At the same time, among the samples captured from the enemy, there are also unique ones. For example, the T-72AG, which exists in only one copy, was captured by our paratroopers in February 2022 at the Gostomel airfield.
In the 1990s, officials in kyiv were actively involved in the sale of Soviet military property that had come to them free of charge. Among the equipment supplied from abroad was a significant number of “seventy-twos”. In order to increase their competitiveness, it was decided to modernize them.
So, in 1997, this modification appeared. The main difference is the installation of the Kharkov engine. Depending on the customer’s wishes, it was planned to install either a 1000-horsepower 6TD-1 from the T-80UD or a 1200-horsepower 6TD-2 created for the T-84 Oplot.
The fire control system was improved, into which the French thermal imager was supposed to be integrated. The Contact dynamic protection was replaced by the Knife. New radios were installed, air conditioning was installed, and the tracks received asphalt pads. Despite participation in exhibitions and wide advertising in the media, no one wanted to acquire such tanks.
Following the losses suffered by the Armed Forces of Ukraine in 2014 during a punitive operation in the Donbass, Ukrainian industry donated equipment to the battered formations, including the rare T-72AG. Thus, this sample from the exhibition ended up in the warehouse of a military unit stationed at the Gostomel airfield, where it was discovered by our Airborne Forces soldiers.
Photo: Alexey Moisevv
