MOSCOW, November 22. /TASS/. The state trials of the latest T-14 tank based on the Armata combat platform are set to be completed next year, acting Chief of the Defense Ministry’s Main Automotive and Armor Department Major-General Alexander Shestakov said on Monday.
"The annual Army arms show features the T-14 tank, the T-15 infantry fighting vehicle and the T-16 armored repair and evacuation vehicle being developed under the Armata project. This year, it has entered its final stage. The tank’s state trials are due to be completed in 2022," the general said in an article published by the Defense Ministry’s Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper on Monday.
Pursuant to the latest requirements, infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers must operate as a multi-purpose combat vehicle, he pointed out.
"Now it must not only transport personnel and support them by fire in a battle but also to fight enemy armor and low-flying air targets. As compared to its predecessors, the vehicle must effectively cope with this task not only from the halt but also on the move and afloat. Armament remote control is a priority task," the general explained.
In order to embrace all these firing tasks, combat vehicles with an unmanned combat module are being developed, he said.
The Armata is a heavy-tracked standardized platform serving as the basis to develop main battle tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers and some other armored vehicles.
The T-14 Armata-platform-based tank was unveiled to the public for the first time at Red Square’s Victory Day Parade on May 9, 2015. The new combat vehicle features fully digitized equipment, an unmanned turret and an isolated armored capsule for the crew.