The T-62 is a Soviet medium tank that was first introduced in 1961. As a further development of the T-55 series, the T-62 retained many similar design elements of its predecessor including low profile and thick turret armour.
In contrast with previous tanks, which were armed with rifled tank guns, the T-62 was the first production tank armed with a smoothbore tank gun that could fire APFSDS rounds at higher velocities (the U.S. prototype T95 medium tank was the first tank ever built with a smoothbore gun).
While the T-62 became the standard tank in the Soviet arsenal, it did not fully replace the T-55 in export markets due to its higher manufacturing costs and maintenance requirements compared to its predecessor.
Although it was followed by later models in successor states of the Soviet Union, the T-62 remained in reserve in the former USSR and in frontline use by other countries. Design features of the T-62 became standardized in subsequent Soviet and Russian mass-produced tanks.
The armament consists of the 115 mm U-5TS “Molot” (2A20) Rapira smoothbore tank gun with a two-axis “Meteor” stabiliser and 7.62 mm PKT coaxial general-purpose machine gun mounted on the right of the main gun. The 12.7 mm DShK 1938/46 antiaircraft heavy machine gun is mounted on the loader’s hatch. It was optional until 1972 when all newly built tanks were fitted with the AA heavy machine gun.
The tank carries 40 rounds for the main gun. 4 rounds are placed in the turret, and the rest are stored in the back of the fighting compartment and in the front of the hull, to the right of the driver. It carries 2,500 rounds for the coaxial machine gun. All of the vehicle’s armament is mounted in or on the round cast egg-shaped turret from the Ob’yekt 140 prototype main battle tank, mounted over the third pair of road wheels.
The T-62 was armed with the world’s first smoothbore tank gun, giving it considerably greater muzzle velocity than the Western 90 mm and 105 mm tank guns of its time. It can fire BM-3 APFSDS-T, BK-4, BK-4M HEAT and OF-18 Frag-HE rounds. The 115 mm gun introduced the first successful APFSDS ammunition, albeit with a steel penetrator. A smoothbore gun allowed a significantly better performance (from 10% to 20%) over HEAT ammunition, which was considered the main ammunition type for fighting enemy armour at medium and long ranges.
Manufacturer: Uralvagonzavod
Saumur museum of armored vehicles
