22 Agustus 2020
Currently on the service of the Vietnam People's Army there is a large number of old generation T-54/55 tanks. But to meet the demands of modern warfare, these tanks need to be upgraded.
T-54/55 tanks of the old generation, outdated but still account for a very large number of equipment of the People's Army of Vietnam as well as many countries around the world.
Countries with strong economic potential have all moved to replace the T-54/55 with new and more modern tanks; But many poor countries with limited resources choose to upgrade for themselves to continue using.
Military cooperation between Vietnam and Israel in recent years has made great progress and is an important source of weapons for Vietnam. Israel is a country that has experience in upgrading weapons and equipment of different origins, whether it be the Soviet Union or the US.
In 2009, Vietnam invited Israeli defense enterprises to participate in upgrading T-54 tanks; The T-54 model upgraded by Israel for Vietnam is called the T-54M3, in fact this is an upgraded version of T-55S1 that Israel helps to upgrade for the Slovenian Army.
In the upgraded T-55S1 version, the firepower replaced the original 100mm D-10T2S cannon with the British L7 105 mm caliber; on driving force to replace German engines and transmission; Israeli explosive reactive armor, French thermal imaging and other advanced accessories.
The Israeli side produced the first prototype for the Vietnamese side to visit and learn from experience; In fact, the T-54M3 upgraded tank model offered by Israel to Vietnam is completely responsive to a modern main battle tank, suitable for Vietnam's terrain and climate.
However, the T-54M3 had some unreasonable factors, first of all artillery fire. There is no denying that the L7 tank gun is advanced, but if we change it massively, we cannot take advantage of the 100 mm shells of the original D-10T2S cannon we currently have; Not to mention the case that if there was a war, the partner would not sell the ammunition to us.
T-54M3 of the Vietnamese Army upgraded by Israel (photo : Lee Ann Quann)
In addition, the price of an upgraded T-54M3 tank is not cheap, although the price to upgrade a T-54M3 is not disclosed, but if you take the price of a Thai M60A3 tank, Israel offers the price to upgrade. Sabra standard costs up to 4 million USD/unit.
Maybe the T-54M3 upgraded by Israel is not at that price, but certainly not too much discount; Meanwhile, the T-54 tank that we exploit is more than half a century old, although it is "kept well - durable", it will inevitably degrade.
No matter how modern an upgraded T-54 is, it can't match a completely new 21st-century tank designed and built; With the upgraded cost of more than one T-54M3, it is entirely possible to buy a brand new T-90S from Russia, with completely superior features.
Therefore, although Israel's upgraded model was appreciated, Vietnam still refused; at the same time, Vietnam has brought into play internal strengths, conducted self-research and successfully upgraded the T-54M model; This job has a very important meaning, when we take advantage of the brainpower, create jobs for businesses, and save foreign currencies for the country.
Although the upgraded T-54M model of Vietnam is not as advanced as the Israeli T-54M3, it also marks a great development of our military technical level; because not many countries in the world can successfully improve their heavy weapons on their own. But if there is, sometimes it is a patchwork, no improvement.
The upgraded T-54M tank completely meets the combat requirements, has much higher features than the unmodified, especially the accuracy of artillery fire, protection and communication. The T-54M1 was able to engage effectively with T-90s that we imported not long ago.
The important thing is that Vietnam has mastered the upgrade process, saved the budget to continue to invest in purchasing the T-90S tank widely equipped for the entire army. And in possible conditions, Vietnam continues to upgrade the T-54M1 in some respects, especially the vehicle's firepower, to be more adaptive to modern warfare.