Putin inspects newest armored vehicles

During his visit to Nizhny Tagil in the Urals, Russian Prime minister Vladimir Putin visited the weapons testing-ground of the Institute of Metal Testing and Uralvagonzavod, a leading Russian tank producer.

Defense industry hosts held a live demonstration for the chair of government of the T-90A tank, BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicle, and the unique BMPT – or armored tank support vehicle.

The machine, nicknamed “Terminator”, is a dedicated infantry-fighting vehicle, which is meant to protect main battle tanks from the enemy’s anti-tank forces.

Its armor, while comparable with a T-90 tank in strength, has been modified to withstand anti-tank weapon attacks from a wider arc.

On the offensive side, the BMPT has two 2A42 cannons with 900 shells each, two AG-17 grenade launchers with 300 shells each, four Ataka-T anti-tank laser-guided supersonic missiles, and a heavy machine gun.

One such machine with a crew of five is considered an adequate replacement for two mechanized squads with six fighting infantry vehicles and 40 soldiers.

On his part, the prime minister announced a government plan to invest some $340 million in Uralvagonzavod. He also said defence companies will have more service contracts from the Defense Ministry as it downsizes its non-warfare-oriented assets.