150) 700 -10°/+60° ±180°
7.62 mm PKT
Coaxial mount
Capacity (Belt capacity) Fire rate
(shots/minute)
Vertical
guidance
Horizontal
guidance
1,250 (250) 700 N/A N/A

Usage in battles

The T-72A play-style is near identical to the T-64A (and with that, Soviet MBTs from here on). One of the key differences between the two vehicles is the T-72A's stronger armor.The quartz core composed turret will also bounce a great deal of shots and can even eat up some of the strongest ATGMs. In terms of armament, the T-72A boasts the very powerful and accurate 2A46M that Soviet high rank tankers will quickly become familiar and fall in love with. Make sure to research the 3BM15 sabot rounds as soon as you can (after Parts and FPE of course), as the stock round has mediocre penetration for a sabot.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Mounts the same powerful 125mm 2A46 gun as on the T-64 and T-80
  • Low profile
  • Able to deflect most rounds from counterpart tanks of other countries if angled effectively due to its thick frontal armor
  • Very accurate gun due to the high muzzle velocity of the APFSDS rounds, making this tank an effective long-range sniper

Cons:

  • Ammo racks all around the center of the hull interior; can be easily detonated
  • Slow reverse speed and traverse speed
  • 3-man crew makes tank able to be knocked out easier
  • Gun depression inadequate for most hull-down situations, e.g. sniping from a hill
  • Not very good stock APFSDS shell with around only 320mm of penetration at close ranges

History

Development of the T-72 began shortly after the production of the T-64 highlighted several problems which negatively impacted production rates. Among these problems was an unreliable engine, which couldn’t be produced at the high rates needed for a smooth production of the T-64 to take place.

In response, the Uralvagonzavod plant began working on a modified version of the T-64, which would use a more reliable and readily available engine, in order to provide the army with a tank fit for mass-production. Apart from this, changes were also made to the armor layout, in order to simplify production and decrease costs. This work resulted in the creation of the Object 172.

Development of the Object 172 continued, and after some trials, the vehicle entered service with the Soviet Army in August 1973, receiving its official designation T-72. Shortly afterwards, the vehicle was permitted for mass production, following the issuing of an official decree in 1974.

The T-72 was also heavily exported to and produced by nations of the Warsaw Pact as well as other countries worldwide, although these vehicles received certain downgrades compared to native Soviet models. Despite this, the T-72 quickly became one of the most widely used tanks in the world, participating in more conflicts than a single devblog could ever cover.

Since production began in 1974, over 20,000 T-72 tanks were built across several modifications in the Soviet Union/Russia alone, with production of more modern variants still ongoing today, even in other countries as well.

- From Devblog

Media

An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.

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


USSR medium tanks
T-28  T-28 (1938) · T-28 · T-28E
T-34-76  T-34 (Prototype) · T-34 (1940) · T-34 (1941) · T-34 (1st Gv.T.Br.) · T-34 (1942) · T-34E STZ · T-34E
T-34-57  T-34-57 · T-34-57 (1943)
T-34-85  T-34-85 (D-5T) · T-34-85 · T-34-85E
T-34-100  T-34-100
T-44  T-44 · T-44-100 · T-44-122
T-54  T-54 (1947) · T-54 (1949) · T-54 (1951)
T-55  TO-55 · T-55A · T-55AM-1 · T-55AMD-1
T-62  T-62 · T-62M-1
T-64  Object 435 · T-64A (1971) · T-64B
T-72  T-72A · T-72AV (TURMS-T) · T-72B · T-72B (1989) · T-72B3 · T-72M2 Moderna
T-80  T-80B · T-80U · T-80UD · T-80UK · T-80UM2 · Т-80U-Е1 · T-80BVM · Object 292
T-90  Т-90А · T-90M
Trophies/Lend-Lease 
Germany  ▂T-III · ▂T-V
Great Britain  ▂МК-IX "Valentine"
USA  ▂M3 Medium · ▂M4A2