Russia resorts to outdated T‑62M tanks for Ukraine offensive

The Russians boast about producing hundreds of tanks annually, but in practice, this means refreshing old machines from Soviet-era stockpiles. These are not infinite, and the longer the war continues, the more the Russians are forced to renew tanks in increasingly worse condition or turn to older models.

In recent months, it has become apparent that the Russians are already running out of T-80BW, T-90A, or T-72B tanks, as T-62M tanks dominate rail transports. Instances of even older T-54/55 tanks also appear.

The history of the T-62 tanks dates back to the 1960s when they were developed as an upgrade of the T-54/55 family. The new design strengthened the armor by adding an additional steel plate and introducing a new 115 mm smoothbore gun, which differed from the previously used rifled guns.

In the 1980s, the Russians upgraded the tanks to the T-62M/MW standard by adding composite armor blocks on the turret and hull, as well as reactive armor blocks called Kontakt-1, increasing the protection offered by the first variants of the T-72 tank.

This upgrade also enhanced the fire control system with a laser rangefinder, allowing for firing 9K116-2 Sheksna anti-tank guided missiles from the main gun.

At the time, it was still a somewhat usable machine, but 40 years later, it is a museum relic vulnerable to being destroyed by any relatively modern anti-tank weapon. Today, its armor mainly provides protection against fire from automatic cannons used on infantry fighting vehicles, and even then, not all of them.

Adding cage armor, a roof, and more Kontakt-1 blocks will only slightly enhance the level of protection against simple means like FPV drones. Furthermore, it is a completely blind construction at night due to the lack of thermal imaging or even passive night vision, and the 115 mm caliber shells cannot penetrate the armor of T-72 or T-64 tanks.

In practice, T-62 tanks can only serve as self-propelled field artillery with a range of a few miles, firing high-explosive fragmentation shells. Even the Leopard 1A5 tank, donated to the Ukrainians and considered its contemporary, is a more useful solution despite having even thinner armor because it has a relatively modern fire control system with thermal imaging and a ballistic computer.

However, recent footage from regions north of Kharkiv shows that the Russians use T-62M tanks in regular armored assaults just like other machines. Of course, this results in increased losses because these machines are much easier to destroy than newer versions of T-72B or T-80.