MOSCOW, August 31. /TASS/. Uralvagonzavod defense manufacturer (part of the state hi-tech corporation Rostec) is working on a new version of a tank support combat vehicle based on the Armata standardized platform, Uralvagonzavod General Director Alexander Potapov told TASS on Monday.
The new combat vehicle will get a 57mm gun and will receive a Russian name, possibly the Ilya Muromets, the general director said.
"If we speak about the tank support fighting vehicle, this combat module can be mounted on the Armata platform with the 57mm caliber as the next stage. We are working on this option as well. We will continue our R&D work in this direction," he said.
The previous version of the tank support combat vehicle is based on the T-72 tank and is called the Terminator. Compared to it, the new version will have a Russian name, the company chief said.
"The only thing is that the name Terminator is very popular. But I still want a Russian name. Let Terminators be in the United States while we will have Ilya Muromets, Vladimir Monomakh or something else," the Uralvagonzavod chief said.
The Russian Army currently operates Terminator tank support combat vehicles mounted on the chassis of the T-72 tank.
The Terminator tank support combat vehicle features two 30mm 2A42 guns with an ammunition load of 900 rounds. The combat vehicle is also armed with an Ataka-T anti-tank missile system, 30mm automatic grenade launchers and a large-caliber machine-gun.
The Terminator is designed to provide fire support for the armor in an offensive, including the task of fighting enemy personnel armed with man-portable anti-tank weapon systems.