Ukrainian Defensive War against the Russian Invasion - Mark IV: The Partitioning of Discussion

[Pocket Dragoon]

T-54/55 spotted moving on trains within Russia. These might be for export to somewhere else (though who would buy a T-55 in 2023 that isn’t a museum)...

Like this:
(Though I don't figure export tanks would include crews or railhead personel in cattle-cars.)

Supposedly the same train reported by Oryx, or a very similar one; it's been spotted at several places along the line.

Edit: another trainload of T-55s:

 

[Ghostse]

T-54/55 spotted moving on trains within Russia. These might be for export to somewhere else (though who would buy a T-55 in 2023 that isn’t a museum) but it’s possible the vodka addled brains of the Russian MOD have done some reading of their own reports and their armor losses. Solution comrade? Provide tanks that even original RPG-7 rounds can penetrate.

It is unlikely that Russia will be meeting any of their export contracts while they are taking the armor losses they are taking.

Once again:
"Tom Clancy's latest book is set in 2020 and features a break away Ukraine fighting Russia. Russias initial armored thrust is stopped by Ukraine using lend-leased Bradleys and Leopard Is, depleting Russian forces to the point they are forced to reactivate T-62s and then T-55s. This part of book has been universally panned by critics as completely unrealistic"

The T55 is a very good tank.... for the 50s and 60s.
Against modern tanks, it will get chewed up.

Its an OK tank for the 50s, and only when compared to the glaring flaws of the M-48 (I'm looking you, external fuel tank).

Now they have another round of "when T-14 will come into battle you will se!!!!!!"

God we'd be so lucky. Imagine the cope when all 5 T-14 protoypes I mean fully scaled production models get wasted by a Leopard 1 without having gotten close enough for their daylight-only optics to let them shoot back.

I'm still shocked by all the KA-52 kills, and I guess as importantly the lack of new KA-52s to replace them.

 

[Pork Packer]

View attachment 4703262
*me waiting on the fall of Bakhmut.....again*

So over two weeks on aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand still no fall of Bakhmut

Meanwhile russia is desperately reactivating tanks your average african cannibal warlord would turn his jigaboo nose up at and selling its bussy in perpetuity to china in order to keep some semblance of an economy for the foreseeable future

 

[RodgerDodger]

T-54/55 spotted moving on trains within Russia. These might be for export to somewhere else (though who would buy a T-55 in 2023 that isn’t a museum) but it’s possible the vodka addled brains of the Russian MOD have done some reading of their own reports and their armor losses. Solution comrade? Provide tanks that even original RPG-7 rounds can penetrate.

So they are getting arms from North Korea? Because I could swear a few years ago it became known that Russia had no more operational T-55's. And had to rent them from the Nork's for parades.

 

[Corette]

So they are getting arms from North Korea? Because I could swear a few years ago it became known that Russia had no more operational T-55's. And had to rent them from the Nork's for parades.

I thought that was T-34's.

 

[MG-34]

So they are getting arms from North Korea? Because I could swear a few years ago it became known that Russia had no more operational T-55's. And had to rent them from the Nork's for parades.

They could have been in some depot status as donor parts for T-55 based vehicles like the Shilka or held to be used as bombing targets. I never heard of them borrowing from the DPRK but I have heard of them outright buying tanks from Vietnam for parade use.

 

[Smity Werbenjagermanjensen]

Never in my wildest dreams did I think the Russians would seriously bring a tank series out of storage that is so old that the first prototype of it was made in the closing months of 1945.

Time will tell how exactly it will be used, maybe the Russians will be stupid enough to use them as proper tanks, maybe they'll keep them as a fire support role, but no matter what their exact role will be I feel sorry for the poor fuckers that will have to use something that might legitimately be older than their grandfathers.

 

[Ghostse]

So they are getting arms from North Korea? Because I could swear a few years ago it became known that Russia had no more operational T-55's. And had to rent them from the Nork's for parades.

That was T-34s.

I wouldn't say it is impossible they are from DPRK, but seems unlikely. I would think T-55 activation by the Norks would have generated some international media attention since that's the sort of thing you can't hide from the eyes in the sky. Most likely this is old soviet stocks getting reactivated or being sent to get reactivated.
The T-55 was being produced until the 80s, so its probable these aren't much older than the T-62s we know are getting reactivated and deployed in theater.

 

[Trig.Point]

T 55's could have a place on the battlefield provided they're not used as MBT's. There was a trend in 1970's among wester militaries to have fire support vehicles (ie bullet magnets) that would be attached to regular infantry units. The Australians were big believers in it buying old Scorpion turrets and sticking them on M113's. The idea being that a shitty tank is better than no tank. They were supposed to be organic to infantry battalions, and used like the mortar and machine gun platoons.

What's better a T 55 or an MT-LB with some fudged AA gun on top?

 

[Tactical Wizard]

T-54/55 spotted moving on trains within Russia. These might be for export to somewhere else (though who would buy a T-55 in 2023 that isn’t a museum) but it’s possible the vodka addled brains of the Russian MOD have done some reading of their own reports and their armor losses. Solution comrade? Provide tanks that even original RPG-7 rounds can penetrate.

The Vietnamese: they have an indigenous T55 upgrade program, complete with ERA.

 

[Uranus Pink]

It's an OK tank for the 50s, and only when compared to the glaring flaws of the M-48 (I'm looking you, external fuel tank).

A problem that went away when the U.S. military switched to diesel engines and the older service AFVs like the M48A2s had their engines replaced.
Back to the T-55s, if they had been continuously modernized with FCS. Main gun replaced or at the very minimum using newer main gun ammunition. Same for engine, transmission and rest of power-pack and etc. T-55s would be very capable as second or third line tanks, but the cost of making and keeping them current is way more expensive than buying and maintaining a completely new main battle tank.[/B]

 

[Melmac_Knight]

T-54/55 spotted moving on trains within Russia. These might be for export to somewhere else (though who would buy a T-55 in 2023 that isn’t a museum) but it’s possible the vodka addled brains of the Russian MOD have done some reading of their own reports and their armor losses. Solution comrade? Provide tanks that even original RPG-7 rounds can penetrate.

Russia is leveling the playing field, it would be unfair to fight Ookraine with their best weapons

I have not looked in that thread for a long time, but is this all they are doing? Sperging out and becoming a darn cult or what? Are there any news that are posted there?

they're mostly fear mongering about Nukes, even though Ruzzia is threatening to use nukes, somehow its NATO's fault, they made Putin launch Nukes and overall WW3 prep

 

[mindlessobserver]

they're mostly fear mongering about Nukes, even though Ruzzia is threatening to use nukes, somehow its NATO's fault, they made Putin launch Nukes and overall WW3 prep

I bet everyone is wondering what sort of shape their nuclear forces are in, considering Russias performance with conventional forces so far.

 

[Disheveled-Human]

When you have to help out your friend but don't want to energy.

 

[Harvard Covington III]

T-18 is going to get some work done in the field. Buckle up, NATOkraine: the full Soviet arsenal is about to be unleashed!


This is what peak performance looks like.

 

[freight]

hmm makes yuo think...


i'd also like to comment that the photo on the right is RUSSIAN PROPAGANDA and TOLKENESQUE FORCED PERSPECTIVE.

like.... wtf???? is this from the biolabs???

 

[Thomas Talus]

I bet everyone is wondering what sort of shape their nuclear forces are in, considering Russias performance with conventional forces so far.

It's the most interesting question about Russia, but the one people really don't want to learn the answer to.

 

[Disheveled-Human]

It's the most interesting question about Russia, but the one people really don't want to learn the answer to.

I mean if it were up to me, if I knew it would permanently humble the Russians, now would be the time to do it as apposed to letting them get it up to snuff.

 

[DumbDude43]

It's the most interesting question about Russia, but the one people really don't want to learn the answer to.

nah it's pretty irrelevant in my opinion.
even if they're in total shambles, the potential threat they pose remains way too high for anyone to actually risk it and test them.

 

[Snekposter]

I'm still shocked by all the KA-52 kills, and I guess as importantly the lack of new KA-52s to replace them.

Don't forget some Ukrainian power lines have claimed a Ka-52 kill after a Russian pilot flew into them, lost control, and crashed.