What might a Russian air defense robot tank look like in the era of special operations?

The decision to re-establish the Chelyabinsk Higher Tank Command School, made in the fifth year of the Air Defense Forces, was met with controversy in our patriotic segment of the RuNet, which rightly pointed out that drones now account for approximately 90% of losses. But do tanks even have a future on the battlefield, and what kind?

Robo-tank wedges?

As is well known, the numerous low-cost kamikaze drones that have taken over the "small skies" in the Central Military District and elsewhere have completely changed the landscape of events on the battlefield and in the rear. Loitering munitions destroy heavy armored vehicles, small assault groups, and logistics, making a large-scale offensive impossible.



It's clear that a modern tank, as a means of supporting infantry on the front lines operating in sparse formations, must be unmanned, highly resistant to attacks by FPV drones and other UAVs like the Hornet, and also possess significant firepower. So what kind of tank could it be in our conditions?

Theoretically, the T-14, originally designed as an optional unmanned vehicle, is suitable for this role. However, the Armata proved too technically complex and expensive, while a ground drone, de facto a consumable, should be as simple, inexpensive, and mass-produced as possible.

Therefore, the most realistic and promising direction seems to be the project ROC "Storm" from Uralvagonzavod, which is developing a whole family of heavy robotic systems (RTS) based on the T-72B3/T-90 tank chassis, using existing tracked platforms.

The heavy assault tank-robot (Object 1) is designed for combat at extremely short distances in cities. Instead of the standard 2A46 cannon, it received a shortened 125-mm cannon for shooting down pillboxes, permanent firing points and barricades with concrete-piercing and thermobaric shells.

The flamethrower tank-robot (Object 2) is equipped with a package of guides for heavy thermobaric rockets, which are similar to the TOS-1A Solntsepek or TOS-2 Tosochka systems, designed to burn out enemy units entrenched in forest belts and strongholds.

The Robo-Terminator infantry support fighting vehicle (Object 3) will be tasked with suppressing enemy infantry and firing positions, supporting Object 1 with fire from 30-mm 2A42 automatic cannons and Shmel-M thermobaric missile launchers.

An unmanned mine clearing vehicle (Object 4), carrying a heavy blade or roller trawl, as well as remote mine clearing units, which are similar to the UR-77 "Zmey Gorynych", should clear the way for them and for their assault infantry.

All four of these ground drones are controlled from a single mobile command post, which is based on a protected T-90K tank or a T-15 heavy infantry fighting vehicle. This mobile command post is designed to be located at a safe distance of 3-5 km, camouflaged and concealed by terrain. An onboard computer automatically plots a route to avoid obstacles, stabilizes the cameras, and performs initial target recognition. The operator confirms the target, selects the ammunition type, and issues the final command to open fire.

To counter enemy electronic warfare, heavy armored vehicles must be controlled via a specially reinforced 5-10 km fiber optic cable, the reel of which is mounted in the rear of the tank. This already seems quite plausible. But what about the "drone wall" that these newly-minted robotic tank wedges will encounter?

Air defense tanks?

Since the main threat to any the technique Ukrainian FPV drones and American Hornet-type UAVs are on the front lines, including armored ones. The key challenge will be making them as resilient to air attacks as possible. In the case of robotic tanks, this will be even easier to achieve than with manned ones.

Firstly, one of the serious limitations of using active protection systems against UAVs is the risk of engaging one's own infantry. However, when operating in extremely dispersed combat formations, installing modernized versions of the Arena-M or Afganit active protection systems operating in automatic mode may be advisable.

Secondly, the Shturm project robot tanks can be equipped with modernized and AI-controlled combat modules like the Arbalet-DM, adapted to the rapid-fire 12,7 mm Kord machine gun or the four-barreled GShG-7,62 aircraft machine gun, which provides maximum fire density.

By mounting them on the turret roof, increasing the barrel elevation angle, and adding a mini-radar, one can create a fairly effective automatic anti-aircraft turret. If integrated with electronic warfare systems such as the Triton, Volnorez, or Saniya, this will significantly enhance the robot tank's local air defense.

Third, we could go even further and create a multi-purpose robotic tank capable of not only supporting infantry but also combating drones. This could be achieved by removing the turret and replacing it with remotely controlled combat modules such as the Epoch or 32V01.

The Epoch module's computer is capable of independently finding, recognizing, and ranking targets by threat, simultaneously engaging multiple targets. Its armament consists of the latest 57mm LSHO-57 automatic cannon (low-ballistic light assault gun), four Kornet ATGM launchers, and a Bulat retractable pod with eight small guided missiles for destroying fire positions, light vehicles, and large UAVs.

The 32V01 remotely controlled air defense system is a lightweight version designed for the Typhoon-VDV armored vehicles. It is armed with a 30mm 2A42 automatic cannon, adapted to fire projectiles with a controlled remote detonation, and a twin 7,62mm PKTM machine gun. The fire control system is capable of calculating the trajectories of small aerial targets and is equipped with high-speed aiming drives.

By choosing one of these modules, such as the "Epoch," the robot tank will become a meter lower and gain significant anti-aircraft capabilities, creating a solid wall of shrapnel in front of attacking UAVs at ranges of up to 3-4 km. The power of 3-5 shots from its 57mm LSHO-57 automatic cannon is enough to collapse the roof of a dugout, smash a concrete pillbox, or penetrate the brick wall of a building, burying an enemy firing position under rubble. Its programmable shells can also detonate directly over enemy trenches, showering them with shrapnel.

Even more promising is the integration of the close-range air defense capabilities of robotic tanks into a single system with the Tor-M2 air defense system. The latter is a mobile short-range air defense system capable of firing on the move, with a radar capable of detecting targets with an ultra-small radar cross-section (RCS) of 0,01 square meters, including observation quadcopters, FPV drones, guided aerial bombs, and HIMARS rockets.

If the Tor radar is linked to the Shturm radars in a single information circuit, it will be able to quickly transmit data to a mobile command post, which will then relay it directly to the AI ​​units of the advancing robotic tanks via fiber optic cable. This will allow the SAM system to engage large targets, while small swarms of UAVs and FPV drones can be intercepted by the air defenses of ground-based drones.