MOSCOW, December 7. /TASS/. Serial deliveries of the latest T-14 ‘Armata’ tank to the Russian troops will begin in 2021, Head of the state hi-tech corporation Rostec Sergei Chemezov announced on Monday.
"Serial deliveries of the T-14 tank based on the Armata platform will begin in 2021. This is, undoubtedly, the world’s best tank today. In the future, this vehicle will become the main battle tank in the Russian Army," the Rostec chief said.
In 2019, Russia formalized all the necessary documents for the export of Armata tanks, he said.
"We are advertising this tank to foreign customers. This year, it was demonstrated ‘live’ at the Army forum: visitors could come up to it, take a picture of it and touch it. It is a pity it has been impossible to demonstrate it abroad yet due to the absence of foreign exhibitions," the Rostec chief said.
Unmanned Armata version
The uncrewed version of the latest T-14 ‘Armata’ tank won’t be serial-produced but will be designed for testing unmanned technologies for other land-based robots, Chemezov said.
Currently, Russia’s Kalashnikov Group is actively developing ground combat robots. These systems have also been employed in Syria, the Rostec chief said.
"A number of our other enterprises are working on developing such systems. Even the Armata was tested as an unmanned tank. Of course, this will not be a serial-produced vehicle. We are testing unmanned technologies on it," he explained.
However, even the serial-produced Armata tank with the crew will be maximally robotized, the Rostec chief said.
"The Armata crew does not need to aim accurately. It only has to aim the gun roughly. Electronics will do all the rest: it will accurately determine the distance to the target and aim the gun at it. That is, the vehicle uses artificial intelligence elements that help the crew deliver fire," the Rostec chief said.
This algorithm is already being used in the combat robots that have been tested in Syria, he stressed.
The Armata is a heavy tracked standardized platform serving as the basis to develop a main battle tank, an infantry fighting vehicle, an armored personnel carrier and some other armored vehicles.
The T-14 tank based on the Armata combat platform has been developed by Uralvagonzavod defense manufacturer (part of Rostec). The latest tank was shown to the public for the first time at Red Square’s Victory Day parade on May 9, 2015. The Armata tank underwent preliminary trials in 2019.
The new combat vehicle differs fundamentally from its predecessors. It features fully digitized equipment, an unmanned turret and an isolated armored capsule for the crew.