Proposal to increase T-14 Armata to temporarily use China's 'heart'

The T-14 Armata is Russia's most advanced main battle tank (MBT), considered to have revolutionized the design and manufacture of MBTs as it uses a modular turret completely separate from the body.

According to Russian advertisements, the T-14 Armta's armor is strong enough to withstand the destructive power of 120mm artillery shells fired directly at the front, sophisticated sensor systems help it recognize threats early, and the "brain" is a sophisticated fire control system so that the tank can fire accurately while moving at high speed in all weather conditions.

With its outstanding advantages, the T-14 chassis was also used to develop the T-15 infantry fighting vehicle, the T-16 recovery vehicle and most recently the TOS-2 Armtata thermobaric rocket launcher.

However, the Russian ambition does not stop there, because it is determined to "surpass" all NATO tanks in both the present and the future, so the 125 mm 2A82 gun is not enough, the main gun of Armata must be upgraded to 152 mm like the Object 292 in the past.

In addition, the T-14 tank is also equipped with the Afghanit active protection system (APS), which is a very necessary weapon when the M1 Abrams tanks have been integrated with the Trophy complex while the Chinese ZTZ-99 will be GL5, so the Armata cannot fall behind.

Although the development of the two weapons is difficult, it is still within the reach of the Russians. The only problem is that the heart for the T-14 has not yet been shaped.

Weighing up to over 50 tons when carrying all the above weapons and equipment, the Armata's engine must have a minimum capacity of 1,500 and an optimal capacity of 2,000 horsepower to help this steel monster reach a speed of 70 - 90 km/h.

Unfortunately, at present, the Russian defense industry cannot replace the absence of Ukraine because the key facilities are still located in Kiev. Russia is capable of filling the gap, but that is not in the near future, while the deadline for mass production of Armata is approaching.

Therefore, just like the Buyan-M missile boats are having to temporarily install Chinese turbocharged diesel engines, there has been a proposal that Russia should buy the "heart" of the VT4 tank to integrate into the Armata.

The VT4 tank engine is made in China using German technology with high reliability. It has a capacity of 1,300 horsepower, although it does not meet the requirements, it is still better than the current 1,200 horsepower A-82-2.

Since the need for mass production is urgent, if the development of the 152mm gun and the Afghanit APS system is completed first, the prospect of Russian tanks being equipped with Chinese engines in the first production batches is entirely possible.