David
Thu March 27, 2003 2:13pm
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Tank crews from the Alpha
Tank crews from the Alpha Company 4th Battalion 64 Armor Regiment perform a "Seminole Indian war dance" before convoying to a position near the Iraqi border Wednesday, March 19, 2003. The commander of the 3rd Infantry Division Maj. Gen. Buford Blount III, ordered his troops to reposition to locations near the border as Predisent Bush's deadline for Saddam to leave Iraq approached.
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David
Thu March 27, 2003 2:14pm
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Tank crews from the Alpha
Tank crews from the Alpha Company 4th Battalion 64 Armor Regiment perform a "Seminole Indian war dance" before convoying to a position near the Iraqi border Wednesday, March 19, 2003. The commander of the 3rd Infantry Division Maj. Gen. Buford Blount III, ordered his troops to reposition to locations near the border as Predisent Bush's deadline for Saddam to leave Iraq approached.
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David
Thu March 27, 2003 2:14pm
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U.S. Army vehicles from t
U.S. Army vehicles from the 3rd Infantry Division convoy to a position near the Iraqi border Wednesday, March 19, 2003. The commander of the 3rd Infantry Division, Maj. Gen. Buford Blount III, ordered his troops to reposition to locations near the border as Predisent Bush's deadline for Saddam Hussein to leave Iraq approached.
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David
Thu March 27, 2003 2:14pm
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Tanks from the Alpha Comp
Tanks from the Alpha Company 4th Battalion 64 Armor Regiment convoy in a heavy dust strom to a position near the Iraqi border Wednesday, March 19, 2003. The commander of the 3rd Infantry Division, Maj. Gen. Buford Blount III, ordered his troops to reposition to locations near the border as Predisent Bush's deadline for Saddam Hussein to leave Iraq approached.
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David
Thu March 27, 2003 2:58pm
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U.S. Marines are handed t
U.S. Marines are handed their allotment of ammunition to be carried on their armored amphibious vehicles March 18 at Camp Shoup, close to the Iraqi border in Kuwait. The Marines continue to prepare in the Kuwaiti desert for war with Iraq.
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David
Thu March 27, 2003 3:08pm
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American soldiers climbed
American soldiers climbed a 15-foot-high sand berm on the Iraqi-Kuwaiti border to keep watch for enemy troops on Thursday. Army units used armored bulldozers to clear holes in the berms for the advance into Iraq.
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David
Thu March 27, 2003 3:08pm
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A truck convoy carrying t
A truck convoy carrying troops of the 101st Airborne Division moved toward the Iraqi border.
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David
Thu March 27, 2003 3:12pm
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A Kuwaiti soldier prayed
A Kuwaiti soldier prayed as British tanks rolled over the border from Kuwait to Iraq.
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David
Thu March 27, 2003 3:12pm
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U.S. secured the town of
U.S. secured the town of Safwan on the Iraqi border with Kuwait on Friday. The portrait of Saddam Hussein marks the entrance of the town.
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David
Thu March 27, 2003 3:36pm
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Two Sudanese children who
Two Sudanese children who fled Iraq with their family walk past tents set-up by the Jordanian Red Crescent in the border area of Ruweished.
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David
Fri March 28, 2003 2:06pm
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Iraqi families waving as
Iraqi families waving as TF Tarawa enter the Iraqi border on March 21, 2003 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
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David
Thu April 17, 2003 1:48pm
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A U.S. soldier from the 3
Friday, April 4, 2003, A U.S. soldier from the 3rd Army is enveloped in dust as he stands guard at Camp Virginia in Kuwait near the Iraqi border Friday. Meanwhile, coalition forces were continuing their push toward Baghdad, Iraq.
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David
Fri April 25, 2003 1:00pm
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CGC ESCANABA, chain borde
CGC ESCANABA, chain border, Boston, Massachusetts, 1995
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David
Fri April 25, 2003 6:06pm
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CGC POINT WARDE, gray bor
CGC POINT WARDE, gray border variety, Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, 1999
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David
Sat January 3, 2004 10:15pm
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T-55 MBT
Function: Soviet front line MBT during the 1950s.
Background: Introduced in 1949, the T-54/55 is in service with more countries world-wide and in greater numbers than any other tank manufactured since World War II. The first new tank of the post-World War II Soviet Union, the T-54/55 can trace its lineage back to the IS series Stalin heavy tanks and the revolutionary T-34 medium tanks.
The T-54 entered production in the Soviet Union in 1947, and was fielded with Soviet ground forces in 1949. By 1958, the T-54 had undergone a number of improvements and modifications and was re-designated the T-55. The T-55 represents an evolution of the T-54 rather than a completely new design.
The T-55 was produced by the Soviet Union through 1981. In addition, the T-55 was also produced in China (where it was designated the Type 59), Czechoslovakia, and Poland. The T-55 is capable of fording to a depth of 1.4m without modification and to 5.5m with the addition of a snorkel kit. The T-55 is capable of producing onboard smoke by injecting vaporized diesel fuel directly onto the engine exhaust.
Though time and technology have rendered the T-55 obsolete as a front-line main battle tank, large numbers of 54/55s remain in service with militaries world-wide. The T-55 saw service in Hungary in 1956, Czechoslovakia in 1968, and in Syria in 1970. In addition, it was the main battle tank used by the Arab forces during the 1967 and 1973 Arab-Israeli wars. During the 1970s the T-54/55 also saw extensive use during the border wars in Africa. Since so many T-54/55s remain in service, many countries, such as Israel, Pakistan, and India offer upgrade packages to rebuild existing tanks using more modern, and in many cases Western, fire control components, thus extending their usable life even further.
There are currently seven production models of the T-54/55, and more than a dozen variants.
Description: The T-54/55 tank follows a conventional layout, with a dome-shaped turret centrally located on the hull and the engine mounted in the rear. The 54/55 has a crew of four; driver (located in the left hand side of the hull, forward of the turret) loader (right hand side of the turret) tank commander and gunner (both located on the left side of the turret.
The T-54/55 can be identified by the distinct gap between the first and second of its five large cast road wheels. The 54/55 uses steel track (this may be substituted for padded track in modified versions), a torsion bar "live track" suspension with no return rollers and a rear mounted drive sprocket. The T-55 does not use armored fuel cells. Instead, the fuel is stored in exposed tanks on the track fenders. The engine exhaust is expelled out the left rear side of the hull.
The 100mm cannon is centrally mounted in the turret. The cannon trunions are not protected by an armored mantlet, but rather a canvas sleeve that protects the mechanism from the elements. There is no fume extractor on the T-54, while the T-55 has a bore evacuator mounted on the muzzle of the gun.
There are two hatches on the top of the turret (loader's and tank commanders.) Both hatches open forward. In the T-54 the 12.7mm DShK AA MG is mounted in the commander's station; on the T-55 ("A" version and beyond) the machine gun is located in the loader's position.
Two infantry support rails (one straight, one curved) are affixed to the turret sides. These may be removed to accommodate ERA, APS or applique armor packages. If present the main IR searchlight will be mounted on top of the turret (to the left of the gun.) An additional searchlight may be mounted on the commander's hatch. If present, the laser rangefinder will be mounted externally on the top of the main gun itself.
Because the T-55 does not use synchronized optics for the main gun, another identifying characteristic of the T-55 is the large sighting oval on the left hand side of the turret next to the gun mantlet. The aperture on the right hand side of the turret is the firing port for the coaxial PKT-T machine gun.
General Characteristics, T-55 Main Battle Tank
Manufacturers:
Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, and Poland
Transmission:
Automatic
Engine:
580hp liquid cooled V-12 diesel
Length. Gun Forward:
20.15 feet (6.20 meters)
Width:
11.7 feet (3.60 meters)
Height:
7.54 feet (2.32 meters)
Combat Weight:
40.5 tons
Cruising Range:
500 kilometers (715 kilometers with additional fuel tanks)
Speed:
Maximum: 31 mph (50 kph)
Off road: 22 mph (35 kph)
Fording:
Without Preparation:
54.5 feet (1.4 meters)
With Snorkel:
17.9 feet (5.5 meters)
Crew:
Four (Loader, driver, gunner, tank commander)
Armament:
Main:
100mm rifled gun, D-10T2S
AT-10 Sheksna Cannon launched ATGM
Secondary:
One 12.7mm DShK anti-aircraft machine gun (loader's station.)
One 7.62mm PKT-T coaxial machine gun
Ammunition:
43 main gun rounds.
Sensors:
Drozd APS (T-55AMD, T-55AD Drozd)
Introduction Date:
1949
Variants:
T-54A: The initial production model of the T-54 tank. It has a bore evacuator at the end of the barrel for the 100mm gun, a stabilization system for the main gun (in the vertical plane only) and deep fording equipment. The turret is also equipped with a coaxially mounted PKT-T 7.62mm machine gun, and the tank commander's station is equipped with a 12.7mm DShK anti-aircraft machine gun.
T-54AK: Command tank variant of the T-54. The AK variant is a T-54A with long-range radio transmitting capability. The Polish model is the T-54AD.
T-54B: Equipped with active infra-red sights, giving the tank a limited night time fighting ability.
T-55: Essentially an upgraded T-54. The T-55 incorporates a more powerful water-cooled V-12 diesel engine. The cruising range has also been increased from 400km to 500km (range can be increased to 715km with the addition of auxiliary fuel tanks mounted on the rear of the hull.) The T-55 uses a new turret design, which incorporates an improve ventilation design and hatch design. The initial production T-55 did not have the 12.7mm DShK AA MG.
T-55A: Incorporates a new anti-radiation lining in the turret as well as a Nuclear Biological Chemical (NBC) air filtration system. The T-55A Model 1970 saw the re-introduction of the 12.7mm DShK AA MG, though it is now mounted at the loader's station.
T-55M: Added the Soviet made Volna fire control system (dual axis stabilization, laser range finder) as well as a cannon launched ATGM (AT-10 Sheksna.) Upgrades in armor protection included the addition of side skirts on the track, applique armor, as well as smoke grenade launchers. T-54s upgraded to the "M" standard were designated the T-54M
T-55AM: Adds an armor band around the front of turret for 180? coverage (similar to the T-72B "Dolly Parton" variant.)
T-55AMV: Substitutes Explosive Reactive Armor for the "bra" armor belt of the "AM" variant. Some variants have replaced the standard T-55 V-12 diesel with the 780hp V-46 12 cylinder diesel engine from T-72 MBT.
T-55AM2B: Czech version of T-55AMV with Czech built Kladivo fire control system.
T-55AM2: Variant of the T-55AM that incorporates all of the upgrades of the "M" and "AM" except for the Volna fire control system and cannon launched AT-10 ATGM.
T-55AM2P: Polish version of T-55AMV. Equipped with the Polish built Merida fire control system.
T-55AMD: T-55AMV incorporating the Drozd Active Protection System (APS) instead of ERA. Developed by the Soviet Union in 1977, the Drozd system was designed as an active defense against ATGMs and anti-tank grenades. The system was based on a number of millimeter-wave radar transceivers situated around the turret. The radar sensors would detect the approach of an ATGM and fire off short-ranged fragmentation rockets that were intended to shred the incoming missile. To prevent accidental discharge, the system was equipped with a filter to react only to objects flying at characteristic ATGM speeds. The four-barreled launchers were located on the forward part of the turret and only provided protection for the front 60? portion of the turret. To change the covered arc of coverage the crew would have to rotate the turret and orient the coverage cone on the threat.
T-55AD Drozd: Naval Infantry T-55A variant equipped with Drozd but not the Volna fire control system or ERA.
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