Kontakt-5 is a type of second-generation

explosive reactive armour Reactive armour is a type of vehicle armour that reacts in some way to the impact of a weapon to reduce the damage done to the vehicle being protected. It is most effective in protecting against shaped charges and specially hardened kinetic ener ...

(ERA) originating in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. It is the first type of ERA that is able to significantly decrease the penetration of

armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot Armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS), long dart penetrator, or simply dart ammunition, is a type of kinetic energy penetrator ammunition used to attack modern vehicle armour. As an armament for main battle tanks, it succeeds ...

(APFSDS) rounds.

Description

Introduced on the

T-80U List of models and variants of the T-80 main battle tank. Command tanks with additional radio equipment have ''K'' added to their designation for ''komandirskiy'' ("command"), for example, ''T-80BK'' is the command version of the T-80B. Version ...

tank in 1985, Kontakt-5 is made up of "bricks" of explosive sandwiched between two metal plates. The plates are arranged in such a way as to move sideways rapidly when the explosive detonates. This will force an incoming

kinetic energy penetrator A kinetic energy penetrator (KEP), also known as long-rod penetrator (LRP), is a type of ammunition designed to penetrate vehicle armour using a flechette-like, high-sectional density projectile. Like a bullet or kinetic energy weapon, this type ...

or shaped charge jet to cut through more armour than the thickness of the plating itself, since "new" plating is constantly fed into the penetrating body. A kinetic energy penetrator will also be subjected to powerful sideways forces, which might be large enough to cut the rod into two or more pieces. This will significantly reduce the penetrating capabilities of the penetrator, since the penetrating force will be dissipated over a larger volume of armour. Newer KE penetrators like the US M829A3, were "driven by the need to counter KE-effective explosive reactive armor (ERA)". Relikt was designed by the Russian army in response to the new developments. Relikt is the 3rd generation Russian ERA, and is claimed to be twice as effective as Kontakt-5. It can be installed on T-72B and

T-90 The T-90 is a third-generation Russian main battle tank. It uses a 125mm 2A46 smoothbore main gun, the 1A45T fire-control system, an upgraded engine, and gunner's thermal sight. Standard protective measures include a blend of steel and compos ...

tanks and was adopted in 2006. The Russian Army

T-72B3M The T-72 is a Soviet-designed main battle tank that entered production in 1971. It replaced the T-54/55 series as the workhorse of Soviet tank forces (while the T-64 and T-80 served as the Soviet high-technology tanks). In front-line Russian s ...

main battle tank A main battle tank (MBT), also known as a battle tank or universal tank, is a tank that fills the role of armor-protected direct fire and maneuver in many modern armies. Cold War-era development of more powerful engines, better suspension sys ...

incorporates Relikt. Developed by NII Stali, Relikt uses a completely new composition of explosives to achieve dynamics protection. Unlike Kontakt-1, it works equally reliably against both low-velocity and high-velocity missiles, doubling protection against

shaped charge A shaped charge is an explosive charge shaped to form an explosively formed penetrator (EFP) to focus the effect of the explosive's energy. Different types of shaped charges are used for various purposes such as cutting and forming metal, init ...

s and increasing

anti-tank guided missile An anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), anti-tank missile, anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW) or anti-armor guided weapon is a guided missile primarily designed to hit and destroy heavily armored military vehicles. ATGMs range in size from shoulder ...

protection by 50 percent. Relikt defends against tandem warheads and reduces penetration of APFSDS rounds by over 50 percent. Kontakt-5 armour is employed by

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

(T90-S) and

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

(on

M-84AS The M-84AS prototype main battle tank is a modernized version of the M-84 produced by Yugoimport SDPR in Serbia. M-84AS is sometimes referred to as ''M-84AB1'' and ''M-2001'' and is based mostly on imported components. Design The modernization give ...

MBT), among others. Malachit is the latest (4th) generation Russian explosive reactive armor, mounted on Armata project vehicles.

Operators

* * *

and T-72AG *

T-72B3 The T-72 is a Soviet Union, Soviet-designed main battle tank that entered production in 1971. It replaced the T-54/55 series as the workhorse of Soviet tank forces (while the T-64 and T-80 served as the Soviet high-technology tanks). In front- ...

* Relikt allegedly on Karrar and on a T-72M upgrade by the

IRGC The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC; fa, سپاه پاسداران انقلاب اسلامی, Sepāh-e Pāsdārān-e Enghelāb-e Eslāmi, lit=Army of Guardians of the Islamic Revolution also Sepāh or Pasdaran for short) is a branch o ...

, dubbed T-72M Rakhsh. Kontakt-5 used on an unnamed

T-72S The T-72 is a Soviet Union, Soviet-designed main battle tank that entered production in 1971. It replaced the T-54/55 series as the workhorse of Soviet tank forces (while the T-64 and T-80 served as the Soviet high-technology tanks). In front- ...

upgrade. *

and T-72M Rakhsh * T-80U and T-80UK *

and

References

{{reflist

External links

Additional information
* http://www.arms-expo.ru/news/predpriyatiya/nii_stali_na_poroge_novykh_otkrytiy_/ Armoured fighting vehicle equipment Vehicle armour Weapons countermeasures Science and technology in the Soviet Union Soviet inventions

Description

Operators

See also

References

External links