I doubt Ukrainian forces are watching our little Lemmy Community here, but in case they are here’s an idea.
Use old T-55 tanks, with some modifications, as engineering recovery vehicles for Ukrainian Droid TW-12.7 and other UGV (uncrewed ground vehicles).
T-55 tanks do not provide enough firepower or protection for Ukrainian soldiers, so I completely agree with Ukraine’s decision to not field them as crewed tanks. Ukrainian soldier’s lives are too valuable to put them in harms way in a T-55 on the battlefield. However, as an uncrewed vehicle there may be value.
- being heavy tracked vehicles the T-55 might be able to traverse ground that smaller modern UGVs would get stuck in.
- T-55s have strong armor against small arms.
- The rotating turret with its long barrel could be used as a boom with a electric winch welded to its end for attaching to stuck, damage, or discharged UGVs to drag them back to the rear for repair/recharge/redeployment.
- The converted T-55 could itself would be uncrewed (keeping Ukrainian solders safer behind off frontlines) with robotic controls installed to drive the tank, work the turret, and winch.
- the T-55 being diesel means it can convert fuel into electricity on the battlefield. Future UGV combat vehicle batteries could be recharged in situ allowing them to loiter longer without having the combat UGVs to return to the rear to recharge. Alternatively, the robotic T-55 might be able to do battlefield battery swap with more substantial battery and UGV modification.
- The T-55 usually has a manually loading 100mm gun. Last time I heard these shells were in short supply, and also require manual loading. These smaller shells don’t provided enough power to justify fielding artillery units or tank battalions with. However, Ukrainian operators could load a single round into the gun prior to deploying the robotic T-55 converted engineering vehicle. It would allow operators to also fire that one round in defense, or offense on the battlefield remotely. Because on a single round would be available for firing, the meager 100mm shell supply would be significantly extended.
The obvious problem is that I’d imagine a T-55 on the battlefield would be swarmed by Russian drones the moment it shows its there so this idea is likely not viable from the beginning.
Thoughts?
Thank you for your kind idea.
AFAIK, as soon as Ukrainian UGWs get immovable, they are prone to be irrevocably destroyed by FPVs in the kill zone.
The essential thing to enhance survivability in the kill zone is to lessen chances of detection.
T-55 tanks with their loud noize, big size and huge signature are almost certain to be immediately noticed and destroyed in the kill zone.
So, even if a stuck UGV doesn’t get destroyed soon by some miracle, it’s rather to be recovered by another UGV or other means.
Heavy camping gear that is old and in good condition can be totally fine but what about when you gotta push it up a hill or get stuck in mud.
Even if you don’t actually arm it; the attackers on the front likely don’t know that. Even just having it rolling around is going to have an impact on who moves where and when.
I certainly wouldn’t want to advance towards a functional tank, betting it wont/can’t shoot me.
if it’s cheap to convert, because it’s done a lot, russian drones swarming it is actually good. it can be used to draw fire, exhaust their drone supply or distract them.
As always there’s opportunity costs with things like this, and putting fabricators on the project of reworking and refitting decrepit Soviet dogshit takes them away from other things that are probably more valuable.
