Korean has T80U, part of the debt contra with Russia. T80U and BMP-3.
PLA Ground Forces news, pics and videos
- Thread starter Jeff Head
- Start date
In early 1990s, the Russians was trying to export their weapons to China, so they set up a "Weapon expo" in Beijing and invited PLA officials to inspect the weapons in person. This is the context of the photo. The old man second from the right is Zhang Wannian, he was a PLA general and a member of the Central Military Commission at that time.
Now, if you argue that "getting one's hand onto something" means "acquiring it", you've got a point. However, while deals were made on purchasing S-300, Tor M1, BMP-3 (weapons system only), 2S9 (weapon system only), etc., the PLA did not purchase T-80U from Russia. No official announcement indicating such deal existed, and no T-80U entered service, and none was observed by a 3rd party. Unlike the Romanian T-72 Ural which had plenties of picture records of it being disassembled, having its parts measured, being reassembled, and being tested, T-80U had none. Today, you can see photos of that T-72 Ural parking in a museum somewhere in China, but the mysterious T-80U is nowhere to be found. Only some non-Chinese sources claim that China purchased 50 T-80Us.
The PLA obviously lacked the motive to purchase Russian T-80U. China's own 3rd Gen MBT project, WZ123, later known as type 99, was going well and already had a few prototypes made. Besides, unlike Korea, who acquired a whole bunch of T-80Us and BMP-3s because Russia used them to pay for its debt, China had to pay for these tanks out of its own pocket, and remember, China in the 1990s was not as economically prosperous as it is now. And Russia obviously wouldn't allow China to purchase just one or two T-80Us for reverse engineering.
Moreover, if the Chinese did have T-80U, do you think they will spare it from the main gun of type 99? But in reality, Chinese engineers had to use a heavily enhanced type 69 tank to simulate the armor of T-80U:
In conclusion, I don't think the rumor of Chinese T-80U stands itself.
And the Chinese did later got licensed RO 105mm rifled gun from Austria.
by78
General
If you want to post unverified rumors on troop movements with unverified images, do it somewhere else. Sinodefence Forum is not for fanboys, so please take your sensationalist nonsense elsewhere.
by78
General
Please exercise some common sense and judgement. Sinodefence Forum isn't .
It's likely for the possibility of a harsher winter up north. My father in Tianjin got the same notice. Not sure why Xiamen would be getting it. Maybe they're expecting some supply issues?
120mm smoothbore cannon was actually put into service before 125mm as part of the Type 89 tank destroyer.
12.7mm happiness...
