PT-76 tank

In the postwar years, Soviet designers continued the original path of development of the domestic tank industry and retained their dominant position in the world.

In 1951, the PT-76 light amphibious tank entered service with the reconnaissance units of the Soviet Army. The tank was designed by the design bureau of Ya. Z. Kotin, known for his heavy tanks. The PT-76 was used in combat operations in Africa, the Middle East, the Indo-Pakistani conflict of 1965, and especially extensively from 1965 to 1975 by the North Vietnamese Army in Vietnam.

In the early 1960s, the tank underwent a deep modernization and received the PT-76B index. In the Army's reconnaissance units, the PT-76 light tanks were replaced first by medium tanks and then by main tanks. At present, modernized PT-76 tanks of various modifications are in service with the Russian Navy's marines, as well as with the armed forces of 28 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America.

Tank's high mobility is one of its characteristic features - its maximum speed on water is 10.2 km/h with good maneuverability. The armored vehicle has a large water displacement volume, which, however, resulted in its relatively light armor.

The interior of the tank is divided into three compartments. The control post is located in the front part, which includes the driver's workplace with a seat, instruments, pedals and levers, course indicators, and communication means. The driver gets into and out of the tank through a round hatch, the base of which protrudes above the upper armor plate. The control compartment also contains two batteries, a compressed air cylinder, two carbon dioxide cylinders and a firefighting system automatic gun, some spare parts and other equipment.

The combat compartment is located in the turret and the hull space. It contains a gun, a paired machine gun, observation devices and aiming devices, workstations for the tank commander (to the left of the gun) and loader (to the right of it), a Kalashnikov automatic rifle, part of the ammunition, the R-113 tank radio station, TPU devices, a hand-operated water pump, one or two hand-held fire extinguishers, part of the spare part and other equipment.

The engine-transmission compartment is located in the aft part of the hull and is isolated from the combat compartment by a partition. It houses the engine and its systems, transmission, water cannons, two fuel tanks, water drainage pumps and other equipment.

The main armament of the PT-76B tank is the 76-mm D-56TS tank gun, which differs from the D-56T in the design of the muzzle brake and the presence of an ejection purge of the barrel channel. Its ammunition consists of 40 unitary rounds, 24 of which are high-explosive grenades, 4 armor-piercing grenades, 4 sub-caliber armor-piercing grenades and 8 shaped charge rounds.