I don't know why would they do that, but it is obviously a mistake. Such guns are obsolete in modern times, almost everybody except British switched to smooth-bore (and even British planed to actually do that before budget cuts) .
the thing is that the smooth bore gun on the T90 Bheeshma is not Russian , its Indian
Russia never gave teh TOT for the gun , even though they took the money
Then HVF officials discovered that Russia had withheld key T-90S technologies without valid reason. This included technology for crucial components like the tank’s main gun and a key section of the turret armour. When New Delhi demanded those technologies, Moscow blandly responded that they were secret. To this day, Russia has not transferred full technology for building the T-90S in India.
The MoD has not responded to emailed questions about this issue. But when Business Standard asked MSN Rao, General Manager of HVF Avadi, how the T-90S was being built without these technologies, he confirmed: “We developed the tank gun indigenously in Central Ordnance Depot, Kanpur, and the turret armour component in CVRDE (Combat Vehicles R&D Establishment), Avadi. This is still a sticking point between India and Russia.”
other problems that were found
First it took one and a half years to transfer to India the ToT documents required for building the T-90S in India. The tonnes of documents that finally arrived were found to be in Russian; translating them into English took another one and a half years.
By end-2007, Russia’s blockade of contracted T-90S technologies and components had stalled indigenous production for almost seven years. Under pressure from the army for more tanks, the MoD capitulated to Moscow rewarding Uralvagonzavod with an order for 347 more made-in-Russia T-90S tanks. Only after this additional contract was signed did Russia begin supplying components for building the T-90S in HVF.
An Indian Army officer who voiced his frustration to his Russian counterparts recalls the taunting Russian response: “Starting T-72 production took you 10 years. How do you imagine that you will produce the T-90 in just 6-7 years?”
During that crisis with Pakistan, the army also discovered that the T-90S sights were not calibrated to Indian tank ammunition, which was falling well short of the targets that it was fired at. A panicked MoD appealed to the DRDO and other research institutions to re-orient the T-90S’s fire control computer to Indian ammunition. Meanwhile, shiploads of tank rounds were ordered from Russia at great cost.
A simultaneous crisis developed around the T-90S’s Invar missile, earlier cited as a clinching reason for buying the tank. But the Invar missiles that came were unusable and they were quietly returned to Russia. On March 2, 2006, Antony told Parliament, “The Invar missile on T-90 tank is not a failure. However, the completely knocked down kits received for assembly have been found to be defective.”
so the question is , why buy a foreign tank which comes all the mentioned headaches ,
and the only thing it is superior to the arjun is its smooth bore gun.
not to mention that smooth bore gun is indian.
and a little about bheeshma and arjun after whom the t90s and arjun have been named
Indian journalists have recently said that the competition between the tanks Arjun and Bhishma reminds the epic Mahabharata where in the end, Arjun defeated Bhishma.
However, it’s unclear whether it is worth matching battle tanks which were named after the heroes of the Indian epic. The differences in their characteristics pave the way for using them in various theatres of possible wars.
Consequently, in this case, it will be more appropriate another comparison. Bhishma was not only the uncle, but also the mentor of Pandavas and Kauravas. He taught them, including Arjun, the subtleties the art of war. Bhishma gave Arjun’s army the hints on how to defeat its main enemy, he himself.
India is interested in developing its own new generation tank, Futuristic Main Battle Tank. Undoubtedly, experience acquired in the development of Arjun, as well as the production of the licensed Bhimshma will help to achieve this task.
Read more:
the army's biggest grudge against the arjun is its weight, so the DRDO proposed the Tank EX (KARN)
if the army had accepted it the arjun programme wouldn't have become the financial disaster it became
This MBT uses the chassis of the T-72M1 (Ajeya) and turret and weapon system of the Arjun. It was developed in 2002 as a private venture and was intended to provide a solution for upgrading the Indian Army's ageing T-72M1 fleet
Weighing in at 47 tons, the Tank Ex is heavier than the T-72M1 (41 tons) and much lighter than the Arjun MBT, (58.4 tons). It has a 1,000 hp (700 kW) power plant giving a power-to-weight ratio of 21 hp (16 kW)/ton for a total weight of 47 tons. This represents an improvement over the T-72M1's 20 hp (15 kW)/ton, with a weight of 41 tons and a 780 hp (582 kW) power plant. The Tank Ex utilizes the Arjun MBT's 120 mm rifled gun firing unitary and semi combustible cartridge case ammunition. A total of 32 rounds are carried, as compared with 39 in the Arjun and 45 two piece rounds in the T-72. A is provided for accurate navigation. This is a feature common to both the Arjun MBT and the Combat Improved Ajeya.
The Tank Ex utilizes the "" , especially over its frontal arc (turret as well as ), giving it protection against both Kinetic and rounds. The usage of the Arjun turret design indicates that the Tank Ex may also have its "ready" ammunition stored in the bustle (as in the Arjun), separated from the crew and provided with blow-off panels. This would be a significant protective feature comparable with Western design practices. The Tank Ex retains the T-72's mobility, with a road speed of 60 km/h and a cross-country speed of 40 km/h. With a maximum gradient climb of 30 degrees, it remains in line with all variants of the T-72, like the T-72BM. The Tank Ex is better at trench crossing with a capability of crossing 2.6 meters as compared to the T-72M1's 2.28 meters. The Tank Ex can also climb vertical obstacles up to 0.85 meters tall. The tank's shallow fording capabilities are quoted as 1.2 meters. The Tank Ex should also have the capability to fire the missile from its gun-barrel, like the Arjun
Last edited:
